Now that Kobe has more time to watch TV . . .

Raja Bell played tonight despite the torn calf and ignited his team for a 20 point victory against the Mavs.

"That kid" is getting an awful lot of press these days. I wonder if Kobe is watching.

Raja v Kobe

Apparently, Raja Bell has been getting death threats for clotheslining Kobe. I have to say Kobe fans are crazier than I thought. And of course, they fail to realize that Kobe is the one that provoked the whole thing by elbowing Bell throughout the series. Raja Bell has a stellar record in the NBA. Kobe, on the other hand, came close to going over the technical foul limit this season. No one has ever complained about Raja being a dirty player, while many, including other NBA players and fans have complained that Kobe plays dirty and never gets called for fouls by the refs.

I'd love to see a Raja v. Kobe wrestling match. Raja looks like he can take Kobe any day. Kobe is a spoiled cry baby and he wouldn't have the refs on his side in a wrestling match.

Kobrone Bryant

I had to post this, just for the hell of it.

The Art of PASSING: Something Kobe Has Never Learned

Check out this blog entry about Kobe's failure.

"We witnessed Kobe prove once again that his basketball IQ is well below what the best player in the league should be."

"Outside of exactly one single solitaire game Kobe couldn't figure out a balance between passing and shooting - and that is the difference between Kobe and the best. The best basketball players in the world understand how to dominate the game without shooting the ball 30 plus times a game, yet Kobe has no idea. He can't figure out that just because you're making a pass around the three-point line doesn't mean you've integrated yourself into the team concept. And even when failing to do this Kobe either doesn't know or is to stubborn to take over the game when his team is on the ropes."

I agree with this guy 100 percent. Everyone has been praising Kobe for being a "team player" and "passing" the ball for most of the Suns-Lakers series. But there's passing the ball (like Kobe who passes it around it around the 3 point line or passing it to some guy inside who has 3 defenders on it) and PASSING the ball (i.e. creating a stop for your teammate, passing it to a guy who's wide open).

Anyone see the Mavs-Suns game yesterday? That is calling PASSING. That was Steve Nash, at his best, a guy who has made PASSING and assists an art form, who has made a PASS exciting to watch. And, not only does he know HOW TO PASS, he knows WHEN to do it as well. When his team needed a boost, Nash drove up the line repeatedly and scored in Nowitzki's face and made 2 big shots with his team down by 7 and 2 minutes left. 25 points on 11/18 shooting + 16 assists and 5 rebounds. Not bad for a guy who's 6'1" on a good day and can't really jump.

The question is, how can Nash do all this? Sure, the guy is a talented athlete, but can we really compare his athleticism and god-given basketball talent with someone like Kobe? No. It's called Basketball IQ. Unlike real IQ though, which is mostly innate, Baskeball IQ is something that you develop in your years in the NBA. Nash has the basketball IQ of a genius. LeBron, at 21, has already developed a high IQ and we can only imagine that he'll keep working on it. Kobe, on the other hand, has missed the train. He thinks he was born with the Basketball IQ of Einstein and therefore does not need to adjust anything. The thing is that he's a bit off, his Basketball IQ is more like that of a hotheaded teenager. That's what it was when he started in the league, that's what it is now.

Don't get me wrong, no one expects Kobe to master the art of PASSING like Nash has. Kobe is a shooting guard, while Nash is a point guard, so one does expect Kobe to shoot more. And either way, Kobe has already missed that train. The sad thing is that Kobe has no idea that art even exists.

More Dobe Busting by the Press

You know Dobe has really messed up when all the journalists that usually go through great lenghts to suck up to him take turns criticizing him.

Phil Taylor: Dominant then invisible, Bryant is a conflicted star

"Lakers fans, however, probably found Bryant's most recent eccentricity more maddening than fascinating."

"When Kobe doesn't shoot, something's up. Can you imagine Michael Jordan pulling such a disappearing act in a big game? Or even James, who has already shown a psychological steadiness at 21 that Bryant, 27, still hasn't achieved? Maybe something was said at halftime of Game 7 by Jackson or one of the other Lakers players that rubbed Bryant the wrong way, or maybe he was disgusted with his teammates' jittery play and decided to teach them a lesson by refusing to bail them out. Whatever it was, something brought Bryant's pouty, immature side to the surface again. It reminded Lakers watchers of the last time he removed himself from the offense, in a game against Sacramento a few years ago after he had come under fire for shooting too much."

