Kobe Bryant was on The Dan Patrick Show this morning, and he said something that should have the other teams in the Western Conference quivering.
When asked what would happen if the Lakers
were to make the playoffs, Bryant responded as only he could. “We’re going to be a huge problem,” Kobe said, most likely with a menacing smile sprawled across his face. And I think he’s right.
If the season were to end right now, the Lakers
would play San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs. It would be a great series; Kobe would die on the court if he had to.
Two integral pieces of each team, Tony Parker for the Spurs and Pau
Gasol
for the Lakers
, are currently missing because of injury, but they will both likely be back for the playoffs. The matchup would be a first round bout for the ages.
I can picture it now: two of the greatest of all-time at their respective positions, Tim Duncan and Bryant, battling for a shot at the title in the dwindling years of illustrious careers. Steve Nash trying to prove that he still has it against Tony Parker would be great theater. Metta
World Peace and Stephen Jackson, two of the most insane and interesting men to every lace up sneakers, would play absurdly intense defense on each other. The Spurs’ Tiago
Splitter would try to finally break out and shut down both Gasol
and Earl Clark.
Kobe could handle Manu Ginobli
, but Manu couldn’t handle Kobe, not right now. Kobe’s too hot. Kawhi
Leonard could pose a real problem for the Lakers
, he could really put himself on the map. And last but not least, there’d be Dwight Howard having a make-or-break series that would define his time as a Laker, and probably decide the immediate future of his career.
Although the Spurs are the most perennially disrespected teams in sports, I’m going to disrespect them again and predict that they would lose to the Lakers
in a series. I have to believe that the finality of a seven-game playoff series in Los Angeles would be enough to light a fire of epic proportions under Howard.
I think Howard would dominate the series. I also think Kobe would morph into something we’ve never seen before. “The Black Mamba,” as he’s been known for years, has a frightening killer quality about him recently. Last week though, he adopted a new nickname. “Vino,” which Kobe deemed himself, is Italian for “wine,” which makes perfect sense because Bryant seems to be getting better with age. He’s averaging 33.2 points, 6.6 assists, and 6.7 rebounds per game in March. He wants it, and it’s clear.
Kobe alone can win a game for you, we’ve seen it happen. But, he can’t win a series by himself, and I don’t he’ll have to. I think the Lakers
will step up. Unless they are forced to play the Thunder, I see L.A. winning in the first round. In fact, I think the Lakers
will advance as far as they possibly can without facing Oklahoma City. Since there’s no way to know the playoff seeding right now, that means I think the Lakers
make it to the Western Conference Finals if they find a way to avoid OKC
until then.
It has been a struggle thus far, but the death of the legendary former Lakers’
owner Dr. Jerry Buss seems to have propelled Kobe and his team, and they’re hot at the right time.
jm296009@ohiou.edu
