Number 1: Team Effort
Lamar Odom told the LA TIMES that “dudes on the Rapters [were] talking sh*t” and “strutting around” Staples Center as if they owned the joint. This is coming from the Toronto Raptors (32-30 record), a team that Lamar eloquently noted “Ain’t done sh*t. You know what I mean? As a team, as individuals.” So if Toronto doesn’t deserve to be in the same breath as the World Champs, why are they so confident? It’s worth noting, they aren’t the only one. Teams around the league smell blood. Any supposed “aura of invincibility” surrounding the Lakers this season is gone. Is this because the competition has more talent than the Lakers? Of course not, there isn’t a team in the NBA that can match the Lakers’ combination of size, experience and ability.
So what’s the issue?
The talking heads on ESPN argue this ad nauseam, but it’s a fact that this year’s Lakers team is simply not playing with the same fervor that the 08-09 group did. This is evident with their current 17-13 road record and first 3 game losing streak in the Ko-Pau era (pronounced, “ka-pow”). After getting backhanded by Boston in Game 6 of the ’08 Finals, the Lakers played all of last season with a giant chip on their shoulder. They came out for every game like there was something to prove. (Wow, back-to-back cliches…right on.)
This season, it’s a completely different story. Pat Riley calls it “The Disease of More”, arguing that teams coming off Championship parades lose the togetherness that was essential in their climb to the top. The reason: Personal Greed. Typically younger teams (like the Lakers) start to fragment as individual players come out the next year looking for more touches, more minutes, more money, more everything.
I’m not saying the Lakers are suffering from the so-called “Disease of More”, but it doesn’t take an expert to realize that the same effort that took them to the top of the NBA just isn’t there this year. A ghastly 5-8 record against Division Leaders this year is enough evidence for me to see that while the contenders are clearly stepping their game up, the champs seem content to coast. How’s that for alliteration? Too much? Sorry…
Does Kobe look happy? I didn't think so either...
Either way, Kobe obviously noticed a lack of effort and addressed this in a closed doors meeting to light a fire under his teammates. Their response was losing yet another game they should have won, this time to a lively bunch in Orlando. Kobe though, was not upset with his team’s effort: “We didn’t win the game, but I saw what I wanted to see.”
At least he saw something he wanted to see, because outside of Ron Ron’s new do, I certainly didn’t.
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