"But in Game 7, the old Kobe came back -- the Kobe of extremes, the one who insists on all or nothing. This time he gave the Lakers nothing -- nothing but a headache as they try to figure out whether Bryant will ever be even-keeled enough for them to trust him completely. "

Say Good Bye to the Kobe = MJ comparisons

Skip Bayless: LeBron's closer to MJ than Kobe

"In Saturday night's Game 7, Kobe basically tried to outscore the Suns by himself -- and you had the halftime feeling that he would at least make it crazy close. But the rpm was too hot, especially in Phoenix. Although Kobe had looked unstoppable in scoring 23 in the first half, Phoenix was on pace to score 120 and led by 15.


So when the Suns came out even hotter in the third quarter, Kobe basically quit. For sure, he quit shooting. He scored one more point -- on a technical-foul free throw.


Jordan never would have done that.


Deep down, Kobe is still the spoiled brat.


Nash summed up Kobe Bryant by saying: "I don't know what to expect of him. Sometimes it's a little strange."


When the blowout ended, Kobe trotted straight to the locker room. Sure, the blood had been bad between these teams. But at least he could have shaken Nash's hand, or Shawn Marion's. But no. No class."

"Kobe won't even get close [to Jordan]."

Face It: Kobe Failed

We've been getting all these angry comments and insults from very frustrated people regarding the Lakers' loss in Game 7, Kobe's role in it and Kobe's career in general. So I just thought I'd clear up a few things.

These are claims that people have made and our responses to them.

Claim: We're hypocrates because we tell Kobe to stop shooting, and when he stops shooting we criticize him and call him selsish.

Response: We don't want Kobe to stop shooting. We want Kobe to shoot intelligently (i.e. not when he's double- or triple-teamed, work with his teammates to create plays, and pass the ball to his teammates when they're open. I personally didn't criticize him for taking 35 shots in Game 6 because he actually made 20 of them. That said, someone taking that many shots can break up the rhythm of the team, leaving the other players cold, which takes away the effectiveness of the team's game. But, I could live with that. The day Kobe starts shooting an average of 60% from the floor is the day I will be OK with him taking 35 shots a game.

As to what Kobe did in the second half of the game, it is the epitome of selfish. I don't know why he only took 3 shots in the second half. No one will ever know, even if Kobe were to actually give us a straight explanation. Even those who idolize him have to admit that he always says "the right thing," as opposed to the truth. So lets look at the possible explanations for that behavior:

Explanation 1: Kobe wanted to play team ball

Do you really buy that? Had he taken 8-12 shots, I could have bought that explanation. But 3 shots, especially when his team was down 15 points at the half? Come on.

Also, lets say, for argument's sake, he was trying to play team ball. Playing team ball does not just mean not taking a shot everytime the ball is in your hands. It means (especially for a guy like Kobe who claims to be the leader) that you set up picks for your teammates, that you create plays, that you pass the ball to the open guy, and that you play great defense. Did Kobe do any of that? No. He had 1 assist the whole game. I didn't see him create a single play. And, he didn't play good defense, something he had actually improved on throughout the series.

Therefore, that explanation goes out the window.

Explanation 2: Kobe was hurt

Kobe didn't look hurt, he never said he was, and neither did Phil Jackson. So, that explanation goes out the window as well.

Explanation 3: Kobe was trying to prove some sort of point

Whether Kobe was responding to that LA Times article or not, we don't know. However, his behavior is stunningly similar to what he did last time against the Kings. So, a logical conclusion is that he stopped shooting either as a response to some criticism - whether it was the LA Times article, Phil Jackson, or anyone else. That is the explanation that makes the most sense. If you don't agree, write me and tell me what makes sense to you. If this explanation is true, you can't deny that those actions were very selfish. Maybe Kobe shooting more wouldn't have saved the game, or maybe it would have. We'll never know. But his lack of any sort of effort in that second half - on shooting, assists or defense - is nothing but his feeding his own ego.

