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this post is dedicated to my younger brother, david young lee, who turned traitor and thought kobe was being selfish and putting up bad shots.
ESPN - Lakers vs Clippers - kobe bryant with 4th career triple double. he had a beast of a game: 33 pts (12-18), 15 boards (5 off), and 12 assists.
it is true, the lakers lost their first two games. it is true, kobe took a lot of shots, and some of them under a LOT of pressure. were they BAD shots? no. here's the explanation:
if you were watching the first two games, you would realize that kobe wasn't just launching shots every time. in fact, he rarely took a shot within the first 12 seconds (out of 24 seconds) of possession. he was actively trying to get his teammates involved FIRST, driving into the lane, kicking it out when he got double teamed, etc.
the problem:
1) teammates weren't hitting open shots. if you are in the NBA, you HAVE to hit open shots. they weren't doing it. devean george, stanislav, fisher, even horry. they just weren't getting it done.
2) when they DID get the ball, teammates were holding the ball, trying to do their thing, but when stumped, they would throw it back to kobe, hoping he would bail them out. this would leave kobe with about 2 seconds to come up with a shot.
3) after a while, teammates were looking totally lost out there, not even trying to do their thing, afraid to take any shots at all. they just kept looking to kobe.
now, some of you might suggest that shaq could've done it himself. no, sorry, he can't. when he is triple teamed, he is quite helpless unless he has a shooter and slasher playing with him. there is a reason he didn't win a ring in orlando.
others might suggest jordan did it himself. nope, neither did he. he had pippen, and he also had players that consistently hit the open shot (horace grant and steve kerr) when he drew the attn of the defense.
am i dissing the rest of the lakers? no. they are capable of doing better. they just haven't. they need to take this a bit more seriously, at least a quarter as seriously as kobe is taking it, and practice their shots. there is no excuse for missing so many open shots, and there is no excuse for not taking those shots when it comes to you. the whole laker's offense, the triangle, demands that all the players take those shots when they are available.
this is what was going on the first two games. now, if you just look at the stats, (stats don't tell what really happened in the game) like the moron author of
yesterday's ESPN article
talking about kobe's "selfishness," then yeah, you'll see that kobe had a terrible %.
well, friday's game answered some of that.
field goals: 12-18 (67%!!) and only 18 shots taken! jeez...
3- pt: 1-2
free throws: 8-8
offensive rebounds: 5 this is all about heart and hustle. it is ridiculous that a guard would get 5 offensive rebounds...jeez
total rebounds: 15 dang. game high. by a guard. career high.
assists: 12 12 assists? this is an andre miller number, man..
steals: 2
blocks: 1
TO: 4
total points: 33 all this while drawing the focus of an entire team.
oh, are his teammates mad at kobe, thinking he is taking bad shots? here is what brian shaw, old-time veteran, had to say:
"I just think he was playing the same game that he's been playing. Contrary to what everybody else has been saying, he's been really looking to set his teammates up more than ever before''
-Brian Shaw
anyone who has seen kobe play all preseason and these past 3 games can see this. he is radically changed from last year. he is actively trying to get his teammates into their game first. they need to stop dumping the rock to kobe when they find themselves scared or unable, with too few seconds on the clock.
"The bottom line is it was a totally dominant performance by Kobe. I thought he controlled the game from start to finish. He got everybody involved. I guess all that stuff about him being a selfish player was greatly exaggerated."
-Clipper Coach Alvin Gentry
the fact is, kobe is doing his best to do what he knows he's supposed to do, get his teammates involved, active, instead of depending on him too much. he's looking toward the entire season, more than just a single game at a time. the sad fact is, the others lose a lot of confidence when shaq is out, and understandably. shaq is a beast. but kobe is getting them open shots now, they need to step up and make em.
i predict that this year, kobe will have a career high in assists avg. he will continue to get his teammates involved, even at the cost of losing some games. and when shaq-daddy come back, it'll be over. i feel sorry for the rest of the league and their fans.
oh, and what about that tiff between kobe and legendary assistant coach tex winter, in which winter told kobe: "you played stupidly." to which kobe replied, "you coached stupidly."
"We've had encounters like that before," Bryant said. "That's how Tex and I are. We go way back. I have so much respect for him."
Winter, 80, said he believed he had been venting in confidence, and said Rosen picked critical words from their conversation and used them out of the larger context
Jackson: "I think that Charley (author of the heated article against kobe) is a novelist that ended up trying to write some journalism, and it's not really journalism. I had nothing to do with that. Kobe and I have a great relationship. I don't want it to be compromised."
