duncan228
11-04-2009, 11:23 PM
Bryant, Artest daunting pair for Lakers (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/Bryant_Artest_daunting_pair_for_Lakers.html)
Mike Monroe
OKLAHOMA CITY — His back ached, and his throat was sore, but as he trudged off to a hot shower after the Lakers' overtime road victory over the Thunder on Tuesday night, Kobe Bryant turned and offered some advice to the Spurs' Manu Ginobili.
“If he sees another bat flying around the arena,” he said, “he needs to swat that one out of the air, just like last time.”
Those rabies shots Ginobili now must endure were the price of sending a message to anyone, or anything, posing a threat to the game.
“We're trying to play basketball out there,” Bryant said. “You just can't let anything interrupt that.”
Not even a high fever that temporarily triggered swine flu fears kept Bryant from playing 46 minutes and scoring 31 points. He spent Tuesday in bed, wondering if he was the latest victim of the H1N1 virus. Then he torched the Thunder.
Told he wouldn't play unless his fever dropped — “because of everything going on with H1N1,” he said — Bryant seemingly willed his body temperature to acceptable level.
Before a big game against the Cavaliers in Cleveland in February, he was throwing up and needed intravenous fluids at halftime. Then he scored 19 points, and the Lakers sent a message.
Cleveland's LeBron James could have the 2009 MVP Award. Bryant was after his fourth championship ring.
The 2009-10 Lakers remain the best team in the NBA because Bryant rises to every challenge, no matter how he feels, and because they improved, just like their pursuers.
Was the return of a healthy Ginobili and the addition of Richard Jefferson more significant for the Spurs than the return of a healthy Andrew Bynum and the addition of Ron Artest?
There is a potential for disruption with Artest, of course, but Lakers coach Phil Jackson once corralled Dennis Rodman's petulance.
The early returns on Artest are frightening for the NBA's title contenders. He is playing a team game, picking up the triangle offense and deferring, when appropriate, to Bryant.
Defensively, he remains an intimidating presence, capable of making Kevin Durant look too frightened to call for the ball.
“He's finding his way,” Jackson said. “The rhythm of the offense, and finding shots when he gets into that position, are still a mystery to him. He seems to fit in well otherwise, passing the ball, and he seems to know the movements. Sometimes, instinctively, they're not quite there yet.”
Occasionally, Artest's instinct is rage. After he missed a shot in the fourth quarter on Tuesday, he slammed his right fist on the padded baseline press table and screamed, “Let's go.”
The blow left a large, indentation on the tabletop. Had it not been thickly padded, he may have broken a few bones.
Bryant put an arm around him and walked him away from whatever was troubling him, whispering encouragement. A bond appears to be forming, and that should scare other contenders, too.
If the Lakers have shown an early weakness, it's the bench, entirely ineffective in Oklahoma.
Of course, the reserves who last season called themselves the “bench mob” are shorthanded. Lamar Odom is starting while Pau Gasol nurses a hamstring injury.
With Gasol back, the Lakers will be scarier than a Halloween bat.
Mike Monroe
OKLAHOMA CITY — His back ached, and his throat was sore, but as he trudged off to a hot shower after the Lakers' overtime road victory over the Thunder on Tuesday night, Kobe Bryant turned and offered some advice to the Spurs' Manu Ginobili.
“If he sees another bat flying around the arena,” he said, “he needs to swat that one out of the air, just like last time.”
Those rabies shots Ginobili now must endure were the price of sending a message to anyone, or anything, posing a threat to the game.
“We're trying to play basketball out there,” Bryant said. “You just can't let anything interrupt that.”
Not even a high fever that temporarily triggered swine flu fears kept Bryant from playing 46 minutes and scoring 31 points. He spent Tuesday in bed, wondering if he was the latest victim of the H1N1 virus. Then he torched the Thunder.
Told he wouldn't play unless his fever dropped — “because of everything going on with H1N1,” he said — Bryant seemingly willed his body temperature to acceptable level.
Before a big game against the Cavaliers in Cleveland in February, he was throwing up and needed intravenous fluids at halftime. Then he scored 19 points, and the Lakers sent a message.
Cleveland's LeBron James could have the 2009 MVP Award. Bryant was after his fourth championship ring.
The 2009-10 Lakers remain the best team in the NBA because Bryant rises to every challenge, no matter how he feels, and because they improved, just like their pursuers.
Was the return of a healthy Ginobili and the addition of Richard Jefferson more significant for the Spurs than the return of a healthy Andrew Bynum and the addition of Ron Artest?
There is a potential for disruption with Artest, of course, but Lakers coach Phil Jackson once corralled Dennis Rodman's petulance.
The early returns on Artest are frightening for the NBA's title contenders. He is playing a team game, picking up the triangle offense and deferring, when appropriate, to Bryant.
Defensively, he remains an intimidating presence, capable of making Kevin Durant look too frightened to call for the ball.
“He's finding his way,” Jackson said. “The rhythm of the offense, and finding shots when he gets into that position, are still a mystery to him. He seems to fit in well otherwise, passing the ball, and he seems to know the movements. Sometimes, instinctively, they're not quite there yet.”
Occasionally, Artest's instinct is rage. After he missed a shot in the fourth quarter on Tuesday, he slammed his right fist on the padded baseline press table and screamed, “Let's go.”
The blow left a large, indentation on the tabletop. Had it not been thickly padded, he may have broken a few bones.
Bryant put an arm around him and walked him away from whatever was troubling him, whispering encouragement. A bond appears to be forming, and that should scare other contenders, too.
If the Lakers have shown an early weakness, it's the bench, entirely ineffective in Oklahoma.
Of course, the reserves who last season called themselves the “bench mob” are shorthanded. Lamar Odom is starting while Pau Gasol nurses a hamstring injury.
With Gasol back, the Lakers will be scarier than a Halloween bat.