Howling displays
Five memorable Kobe Bryant games against the Timberwolves:
Nov. 3, 1996
The debut
He made his NBA debut against the Timberwolves in the Lakers’ second game that season, playing six scoreless minutes off the bench in a 91-85 victory at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif.
Dec. 21, 1996
First game at Target Center
An announced audience of 18, 127 watched Bryant play 11 minutes and score five points in his first game at Target Center, a 103-88 loss to the Wolves.
May 27, 2004
Court by day, night
By day, he shuttled by private jet to a Colorado court hearing in a sexual-assault case later dismissed when he reached a civil-lawsuit settlement with his accuser. By night, he scored 31 points in a 92-85 victory at Staples Center that gave the Lakers a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference Finals, a series they won in six games.
March 18, 2007
Offensive machine
One game after he scored 65 points against Portland, Bryant went for 50 on 48.6-percent shooting in Los Angeles in a 109-102 victory over a Wolves team soon headed toward the end of the first Kevin Garnett era.
Dec. 14, 2014
Ascending ranks
Two second-quarter free throws moved him past Michael Jordan and into third place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone. A clutch three-pointer with 62 seconds left broke a tied score and sent the Lakers to a 100-94 victory at Target Center.
Jerry Zgoda