He suspected Bryant and Winter's wouldn't be either, revealing that in the tumultuous times between Jackson and Bryant, "Tex was always his strongest defender. They have a relationship that bounces along at times."
i am not in love with kobe, as dave and others have accused me. that clown screws up plenty, esp in years past. but i look at his drive, his determination, his preparation, the way he's improved in a different area each year in the league, and it is amazing.
yakob at 4:13 AM
-----------------
ESPN - Lakers vs Clippers - kobe bryant with 4th career triple double. he had a beast of a game: 33 pts (12-18), 15 boards (5 off), and 12 assists.
it is true, the lakers lost their first two games. it is true, kobe took a lot of shots, and some of them under a LOT of pressure. were they BAD shots? no. here's the explanation:
if you were watching the first two games, you would realize that kobe wasn't just launching shots every time. in fact, he rarely took a shot within the first 12 seconds (out of 24 seconds) of possession. he was actively trying to get his teammates involved FIRST, driving into the lane, kicking it out when he got double teamed, etc.
the problem:
1) teammates weren't hitting open shots. if you are in the NBA, you HAVE to hit open shots. they weren't doing it. devean george, stanislav, fisher, even horry. they just weren't getting it done.
2) when they DID get the ball, teammates were holding the ball, trying to do their thing, but when stumped, they would throw it back to kobe, hoping he would bail them out. this would leave kobe with about 2 seconds to come up with a shot.
3) after a while, teammates were looking totally lost out there, not even trying to do their thing, afraid to take any shots at all. they just kept looking to kobe.
now, some of you might suggest that shaq could've done it himself. no, sorry, he can't. when he is triple teamed, he is quite helpless unless he has a shooter and slasher playing with him. there is a reason he didn't win a ring in orlando.
others might suggest jordan did it himself. nope, neither did he. he had pippen, and he also had players that consistently hit the open shot (horace grant and steve kerr) when he drew the attn of the defense.
am i dissing the rest of the lakers? no. they are capable of doing better. they just haven't. they need to take this a bit more seriously, at least a quarter as seriously as kobe is taking it, and practice their shots. there is no excuse for missing so many open shots, and there is no excuse for not taking those shots when it comes to you. the whole laker's offense, the triangle, demands that all the players take those shots when they are available.
this is what was going on the first two games. now, if you just look at the stats, (stats don't tell what really happened in the game) like the moron author of
yesterday's ESPN article
talking about kobe's "selfishness," then yeah, you'll see that kobe had a terrible %.
well, friday's game answered some of that.
field goals: 12-18 (67%!!) and only 18 shots taken! jeez...
3- pt: 1-2
free throws: 8-8
offensive rebounds: 5 this is all about heart and hustle. it is ridiculous that a guard would get 5 offensive rebounds...jeez
total rebounds: 15 dang. game high. by a guard. career high.
assists: 12 12 assists? this is an andre miller number, man..
steals: 2
blocks: 1
TO: 4
total points: 33 all this while drawing the focus of an entire team.
oh, are his teammates mad at kobe, thinking he is taking bad shots? here is what brian shaw, old-time veteran, had to say:
"I just think he was playing the same game that he's been playing. Contrary to what everybody else has been saying, he's been really looking to set his teammates up more than ever before''
-Brian Shaw
anyone who has seen kobe play all preseason and these past 3 games can see this. he is radically changed from last year. he is actively trying to get his teammates into their game first. they need to stop dumping the rock to kobe when they find themselves scared or unable, with too few seconds on the clock.
"The bottom line is it was a totally dominant performance by Kobe. I thought he controlled the game from start to finish. He got everybody involved. I guess all that stuff about him being a selfish player was greatly exaggerated."
-Clipper Coach Alvin Gentry
the fact is, kobe is doing his best to do what he knows he's supposed to do, get his teammates involved, active, instead of depending on him too much. he's looking toward the entire season, more than just a single game at a time. the sad fact is, the others lose a lot of confidence when shaq is out, and understandably. shaq is a beast. but kobe is getting them open shots now, they need to step up and make em.
i predict that this year, kobe will have a career high in assists avg. he will continue to get his teammates involved, even at the cost of losing some games. and when shaq-daddy come back, it'll be over. i feel sorry for the rest of the league and their fans.
oh, and what about that tiff between kobe and legendary assistant coach tex winter, in which winter told kobe: "you played stupidly." to which kobe replied, "you coached stupidly."
"We've had encounters like that before," Bryant said. "That's how Tex and I are. We go way back. I have so much respect for him."
Winter, 80, said he believed he had been venting in confidence, and said Rosen picked critical words from their conversation and used them out of the larger context
Jackson: "I think that Charley (author of the heated article against kobe) is a novelist that ended up trying to write some journalism, and it's not really journalism. I had nothing to do with that. Kobe and I have a great relationship. I don't want it to be compromised."
He suspected Bryant and Winter's wouldn't be either, revealing that in the tumultuous times between Jackson and Bryant, "Tex was always his strongest defender. They have a relationship that bounces along at times."
i am not in love with kobe, as dave and others have accused me. that clown screws up plenty, esp in years past. but i look at his drive, his determination, his preparation, the way he's improved in a different area each year in the league, and it is amazing.
yakob at 4:13 AM