Kobe Has Quiet Night, Lakers Lose Game 1
As much as I hate Kobe Bryant and as much as I want the Phoenix Suns to win the first round series against the Lakers, Kobe’s performance (22 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists) lacked the flare that he usually brings to the playoffs. With a season performance good enough to make a solid run for MVP and the scoring title, you would have expected more from Kobe especially with the playoffs on the line.
The sad part about this loss which makes it really ironic, is that the game plan was good old fashioned team basketball - to get the team involved. It was a decision both Phil Jackson and Kobe agreed on and Kobe did his darnest to follow through.
Coach and player apparently reasoned that Kobe’s green and thin supporting cast would be more likely to make this a series if they were very involved in Game 1. Source
Kobe did everything right as far as playing team basketball is concerned and the Lakers still lose. Kobe will be back with a vengeance that’s for sure. If Kobe can explode while keeping to the plan of involving his team, the Lakers will win Game 2.
The Suns are playing with an undersized frontcourt, allowing guys like Kobe, Lamar and Smush to drive to the basket without much of an inside threat. Suns game 1 high point man Tim Thomas (22 points) has offensive talent as he has shown but consistency is his enemy. Don’t expect him to shine as he did. If the Suns have to step up, it will come from Nash and Marion.
The Lakers only lost by 5 points. Assuming Suns’ production remains the same, Kobe can win it for the Lakers easily if he reverts back to his usual self.
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POSTED IN: NBA Playoffs
11 opinions for Kobe Has Quiet Night, Lakers Lose Game 1
archangel joseph
Apr 24, 2006 at 3:39 pm
Kobe…..Aaarrrgghhh! This MJ wannabe will be eclipsed soon by better guys like Lebron and Dwayne who play better all around basketball. Need I say more?
Milo Riano
Apr 24, 2006 at 10:35 pm
Kobe has broken more records than MJ at his current age. MJ have not even reached 70 points. How pathetic. Kobe should have even scored 80 point two more times if he had not been taken away after three quarters of scoring almost 60 points. Oh probably he could have gone 90 points. Dwayne is a tiny spot of Kobe. Lebron I do like very much though. That is why they are the only two players I blog about on http://nbaelite.sporati.com
A.H
Apr 25, 2006 at 5:01 am
Hello Angelo,
Every person has a right to hold a certain opinion about a someone else, especially well-known people; But don’t you think that expressing this opinion as a pro-writer or commentator makes this blog unreliable source of info? in other words, biased?
A.H
Angelo
Apr 25, 2006 at 11:09 am
Every writer writes with a bias based on his/her point of view. But if you’re saying that you’re letting my personal bias against Kobe go out of hand with this post, then I truly would have said “Kobe won’t have a chance and that he had this loss coming to him a long time” But no I didn’t because I truly believe, as a fan of the game, that the Lakers aren’t done for.
Aaron Brazell
Apr 25, 2006 at 12:57 pm
Since when does any blogger or commentator have to suppress bias? Last time I checked, this blog wasn’t run by the New York Times. It’s his right as a blogger and as the editor of this blog to express whichever opinion suits him because… it’s his blog!
Jason
Apr 25, 2006 at 1:13 pm
I agree, one of the reasons blogs are so cool is that they are biased, and everyone should know that right from the start. If you wanted unbiased journalism you should stick with NYT, USA Today and other mainstream publications (and if you believe they’re really unbiased, you should stick to the funny pages). Go PHOENIX! I don’t think the Pacer’s are going to do much at all.
archangel joseph
Apr 25, 2006 at 5:26 pm
Perhaps, lest anyone think that I really have it for Kobe…..I think he is a great shooter. But lets look back at the late ’90s when he was just starting out. He was benched for about two years, the same years that he proclaimed that he would beat MJ at his game. That really really turned me off. He could have said so in a nicer manner. What i dont understand is that Sir Charles is no slouch in the humility department either, with his famous quotes, and so is the Diesel…Shaq. But somehow, their pronouncements make one smile, not get ticked off. I guess the last straw for me was when Kobe singlehandedly succeeded in destroying a winning franchise, all because he wanted to be the ONLY star of the team. Why cant he be both a great but humble player like Duncan. Or even great but flashy in a nice crazy way like King Charles?
It took that rape case to pull Kobe back down to planet Earth. So, I know he is still a great player because of his immense shooting skills….but his overall game still smells of selfishness. When he passes now, his team-mates get surprised since it is not like him. Lebron racks up stats but is still a great passer and rebounder. Notice triple-doubles do not come naturally to Kobe? He doent pass or play more team basketball, thats why. And on the rare night that he focuses on passing more, his team loses. He is the only really big star left in the Lakers, and that is the really sad thing about this great team. Pity. I actually am cheering that the Clippers finally show the way and end up with a better franchise record this year than the Lakers. That will provide a great wake up call and may humble Kobe more.
Jesse
Apr 25, 2006 at 9:34 pm
Every person has a right to hold a certain opinion about a someone else, especially well-known people; But don’t you think that expressing this opinion as a pro-writer or commentator makes this blog unreliable source of info? in other words, biased?
I blog because I have an opinion. If every post is a blockquote and then a link to something from the AP wire, people have no reason to read what I write. People read this site and other blogs to get opinions. Bland information is mostly useless
Beyote
Apr 25, 2006 at 9:39 pm
Wake up, people! Kobe will never amount to much more than a pimple on the backside of MJ! The game isn’t even played the same today! Here is my rendition of most NBA games today:
- Tip-off
- Long pass to and a dunk.
- inbounds, fastbreak with taking the three.
- rebound, long pass to and another dunk followed by some silly looking arm pumping and hollering to the crowd.
- Meanwhile, inbounds and yes!!! Someone actually dribbles the ball more than 10 feet!!! short pass to and he actually drives for a layup! Suddenly, kidney punches and kicks him in the nuts as he goes for the shot. Oh a miss! Ref says “No Foul,” incidental contact. Time out called as medics attempt to revive .
Now, repeat that about twenty times and you have your typical NBA game. If these same players were playing ten or fifteen years ago, most would foul out in the first 5 minutes. I want to see basketball, not this crap they are playing now. Let’s see Kobe score 80 pts. against a team that actually plays defense. MJ might not have scored 80 pts in a game, but nobody could ever equal his intensity and love for the game. MJ played for the game. Kobe plays for the “bling.”
Take the showboating away, take the sweatbands away (jeeze, some of them look like burn victims out there) and start playing REAL basketball!
Have a nice day.
Milo Riano
Apr 25, 2006 at 9:54 pm
A.H.
I don’t mind Angelo saying bad things about Kobe but I will gladly spend my entire weekend arguing on that coz I am a big Kobe fan since he made his first airball in his rookie season.
And I love it. He blogs for NBAobessed and can take sides. I will take my own side too at http://nbaelite.sporati.com where only kobe and lebron are the elite ones. and a few from time to time. :)
NBA Obsessed » Kobe Explodes, Lakers Team Effort Beats Suns
Apr 27, 2006 at 2:18 pm
[...] This game proves what I said would take the Lakers to win in a previous post - Team effort and Kobe’s explosiveness. The Lakers capitalized on the Suns weakness of an undersized front court, with Lamar Odom scoring 21 points and disappointing Kwame Brown having a good game with 12 points. The size advantage of the Lakers made it difficult for the Suns to get their running game going and limited Shawn Marion’s production to just 13 points in 5 of 15 shooting. [...]
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