Claim: Without Kobe, the Lakers would be at the bottom of the barrel.

Response: True, the rest of the team is nothing impressive. Other than Lamar Odom, the rest of the players are, at best, average. However, whose fault is this? It was Kobe that demanded that Shaq be traded, that Phil Jackson leave (and now all of a sudden he says he is chummy with Phil, why the sudden change of heart?), that Gary Payton was too old. Kobe wanted to be THE star, THE leader, THE Laker. So now he is. And now he's complaining that his team is young and inexperienced. He made his own bed and he has to lie in it.

Claim: Shaq hasn't gotten anywhere without Kobe either. Shaq is a nobody because the Heat didn't win a championship last year.

Response: Shaq's Heat made it to the Eastern Conference finals last year and lost to Detroit in 7 games. I think that's a noteworthy accomplishment. Without Shaq, the Heat's was unimpressive in the first half of this season. And, without Shaq, the Lakers didn't make it to the playoffs last year. I think that's proof enough. Also, don't forget: Shaq is 34, Kobe is 27. Shaq is past his prime, Kobe is in his prime.

No one claims that Shaq can win championships by himself. If a star could win a championship completely by himself, teams wouldn't bother paying all these other guys millions of dollars, they would just find 1 star and get some chumps off the street to fill space. However, Shaq is someone who makes a big difference. There are lots of good guards out there - more than 20 than average 20+ a game on a decent percentage. There are very very few good centers though. And no one as dominant as Shaq. No other player in the league commands a double team all the time. And, like I said, this is Shaq at 34, not 27.

Finally, Shaq knows his place. He doesn't go around saying that he can win championships by himself. He is not delusional. He knows he needs a good guard to help him. Unlike Kobe, his arrogance doesn't cloud his judgment.

By the way, this is a blog about hating Kobe, not about loving Shaq. We're not Shaq idolizers here. Shaq has his flaws, just like everyone else. However, it's a fact that when Shaq was there, the Lakers won championships or at least made it to the conference finals. Once he left, they didn't make the playoffs. Period.

Claim: Kobe is loyal to the Lakers.

Response: How quickly we forget. In 2004, Kobe threatened to go to the Clippers unless he got more money from the Lakers and Jerry Buss got rid of Shaq and Phil. The Clippers actually believed this and traded a bunch of players to clear cap space for him. Then, once the Lakers sweetened the deal, he resigned with them, leaving the Clippers in the dust. What a loyal guy.

Claim: The Lakers would choke if they had LeBron, or anyone else other than Kobe.

Response: Maybe, maybe not. The thing is that LeBron doesn't claim that he doesn't need anyone else to win championships. He always emphasizes the need for his teammates. And, at 21, LeBron has already done amazing things for the Cavs. And, LeBron doesn't have someone like Shaq at his side.

-----------

Kobe Lovers, we know you're angry and frustrated. I would be too if I were you. Kobe blew the chance of a lifetime - to prove everyone (including us) wrong. But it's OK, there's always next year, right?

Suns Win Series: Kobe - the Cry Baby Goes Fishing

The chest-pumping animal of Game 6 has turned into a cry baby in Game 7.

Kobe was so preoccupied with proving to everyone that the Lakers couldn't win without him, he opted to go fishing rather than advance to the second round of the playoffs.

Kobe took only 16 shots (3 in the second half), as the Lakers lost to the Suns: 90-121. Rumor has it that Kobe was offended by the LA Times article that criticized him for taking 35 shots in Game 6. So Cry Baby Kobe decided to just stop shooting in Game 7 to prove a point. Not did he only stop shooting, he also stopped helping his teammates (1 assist!) and playing defense (4 rebounds). If that's not the epitome of selfishness, I don't know what is.

Kobe claims he is the leader of his team. He likes to act like the leader in telling the other guys what to do and looking down on them as if they're a bunch of kids. But a team leader is not someone who just scores a bunch, it's someone that steps up and helps his teammates when they're down. The rest of the team played their hearts out throughout these playoffs, and when they start struggling, he washes his hands to feed his ego.

