26 replies to this topic

[Juan23]

OR play him before they start?

[Ricky]

Yes

[Chito]

Good question Juan.    I added a poll to this question too.    I too vote 'yes'. Let him rest and give the bench some extra minutes of play for the rest of the regular season games. They got home court for the West, so no big deal for now.  Let the wounds heal a bit longer to be fresh for the Playoffs.       

[Juan23]

Well so much for that Idea, he wants to play vs the Blazers tomorrow !


Bryant sat 2 games to rest legs


EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Kobe Bryant, the Lakers' self-proclaimed Bruce Willis, who detests missing games even more than he does missing shots, wants to return to the lineup Sunday at home against Portland after sitting out the last two games to rest his legs and alleviate swelling in his right knee.

Bryant

"He's anticipating [playing]," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said after his team's practice Saturday. Bryant, who treated Saturday's practice like a typical off day by icing his knees and not participating in any full-court drills, did get in some light shooting, however.

Jackson did not want to set any playing-time limitations on Bryant going into the game.

"It depends on how he feels," Jackson said. "He may be very live tomorrow and feel great. We'll see how he plays. He obviously wanted to compete, so we'll see how he plays."

Jackson said Bryant informed him he planned to play on the trip back from Minnesota to L.A. on Friday night.

"We talked about it on the plane last night and [Bryant] said "I have every intention of playing, I just hope it progresses as well as its going,'" Jackson said.

[Chito]

He's an idiot! What the hell is he trying to prove NOW? They got the West, they ain't catching up to the Cavs, so why not just chill till the Playoffs? Come Playoffs, I hope he doesn't screw something else up.  

[Paul LA]

Shut him down.

[Derelict]

The 90 million man does not care what you think, he does not care what I think, he does not care what everyone else thinks. When the 90 million man wants to play, he'll play. Not only is he the 90 million man, but he is also stubborn as FUCK!

[Paul LA]

Bring it back

[Juan23]

Lakers notes: Bryant to finish season


LOS ANGELES -- Kobe Bryant won't be missing any more games this season to rest his legs and swollen right knee. He plans on playing when the Lakers close the regular season with a back-to-back Tuesday against Sacramento and Wednesday against the Clippers to "sharpen up" and said "we want to win both of these games."

Bryant's shot could certainly use a little sharpening. Bryant shot just 8-for-23 on Sunday after sitting out the Lakers last two games in hopes of getting back the lift in his legs that was lacking and affecting the trajectory of his attempts. Bryant's shot total in the last three games he's played in is an alarming 21-for-70 (30 percent).

While his final line didn't reflect it, Bryant said the time off made a difference, in his limbs at least, but straddled the line when rest leads to rust.

"It feels pretty good," Bryant said. "It's a little rusty, a little stiff from not playing, not being active. I'll be fine. That's why it's important to get out there and play a little bit, loosen up the joints a little bit . . . It's OK. It feels strong."

Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who played a big part in convincing Bryant to sit out the two games in the first place, saw improvement in his guard's legs as well.

"He shot the ball poorly today but I think some of it was more shot selection," Jackson said. "It looked like at the end of the game he got into it and got in rhythm and got that energy behind his game that he has."

Jackson said he will not sit any of his players over the final two games the way he sat Bryant.

"They'll play, they won't play heavy minutes, but they'll certainly play and we'll play guys into the minutes they're accustomed to -- 30 minutes, 32 minutes hopefully at least -- so they get the work," Jackson said. "[We'll] try to keep guys out of 40-minute games."

He also provided an update on injured center Andrew Bynum, who has been out the last 11 games with a strained left Achilles' tendon.

"We had planned to have [Bynum] practice Monday if he was asymptomatic," Jackson said. "He was not, so we'll hold that off for a while."When Bynum does eventually return, Jackson will be patient in expecting production out of him.

