The matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers needed an extra session to decide on the winner, but Kobe Bryant has no time for that.

In a frantic finish that saw Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hoist a desperation 3-pointer that found nothing but air before the final buzzer sounded, the Staples Center crowd needed to catch its breath after seeing the Lakers almost pull off an upset over the defending champion Warriors.

However, Bryant, who was the star of the night, opted for an early exit right after regulation ended.

Mamba out.

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Call it Mamba Vision or Mamba Instinct, but maybe Kobe Bryant, armed with 20 years of NBA knowledge, figured that his Lakers have already ran out their luck. The Warriors are too savvy of a team to not learn from dodging defeat the first time around.

Maybe he just wanted to beat the L.A. traffic knowing how many people went downtown to witness his jersey retirement ceremony. Your guess, as crazy as it may be, is as good as ours.

The Lakers went on to lose the matchup, 116-114. But promising performances were seen from the team's three youngsters in Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Kyle Kuzma, that could've been inspired by the mere presence of Kobe Bryant at the arena.