Daily rants and opinions...because we're THAT bored.
by Skinner - Friday, February 2
Well, he changed his number a few years ago, which to some can be the equivalent of changing his name as well. I remember when Jake Sullivan changed his number to 0 after his freshman year. What followed was a miserable season of below .500 basketball, but the effort was there. I doubt Kobe even knows who Jake Sullivan is, but I bet him changing his number involved Kobe wanting a new direction and vision. Kobe did that a few years ago actually, and I seem to be rambling now so I better get to what my point is. (Point. Point. Point.)
I first noticed this change in Kobe during the FIBA America's championship in Las Vegas this past fall. I remember everyone telling me about these changes and how soon there would be some hair growing in some weird places and people who I just thought of as different would eventually control my life and what I do with my penis, yet I was still shocked. Upon seeing this change though I wondered a few things. Well one thing actually: Is this for real?
This Kobe was playing suffocating defense, hustling, and sharing the ball with his teamates. Something he hadn't done in a Laker uniform consistently since the championship three-peat a few years back. So I put it in the back of my head and thought nothing of it until, BAM!, the regular season starts and here I see the same Kobe. He is dominating and the Lakers are winning, which means that he probably has like 60 points or something right? No, he's only got about 18 or so, and he has 7 assists and 8 rebounds. How is this possible? Well, one thing to note is this is not entirely made possible by Kobe or the good folks at Barnes and Noble. Part of this surge is because of the development of the Lakers young players, particularly Andrew Bynum. However this does not over shadow what Kobe has done. I hate to bring it up but here it comes. This Kobe Bryant reminds me of the Michael Jordan who played for the Bulls during the 96-98 seasons. I really don't like to do this since Michael is the greatest and no one will ever be like him, nor should anyone ever try to be. They should be there own unique person that draws from past players like Michael, Magic, and many others. I still have to talk about it though.
The biggest reason of why I am reminded of the last Jordan era with the Bulls, is how Kobe is on a team full of outstanding role players just like Michael. The Bulls had Steve Kerr, Bill Wenington, Dennis Rodman, Ron Harper, Dickey Simpkins, etc. The Lakers have Luke Walton, Derek Fisher, Ronnie Turiaf, Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, etc. What Michael was able to do amazingly was blend his unmatched individual talent with his teamates. Also Michael's competitiveness and desire seemed to rub off on every body else (Does 72 wins do anything for you?). This year's Kobe has been running the triangle to perfection and the record for the Lakers shows that. Also all of the role players for the Lakers are playing out of their minds and playing as one of the best benches in the NBA.
Michael also had another superstar to play with in Scottie Pippen, but who is to go with Kobe? Until this year no other player has been an All-Star with Kobe (Lamar Odom doesn't count). Andrew Bynum has taken charge and emerged as one of the best post players in the game, posting double-doubles almost every game, and developing offensive skills through the help of Kareem Abdul-Jabar. Maybe he isn't quite an All-Star yet, but he is showing signs of being there in a year or two. So things were going great and the Lakers had one of the best records in the stacked West. It is insane how good the Western Conference is this year. If a team goes on a losing streak of 3-4 games they could fall down 5-6 spots in the standings maybe even be out of the playoff race. About 10-11 teams will finish above .500, yet only eight will make the playoffs. I think that I may tape every single game of the Western playoffs this year and replace those tapes with girls, becuase not even being on a beach listening to Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here, while making out with an eighteen year old Emma Watson dressed in a Gryfindor uniform could give me as much pleasure as that. (That was too discriptive...)
So back to things being great for the Lakers when, BAM!, Andrew Bynum gets injured and everything is tossed upside-down. (At this point the fire alarm went off in Campbell Hall and I had to go outside for about 10 minutes and come back to the smell of burnt toast for the rest of the night. Tossed upside-down indeed!) So the Lakers go on a skid where they play .500 ball for a bit, but then another, BAM!, Pau Gasol is aqqured in a trade. At this time he has not played for the Lakers yet, but I believe the effect will be great for the Lakers once he gels into the system. Gasol is a talented big man who can score, pass, and has the fundamentals down, which goes well with the triangle-offense the Lakers run.
Either way the point of this article was to talk about the metamorphis of Kobe Bryant. From his early days as Slam Dunk Champion future Michael Jordan, to championship city, to frustration, to more frustration, to more frustration (you get the idea) to where he finally is now: the best, well-respected, MVP.