"I'm not so sure Andrew can step right in and take off where he left," Jackson said. "We hope so. We hope it will give our team some support and size that we need and some rebounding strength."

Pau Gasol, who has upped his scoring and rebounding averages considerably in Bynum's absence, said that his fellow 7-footer can't return soon enough.

"I think we [need him], absolutely," Gasol said. "He's a big part of our success and he's been playing really well this year, the best of his career so far and he's still got a lot of room for improvement."

[Nanizm]

After reading Kobe's article in Sundays LA Times im thinking Kobe wont be Kobe until after he takes care of his injuries.
After watching the last few games Kobe just doesnt look like himself. The lift, the consistency in his shot, etc.
If Kobe cant be Kobe Lakers wont win it...the rest of the team doesnt have enough talent to make up what Kobe brings to the game.
Kobe can still put it together to close a game, but he just cant seem to take over the games for long stretches anymore.

[Derelict]

Nanizm, on 12 April 2010 - 09:13 AM, said:

After reading Kobe's article in Sundays LA Times im thinking Kobe wont be Kobe until after he takes care of his injuries.
After watching the last few games Kobe just doesnt look like himself. The lift, the consistency in his shot, etc.
If Kobe cant be Kobe Lakers wont win it...the rest of the team doesnt have enough talent to make up what Kobe brings to the game.
Kobe can still put it together to close a game, but he just cant seem to take over the games for long stretches anymore.

Stop being a Mr. Bryant apologist.

Mr. Bryant was never an efficient shooter, and now his "skills" are eroding drastically. Mr. Bryant is laughing all the way to the bank, that was 90 million dollars well spent.

[Nanizm]

Derelict, on 12 April 2010 - 11:48 AM, said:

Stop being a Mr. Bryant apologist.

Mr. Bryant was never an efficient shooter, and now his "skills" are eroding drastically. Mr. Bryant is laughing all the way to the bank, that was 90 million dollars well spent.

Im not talking about his field goal percentage...im talking about how the ball is coming off his hand...Kobe has one of the most prettiest strokes in the NBA and his form is close to perfect...the ball use to come out his hand straight and with a nice spin...he doesnt get that every time now..sometimes that ball looks like a knuckle ball...or he misses by a mile...i think its because he has a bad feel for the ball at times due to the huge wrap around his finger....his field goal percentage not being as high as people like you think it needs to be is due to his shot selection...as bad as it has been Kobe has always been around 45-47%...that is GREAT considering the shots he takes.

[EvenSteven]

Kobe averages 45.5% FG career.  However, he also averages 6.4 made FTs, out of 7.7 attempts.
If you combined the two stats together then it's just like shooting approx. 50% on FGs.  
I think that's pretty good.  
A.I. won the MVP one year while shooting FGs at 39.5%, but shot a ton of FTs.  If you're gonna grade a scorer, you have to take both of those stats into consideration, and not just the FG shooting % as a stand-alone.

[Derelict]

Alright, who's next? who's next to be a contrarian to the facts, and start apologizing for Mr. Bryant's career field goal woes. Mr. Bryant apologist this way please.

[Paul LA]

Derelict, on 12 April 2010 - 01:49 PM, said:

Alright, who's next? who's next to be a contrarian to the facts, and start apologizing for Mr. Bryant's career field goal woes. Mr. Bryant apologist this way please.

You know, after all these years, you may just be right. LOL.. KOBE SUCKS!!! LOLOLOL Way to come strong and not suck!!!

[Juan23]

Derelict, on 12 April 2010 - 01:49 PM, said:

Alright, who's next? who's next to be a contrarian to the facts, and start apologizing for Mr. Bryant's career field goal woes. Mr. Bryant apologist this way please.

He is too injured and should have gotten surgery for his finger.....he needs REST.


was that good D?

[Juan23]

Shortly after proclaiming to reporters Sunday he would play the Lakers' final two regular-season games, guard Kobe Bryant  sent a text message at 8 p.m. to Lakers Coach Phil Jackson  that suggested otherwise.

