Re: Lakers report card: Kobe Bryant provides a mixed blessing
- From: LA Lakers <nobody@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2012 22:57:20 +0000 (UTC)
[posted and mailed]
2011-12 Lakers Report Card: Kobe Bryant
June, 4, 2012
By Dave McMenamin
http://goo.gl/dwFTg
The paradox that is Kobe Bryant was on full display during the 2011-12
season.
Should he be celebrated for the second-highest scoring average in the
league as a 33-year-old playing in his 16th NBA season?
Or should he be criticized for shooting 43 percent (his lowest since his
second year in the league) and averaging 4.6 assists per game (his lowest
since 2005-06) while posting the highest usage rate (35.7) in the league?
As Kobe often says when asked whether a low-scoring Lakers night is the
fault of the Lakers' offense or a credit to the opponent's defense,
"Probably a little bit of both."
Were the Lakers empowered by having Bryant push them to the third-best
record in the West despite coach Mike Brown being in his first season
with L.A., the team trading its longtime point guard at the deadline, and
the season seeming to never escape the shadow of the failed Chris Paul
deal?
Or were the Lakers sometimes hampered by Bryant trying to hold on to the
player he once was, instead of evolving to fit the roster that surrounded
him at this point in his career?
Probably a little bit of both.
Was Kobe all about No. 24 instead of about the other 13 guys on the
roster when he was scoring 40-plus points in four straight games in
January?
Or was he just doing what one of the top five scorers in NBA history is
supposed to do, helping along an anemic offense by putting the team on
his back until it found its offensive stride under Brown?
Probably a little bit of both.
Should fans be impressed that Bryants six 40-point games (between the
regular season and playoffs) in 2011-12 were twice as many as league MVP
LeBron James three and two more than NBA scoring title winner Kevin
Durants four?
Or should fans point to the Lakers 3-3 record in those six games and say
that when Bryant plays "hero ball," the team isn't as efficient as when
he dials it back a bit?
Probably a little bit of both.
And thats the tension that runs through any thoughts about the Lakers
future championship chances, too.
Does the logical person observing this team believe that Bryants salary
next season ($27.8 million) will make him grossly overpaid and hinder the
Lakers chances of reaching the title?
Can the romantic person -- who has observed Bryants drive, will and work
ethic over the course of his career -- have any doubt that Kobe will
figure out somehow, some way, to tie Michael Jordan with six rings before
he retires?
Youd have to say that both the logical one and the romantic would admit
they feel a little bit of what the other feels.
STATISTICS
27.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.2 steals on 43.0 percent
shooting from the field and 30.3 percent on 3-pointers in 38.5 minutes
over 58 games played.
HIGHLIGHTS
In the grand scheme of things, Bryants biggest accomplishment undoubtedly
was passing former teammate Shaquille ONeal for fifth place on the NBAs
all-time scoring list. The rest of the top five? Kareem-Abdul Jabbar.
Karl Malone. Jordan. Wilt Chamberlain. Pretty heady stuff.
The fact that he passed ONeal back in his old stomping grounds of
Philadelphia made for a This is your life-type moment for Bryant.
Thats the big-picture stuff.
The real day-to-day highlight of Bryants 16th campaign was his ability to
play through injuries. First, there was the torn ligament in his right
wrist that he hurt in training camp; eventually, he received pregame
injections to numb the pain. Then there was the concussion and broken
nose he suffered at the hands of Dwyane Wade in the All-Star Game that
resulted in him wearing a mask for several games . Finally, there was a
left shin injury that caused him to wear a walking boot on non-game days
for a while, and eventually led him to sit out two weeks near the end of
the season, a period during which he seemed to embrace a Coach Kobe role.
LOWLIGHTS
Bryant called the 2010-11 season a wasted year of my life after the
Lakers were swept out of the second round by the Dallas Mavericks. Hed
have to feel similarly about 2011-12.
Even though the Oklahoma City Thunder were the better team during the
regular season, and thus had home-court advantage in their Western
Conference semifinals series, L.A. had its shot to advance. That shot
went awry thanks in no small part to the way Bryant closed Game 2
(missing his last five shots and being part of two key turnovers) and the
way he finished Game 4 (missing seven of his last eight shots).
His struggles in the clutch were only magnified by what he said (pegging
Game 4s result on a Gasol turnover) and by what he didnt say (choosing
not to address the media during the postseason exit interview schedule
like the rest of his teammates).
PROSPECTS FOR 2012-13
Bryant has made it clear that the only thing that motivates him at this
stage of his career is adding to his championship collection. With two
years and approximately $58 million remaining on his contract, will the
money he is owed make it impossible for Lakers management to engineer a
title-contending team in part because of an inability to retool the
roster under the new, stricter collective bargaining agreement?
Its going to be intriguing to see how Bryant handles this upcoming
offseason. On the one hand, he can try to spin it positively, pointing
out that a full training camp with Brown, and another season with Bynum
in his prime (even if the roster isnt dramatically overhauled) could give
the Lakers enough of a boost to get back to the promised land. On the
other hand, how much longer can he continue to defy the effects of aging
and be the alpha dog of this team? And if all the years and games and
minutes do start to take their toll, will Bryant be able, or willing, to
make the necessary adjustments to his game to maximize the way he can
best help the team?
GRADE: B+
The guy who used to play for the Lower Merion Aces isnt satisfied with
anything less than an A, but it just didnt all come together this year
for Kobe.
What grade would you give Kobe Bryant?
58%
A
31%
B
7%
C
2%
D
2%
F
(Total votes: 1,560)
.
- References:
- Lakers report card: Kobe Bryant provides a mixed blessing
- From: LA Lakers
- Lakers report card: Kobe Bryant provides a mixed blessing
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