Kobe Bryant: Deliberately Arrogant
Posted on April 25, 2008
Kobe Bryant has done a lot of talking in the first two games of the Lakers’ first round series against the Nuggets. He has also backed it up with his play.
We could talk about everything Kobe Bryant did with the basketball in Game 2. We could talk about the 25 points he had at halftime on .667 shooting, including 10 straight made shots.
We could marvel at his final tally of 49 points and 10 assists while shooting 18-for-27, and the fact that he contributed directly to 71 of the Lakers’ 122 points.
We could compose a veritable highlight reel just from Kobe’s Game 2 performance, including high-flying fast break dunks, off-balance running jumpers, double-crossover drives, and of course, the acrobatic one-handed alley-oop off of Pau Gasol’s beautiful over-the-head lob.
But none of the above is the story of the game. The story of the game — nay, of the series — is, once again, Kobe Bryant’s on-court attitude. He’s confident. He’s cocky. In fact, he’s down right arrogant…
Filed Under J.R. Smith, Kenyon Martin, Kobe Bryant, Lakers, Nuggets, Playoffs, Teammate, arrogance, big games, cockiness, leadership, smack, trash talk | 15 Comments
Kobe Dominates — Even When He Doesn’t
Posted on April 24, 2008
And that, folks, is why Kobe Bryant deserves more credit for Sunday’s Game 1 than his 9-for-26 stat line would seem to indicate.
Yes, he shot poorly in Game 1. Yes, at times he failed to run the offense. And yes, he did finish with only one assist. On the other hand, however, he was the reason that Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, and Luke Walton were nearly unstoppable.
He made them pay, tallying 49 points and 10 assists on 18-27 shooting, directly contributing to 71 of the Lakers’ 122 points. His performance was exactly what the Nuggets were afraid of — and what they did their best to prevent — in Game 1. It is why they willingly left other Lakers unguarded…
Filed Under Kenyon Martin, Kobe Bryant, Lakers, MVP, Nuggets, Playoffs, Statistics, big games, leadership | 4 Comments