And then, he gives this interview, blaming his teammates ("everyone has to contribute"). Aren't these the same teammates Kobe has been praising throughout the playoffs and saying that he's so proud of? And, he has the tenacity to insult Raja Bell ("I don't think about him at all when I'm playing . . . not like I do when I play Bruce Bowen or Ron Artest"). The thing is, however much Kobe tries to insult him, Raja is moving on to the second round and Kobe is not.

Kobe's arrogance and selfishness has no end. He'll never admit he's wrong, things are never his fault. I hope he's content with sitting out the rest of the postseason and the fact that he'll never win another championship.

Tarzan Kobe No Where to Be Found

I didn't see Kobe pulling his jersey and fiercely pounding on his chest after Game 6. What happened Kobe?

The Return of Kobe Ball

No elimination game for the Lakers tonight. The Suns are back, and Dobe reverted to his old self and played Dobe ball again. The Dobster tried to play the game by himself once again (if he were in a band, it would be called Dobe and the Ballpassers) and lost. Apparently 50 points was not enough to beat the Suns. "We're young and inexperienced." Mark my words, that will be his excuse should Lakers lose Game 7.

Oh, and that shot that Kobe missed with 3 seconds left, he could have passed it to Smush who was wide open. Oh, but wait, I forgot, Dobe ball is back and Dobe has forgotten how to pass like passing was just a bad dream. The real Dobe has awakened from a deep sleep.

Suns v. Lakers: Kobe is not the MVP

Kobe is not the 2005-06 MVP. Nor is he the MVP of the postseason.

For the past 2 days, every time I turn on ESPN or TNT, I hear talk about Kobe, how he has been so amazing in the postseason and such a good teammate and so clutch in Game 4. Listening to this, you would think that Kobe is the only reason the Lakers are up 3-1 in the series at this point.

I say the media, as always, is giving Kobe unnecessary credit. Sure those 2 shots in Game 4 were clutch. I'm not going to dispute that, I'll give credit where credit is due. However, what about the rest of that game and the series overall? The numbers tell the truth.

Lets recap:

Game 1

Kobe: 7-21 shooting (33%), 22 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 block.

Terrible shooting game, all four other starters had a better shooting percentage than Kobe and were in double digits. An OK game defensively.

Game 2

Kobe: 12-24 shooting (50%), 29 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal.

Much better shooting game, but nothing out of this world. Lamar (9 for 12) was really the star of that game. Much better defense, however. Looked like Phil really did get inside his head.

Game 3

Kobe: 6-18 shooting (33%), 17 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals.

Horrible shooting percentage once again. Passed the ball a litle more. Defense not as good as game 2, but was alert with 4 steals.

Game 4

Kobe: 9-14 shooting (64%), 24 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists.

Very good shooting percentage, good on assists. Overall, a very good game, but once again, nothing out of this world. In case anyone forgot, the Lakers were playing at home. They almost lost the game at first, and if not for that 3-pointer by Smush and then Smush's steal, Kobe would have been no where close to make that tying shot. And, in overtime, it was Smush and Walton that got Nash to lose the ball. So yes, Kobe was good, but nothing for the history books, and not without the rest of the team. If anything, it was actually his defense, rather than anything else, that has been contributing to the Lakers' victories.

Overall

Kobe averaged 45% shooting in the series, 23 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Honestly, nothing to write home about.

Look at the other stars of the postseason - Dirk Nowitzki, Andres Nocioni, LeBron James, Bonzi Wells, Sam Cassell, Elton Brand, Gilbert Arenas, etc. etc. etc. Are you telling me these guys are having a worse post season than Kobe? Dirk averaged 31 points on 50% shooting and has made many a clutch shot in the series against the Grizzlies, which the Mavs swept. Bonzi Wells was 9-11 last night for 25 points + 17 rebounds. LeBron James broke all the records in his playoffs debut. Sam Cassell and Elton Brand stopped the Clippers' 30 years playoff drought. Why isn't the media buzzing as much about that?

Lets stop the hype and look at the numbers.