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Kobe a no-show in Game 7
Bob Keisser
Staff columnist
Inside SOCAL
Today's this-hallway-isn't-big-enough-for-both-of-us edition of The Sporting Muse:
Kobe Bryant's value just keeps increasing.
Seriously. We all know how omnipotent he became in the eyes of Lakers owner Jerry Buss when the owner chose to side with the young star in the Shaquille O'Neal showdown.
Even if you believe it was the right decision for a lot of reasons, and believe that Shaq isn't going to ever win a title again, either, it still made no sense from a competitive point of view. We wouldn't be talking about the Lakers blowing a 3-1 series lead against Phoenix if the two were still teammates. We might be talking about Shaq's weight and Kobe's attitude, but it would be en route to the conference finals.
Now we can see that he's even more valuable in the context of his play with the Lakers. When he's motivated to be the best he can be, he can soar over a team by himself. And when his motivations ebb, he can suck the life out of a moment quicker than Ted Kennedy on C-SPAN.
In Game 6 of the Suns series, Kobe scored 50 points and his team had a late lead and lost in overtime. So how does it track that he takes just three shots and scores one point in the second half of their Game 7 loss Saturday?
Phoenix didn't do anything in Game 7 they didn't do in Game 6. They pressed Kobe and dared him to pass. In Game 6, Bryant rose to the challenge and scored. In Game 7, he pouted? Gave up? Wanted to make a point about his worth? Wanted to get home to his new baby? All of the above?
Anyone talking about Bryant being the MVP of anything other than his own closet is merely as myopic as Al Davis. I define a MVP by wins, and Bryant hasn't won anything since Shaq left other than Buss' affection.
And I don't think he ever will. If you liked this year's Lakers team, you'll love them next year, too, because the chance of them acquiring better parts is remote. Not only is the free-agent class spotty, but they have nothing to offer anyone in a trade.
No one wants Lamar Odom, no one in their right mind would take Kwame Brown, Smush Parker returned to his rightful level, and the rest of the cast works hard and wins often enough to shade the right side of .500. And that's that.
But, hey, Kobe had that 81-point game. Pop that in the VCR and see how well it plays now if you can pull yourself away from the TV and the Clippers' telecasts.
Kobe a no-show in Game 7
Bob Keisser
Staff columnist
Inside SOCAL
Today's this-hallway-isn't-big-enough-for-both-of-us edition of The Sporting Muse:
Kobe Bryant's value just keeps increasing.
Seriously. We all know how omnipotent he became in the eyes of Lakers owner Jerry Buss when the owner chose to side with the young star in the Shaquille O'Neal showdown.
Even if you believe it was the right decision for a lot of reasons, and believe that Shaq isn't going to ever win a title again, either, it still made no sense from a competitive point of view. We wouldn't be talking about the Lakers blowing a 3-1 series lead against Phoenix if the two were still teammates. We might be talking about Shaq's weight and Kobe's attitude, but it would be en route to the conference finals.
Now we can see that he's even more valuable in the context of his play with the Lakers. When he's motivated to be the best he can be, he can soar over a team by himself. And when his motivations ebb, he can suck the life out of a moment quicker than Ted Kennedy on C-SPAN.
In Game 6 of the Suns series, Kobe scored 50 points and his team had a late lead and lost in overtime. So how does it track that he takes just three shots and scores one point in the second half of their Game 7 loss Saturday?
Phoenix didn't do anything in Game 7 they didn't do in Game 6. They pressed Kobe and dared him to pass. In Game 6, Bryant rose to the challenge and scored. In Game 7, he pouted? Gave up? Wanted to make a point about his worth? Wanted to get home to his new baby? All of the above?
Anyone talking about Bryant being the MVP of anything other than his own closet is merely as myopic as Al Davis. I define a MVP by wins, and Bryant hasn't won anything since Shaq left other than Buss' affection.
And I don't think he ever will. If you liked this year's Lakers team, you'll love them next year, too, because the chance of them acquiring better parts is remote. Not only is the free-agent class spotty, but they have nothing to offer anyone in a trade.
No one wants Lamar Odom, no one in their right mind would take Kwame Brown, Smush Parker returned to his rightful level, and the rest of the cast works hard and wins often enough to shade the right side of .500. And that's that.
But, hey, Kobe had that 81-point game. Pop that in the VCR and see how well it plays now if you can pull yourself away from the TV and the Clippers' telecasts.
and "was very angry" about his comments, and that he "let his feelings be heard." He also said that Kobe used colorful language (i.e., profanity).