Said Jackson: "It said he probably shouldn’t play the last two games with the way he felt."

That means the next time Bryant suits up will be Game 1 of the first round of the NBA playoffs, an absence a team spokesman said was because of Bryant's four-month-old fractured right index finger.

Bryant, who didn't talk to reporters after Monday's practice, has felt dinged up all season, playing through assorted injuries including a fractured right index finger, back spasms, a sprained left ankle and a sore right elbow. He recently sat out two games because of a swollen right knee, only to return Sunday in the Lakers' 91-88 loss to Portland. In that contest, Bryant scored 20 points on only eight of 23 shooting and missed two key free throws in the final minute.

It wasn't exactly the comeback the Lakers had hoped when Bryant sat out for two games, an absence Jackson hoped would improve the lift in Bryant's legs. It's a factor Jackson thought partly contributed to Bryant's 13 of 47 (27.6%) clip in the two games before he decided to sit out. But Jackson also pointed to one other factor, an area that is indisputable after you watch the game film.
"A lot of it is Kobe’s choices of shots," Jackson said. "He’s taken tougher than natural or normal type of chances."

http://lakersblog.la...offs-begin.html


Great now Sit Down and Rest!

[Chito]

Quote

Said Jackson: "It said he probably shouldn’t play the last two games with the way he felt."

No shit Kobe! You shouldn't have played in the last game, but no, you had to go out and try to be the hero instead of resting your ass until the Playoffs.

Personally, I think the Lakers would have won against the Blazers if Kobe had not played. They usually do much better when they know he ain't going to show and they need the win. I think they play better because they're not solely concentrating on making plays for Kobe, but rather themselves and the team.  
That's they're mistake too though, not necessarily entirely Kobe's. Kobe just needs to trust them more and not always turn things into a 'Kobe Show'. If they do a better job at moving without the ball, then Kobe is more likely to find them open and pass them the ball. How's he going to do that when they're standing around waiting for Kobe's next move? They're lacking communication and moving without the ball.  

Just my two cents  

[Shal]

Chito, on 12 April 2010 - 09:48 PM, said:

No shit Kobe! You shouldn't have played in the last game, but no, you had to go out and try to be the hero instead of resting your ass until the Playoffs.

Personally, I think the Lakers would have won against the Blazers if Kobe had not played. They usually do much better when they know he ain't going to show and they need the win. I think they play better because they're not solely concentrating on making plays for Kobe, but rather themselves and the team.  
That's they're mistake too though, not necessarily entirely Kobe's. Kobe just needs to trust them more and not always turn things into a 'Kobe Show'. If they do a better job at moving without the ball, then Kobe is more likely to find them open and pass them the ball. How's he going to do that when they're standing around waiting for Kobe's next move? They're lacking communication and moving without the ball.  

Just my two cents  

I agree, the Lakers minus the brick layer Kobe would have beat this crappy Blazer team.

[Nanizm]

Derelict, on 12 April 2010 - 01:49 PM, said:

Alright, who's next? who's next to be a contrarian to the facts, and start apologizing for Mr. Bryant's career field goal woes. Mr. Bryant apologist this way please.

Woes? Shotting 45-47% as a guard is not woeful; in the NBA it is considered very good for a shooting guard and great considering the type and amount of shots Kobe takes. Woeful would be around 43% and below. Now 47% for a center or power forward is not good but not even then would you say its "woeful".

Real Shalongest, on 12 April 2010 - 10:59 PM, said:

I agree, the Lakers minus the brick layer Kobe would have beat this crappy Blazer team.

"bricklayer"? again, 45% this year with a bad finger on the shoting hand. Usually around 45-47 percent each year at the 2 guard position taking all of the last second shots in each quarter, playing against the other teams best defender and the whole defense focused on stopping him...that is damn good.