Really just another attempt by Kobe- suckers to rewrite history with the purpose of excusing their hero while placing blame everywhere else. When we go back and examine the stats, we discover that Kobe had sufficient support, to not only make the series compe ive (which is was), but to possibly win it outright.
Another fact to consider is that Steve Nash's supporting cast wasn't much superior to that of his superstar counterpart.
The Lakers' unheralded supporting cast wasn't the primary reason the Lakers lost the series, blowing a 3-1 lead in the process. They deserve some of the blame, sure, but so does Bryant. It's not like he was out there scoring 40 a game on 50% shooting (like Jordan would often do before he got a capable supporting cast). Aside from his 50 point explosion in Game 6, Kobe had a very substandard series, and was thoroughly outplayed by Steve Nash(the rightful MVP of the '06 season).
Now, let us digress and take a look at the stats.
Game 1:
A game the Lakers lost by 5. The great, transcendent, mythical-in-stature Kobe Bryant scored 22 points on 33% shooting. On the other hand, Lamar Odom had a 21 and 14 performance on 53% shooting. Luke Walton chimed in with 19 on 56%. Even the much maligned Smush Parker scored 15, managing to out shoot Kobe with a 38% mark.
Truth is, if Kobe contributes the way he's supposed to in that game, the Lakers steal Game 1 on the road.
Game 2:
Lakers win by 6, on the road. Kobe had a nice game with 29 points and 10 boards on 50% shooting. His ty supporting cast that let him down time and time again did little. Lamar Odom had 21 and 7 on 75% shooting. Kwame Brown was decent with 12 points on 50%, and the bench outscored Phoenix's bench 22 to 4. NO HELP!!!!
Game 3:
Lakers win by 7, at home. The successor to Michael Jordan had 17 points on 33% shooting, but once again, got no help. Luke Walton had 17 points and 10 rebounds on 42%, Smush had a breakout game with 18 points on 56% shooting. Kwame rode the wave and had a double-double, 13 and 11 on 62%, while Odom dominated the boards with 17 rebounds. NO HELP!!!!
Game 4:
Lakers win by 1. Game winner by Kobe. He scored 24 on 64% shooting with 8 dimes, but also 7 TOs. Still, he played a good game. But once again he did all himself, never mind the fact that Odom scored 25 points and LA's bench once again, for the 3rd straight game, outscored Phoenix's. NO HELP!!!!
Game 5:
Back on the road at Phoenix. The Suns were cooking and blew out the Lakers by 17. Kobe had a good game with 29 points, 7 boards, and 5 assists, but also turned the ball over 5 times. Odom's line was 18, 15, and 6 on 50%. Kwame Brown didn't miss a shot and scored 14 points on 6-6 shooting. That said, there was nothing much the Lakers could've done. Phoenix was too hot that night.
Game 6:
Now this is game Kobe suckers always refer to as evidence that "Kobe had no help." They might say, "The love of my life scored 50 points and we still lost. Kobe's supporting cast sucks!!!!"
Let's take a look.
It was an overtime thriller, which the Lakers lost by 8. Kobe had his first superstar game of the series (all his other games were below his season average, yet, he gets no blame), scoring 50 points, grabbing 8 boards (also had 7 TOs) on 57% shooting. Great game, indeed. But he had more than enough contribution from the other Lakers to win this game (if not, how did the game go into overtime, which only did so because of a Tim Thomas 3?). Odom was stellar with 22 points, 11 boards, and 9 assists on 57% shooting. Kwame Brown scored 17 and only missed one shot. Devean George came off the bench with a solid 14 points.
More than enough offense. Maybe their defense let them down? And Kobe, being the celebrated defender he is, definitely factors into that equation.
Nash had arguably a better game than Kobe. He scored 32 points, dished out 13 assists with only 3 TOs, on an unconscious 64% shooting. Kobe is supposed to be this lockdown defender who will always guard the other team's best perimeter player and shut him down. Guess he needed more than reputation to slow down Nash (or Barbosa, who scored 22 points on 7-9 shooting).
Point is, despite Kobe's scoring performance, he deserves to shoulder some of the blame for this loss. Suns' guards lit up their Lakers' counterparts, and last I checked, Kobe is a guard.
Game 7 isn't really worth going into detail over. The heartbreaking fashion they lost game 6 in all but sealed their fate and the Lakers were already beaten in Game 7 before they even stepped on the floor.
There you have it. Kobe was in no way out there "all by himself" like many of his intellectually challenged fans like to claim.
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