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Kobe Bryant Back to His Old Self at Age 36
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
November 19, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Written off by basketball pundits, 36-year-old Kobe
Bryant, often compared to basketball icon Michael Jordan, proved you can’t keep
a good man down, leading the NBA in scoring at 27.5 points per game. What makes the feat so remarkable is
that Kobe went through a grueling recovery from rupturing his Achilles tendon
April 12, 2013, then after over six-months in rehab returned to the 2013 NBA
season Oct. 29, play six weeks before fracturing his kneecap Dec. 19, 2013. Out for the season, Kobe’s Achilles
and other body parts got much needed rest until the opening of the 2014 NBA
season Oct. 28. No one knew what to
expect with Kobe let alone the Lakers, starting the season without 29-year
shooting guard Nick “Swaggy P” Young.
When the Lakers went zero-and-five to open the season, basketball TNT
basketball pundit Charles Barkley insisted the Lakers weren’t fit for national
TV.
Barkely lets his own frustrations color his analysis, insisting Kobe and
the Lakers don’t deserve to be on national TV.
Barkely, whose career spanned 16 NBA seasons, won the NBA’s Most Valuable
Player in 1993 but never an NBA championship.
Since Michael Jordan retired with the Washington Wizards in 2003, Kobe’s
been the most watched, talked-about, envied player in the NBA. Winning five championships with the
Lakers, Kobe’s been the 2-time NBA scoring champion, 16-time All-Star, now leads
the NBA in scoring 12 games into the 2014 season. Breaking 32,000 career points Nov.
17 for fourth in the all-time scoring behind Michael Jordan, returning to the
top of NBA scoring heap at age 36 after recovering from two career-ending
injuries, is reason enough to follow Kobe on national TV. Barkely doesn’t give Kobe his due as
Michael Jordan’s obvious heir-apparent.
Basketball analysts watching Kobe know that he like poetry-in-motion,
prancing gracefully about the court making the most complex array of shots as
anyone in the NBA, including the more muscular LeBron James in the prime of his
career. While analysts like
black-or-white comparisons, Kobe continues to amaze, especially his critics that
counted him and the Lakers out for
the 2014 season. Getting Swaggy P
back in Atlanta started the brief two-game winning streak Nov. 18, leading to
the unexpected win against the league’s best Houston Rockets. While a two-game streak says little
in an 82-game season, it started something special, watching Kobe & Co. win
back-to-back road games. “Look, we
had a bad start,” said Bryant reflecting after last night’s 108-102 victory in
Houston. “Are we a 3-9 team? No. We’re much better team that
that. We got off to a really bad
start, but we’ll (get better),” said Kobe.
Getting Swaggy P back made all the difference, putting another credible
offensive threat on the floor.
“Listen, that’s what’s rolling, that’s what’s rolling,” Bryant said in response
to having Nick back on the floor.
“I’ll take it,” hopeful that the Lakers have begun to turn the corner. What makes Young’s presence so
important for the Lakers is the one-year USC star feels honored-and-grateful to
play along side one of the best players to ever hit the hardwood. While other players worry about
Kobe’s offensive dominance, Young watches, absorbs, imitates and raises his game
to Kobe’s standards. In a game of
egos, few players understand the importance of putting egos aside to learn from
the best how to win. Led by
51-year-old former Laker guard and three-time NBA champion coach Byron Scott,
the Lakers found the toughness needed to close out the last two road games.
What the Lakers’ games in Atlanta and Houston had in common was the
mental toughness needed when games go close.
With several lead changes in the last two minutes of regulation last
night, Kobe showed his teammates what it takes to scratch out a win. Having Swaggy P on the court enabled
Kobe to keep his aggression, despite playing 77 minutes in the law two games. Most analysts thought, with Kobe
returning from career-ending injuries, Scott would limit Kobe’s minutes,
something that hasn’t happened in the first 12 games. Asked by ESPN after last night’s win
whether he could continue playing so many minutes, Kobe said he didn’t know. Asked what keeps his competitive
spirits going, he told ESPN, “it’s the beauty of the game,” or put another way
his love of the game. Anyone
watching Bryant knows he shows the same passion for the game as his 1996 rookie
season.
Apart from off-the-wall comments by Barkley about not televising the
Lakers, NBA fans are treated watching what could be the last two years of one of
the NBA’s greatest players.
Watching him recover from two career-ending injuries to rise to the NBA’s
scoring leader is a remarkable narrative for the NBA. Now that Swaggy P’s back, if Kobe
can motivate his team to their potential, just like he’s done for the past 19
seasons, the Lakers have a shot of not only making the playoffs but doing some
serious damage. While other teams
have more raw young talent, or even older teams like the Spurs have a more
disciplined system, they don’t have Kobe’s once-in-a-generation drive to to
succeed. Watching the Lakers win
back-to-back road games, with Nick still rusty from a nagging hand injury,
answer some naysayers already counting Kobe and the Lakers out for 2014.
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