"I can't believe this has actually happened."
That's what Kobe Bryant remarked during his final post-game press conference after his last game in the NBA.
With five NBA championships, 18 all-star game appearances and an MVP award under his belt, Bryant's career is impressive to say the least.
After a successful 20-year stint in the NBA with the LA Lakers, the star shooting guard went out with a bang.
The Mamba's last game sold out Staples Center, and the Lakers ended their season with a 101-96 comeback win against the Utah Jazz.
On Wednesday night, the 37-year-old basketball star broke a number of records. In their win against the Utah Jazz, Bryant alone scored 60 points—the most points scored by a single player this NBA season and more than any member of the Hall of Fame during his final game. In addition, Bryant was also the oldest player in NBA history to score that many points in one game.
Fans celebrate after Kobe's big win
In the sold out Staples Center, big name celebrities were in attendance at the game in support of the NBA legend, such as Snoop Dogg, Magic Johnson, Kanye West and many others. Flea, the bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, also played the National Anthem before the game.
Kobe and Kanye have a moment
After Wednesday night's game, Bryant holds the record for the third most total career points in NBA history at 33,643 points, only behind two of the greatest NBA players of all time Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
Former teammate Shaquille O'Neal goes in for the embrace after Bryant's big game. O'Neal called Bryant "the greatest Laker ever."
When asked if this was the perfect ending to his NBA career, Bryant remarked, "The perfect ending would have been a championship...but tonight was trying to go out, playing hard and trying to put on a show as much as I possibly could."
And he definitely did.
Although this is the end of the Bryant era, Lakers fans remain hopeful about the future of their team and the many great players to come.
"You can't write something better than this," he said.