A few notes about history that happened last night...
Kobe Bryant is not the next Michael Jordan, he's the first Kobe. Ten years from now, we'll be bestowing the honor or curse of a young player in college as the next Kobe. Ten years ago, we knew MJ was the greatest player ever. Kobe can't get that same respect. Talking heads are blaming Kobe for being selfish and taking too many shots and it is similiar criticism that Jordan got early in his career. Much like the Bulls in the late '80's, the Lakers have no other discernible talent other than Kobe. They need Kobe to take 25 shots for them to have a chance to win. Bryant is smart enough to know this and on nights his teammates have been in a groove, he's dialed his game back and included them in the flow. When they can't throw the ball in the friggin ocean, he takes over, much like last night.
The Lakers came out flat last night against a not as good as it was playing Raptors team. Don't forget that the Lakers were down 16-18 points in this game. If Bryant hadn't taken 46 shots, they would not have won the game. This was a competitive game until five or six minutes left when it was clear it was Kobe's night. Toronto played defense for most of the second half, they could not stop him at all.
Kobe is handling the criticism like a legend should. In Dallas, he scored 62 in 3 quarters of the game. He sat down after the game was in the refrigerator at that point. No reason for him to try for a hundred. (He probably could have that night.) But he did the right thing and sat down.
MJ had his weaknesses as well. Before his first retirement, there was a lot of speculation about his gambling habits. Many thought his retirement to play baseball was a secret arrangement for the league to avoid the embarassment of bad stuff coming out about him. Pete Rose was still pretty fresh in the sports world at this time and the stigma of the game's greatest being tied with gambling was definitely something the league wanted to avoid.
Now, MJ walks on water. Kobe had his issue with the law and now he will play himself into the record books. It is hard to imagine someone in today's game scoring 100 points in a game. When Wilt played, it was a different era and a lot of his shots were close to the basket if not slam dunks. To imagine a swingman scoring 80 points in a game when the majority of his shot selection is jumpshots is amazing. Indeed, history was made last night. Hope you enjoyed it.
laters
cvz
Rebels by 10
Monday, January 23
Sunday, January 15
New Year's Resolutions...
Welcome to 2006!
This being a brand new year here on the Itch and I will make a cliche New Year's Resolution. I am determined to bring you the best in opinions, thoughts, musings and other observations.
Let's get started!
So I was a little off in my Super Bowl prediction. Indy tanked against Pittsburgh, Phily and Atlanta were not relevant at all and the Pats finally(!) went down. Up until December, Indy looked like a good pick. A lot of distractions brought them back to earth. That being said, I like Denver over Carolina in Detroit. Denver's got the moxie and Indy out of their way and Carolina's defense is underrated and has been all season. Check back with me in a week though, it may change.
One thing I would like to talk about is Herm Edwards. This guy is getting grilled in the media for leaving the Jets with time still on his contract and going to Kansas City whose opening was caused by the tearful retirement of Dick Vermeil. How can you blame him for going for a better job with a better team with a better organization for more money!?! I think he is an underrated coach given what he had to work with in the Jets and he was still able to get them into the postseason a couple years. He is inheriting more talent than he ever had and an organization that wants him in the job. The Jets undervalued him and after a 4-12 season after starting a different QB every game he was rumored to be on his way out without a contract extension. It's called reading the writing on the wall, folks, he jumped to a better ship before the one he was one sank.
One other resolution...I will try to spread the love around and not talk too much only about my favorite teams. That being said I do believe the Rebels are in for a rant. As are the Lakers. As are the Redskins. As are the Cubs. Well, I said I would try to not talk too much.
The Mountain West is definitely having a down year. Utah is 1-3 and Air Force and CSU have the best overall records in the league. I'll give credit to the Academy, they have some legitimate wins and if they win 11 or 12 games in league, they deserve to go to the NCAAs. Homecourt means so much in this conference and stealing victories on the road is tough. UNLV had a golden opportunity to pick up two early road wins with 3 of their next 4 at home and they could have established themselves early in the conference season as a force. San Diego State turned around a six point halftime deficit and ran away with the second half behind second chance points. Their offensive rebounding was nonstop and kept the Rebels from stealing a second road win. Don't give up on the Rebs though. I think they are one of the deepest teams in the conference and if they can work up enough moxie to win three or four more road wins and hold court at home, they may have a serious chance to win the tournament in March.
That's all for now. Enjoy the premiere of 24 tonight, but don't tell me what happened, I'm still two seasons behind. That's only two days for Jack though.
laters
cvz
Rebels by 10
This being a brand new year here on the Itch and I will make a cliche New Year's Resolution. I am determined to bring you the best in opinions, thoughts, musings and other observations.
Let's get started!
So I was a little off in my Super Bowl prediction. Indy tanked against Pittsburgh, Phily and Atlanta were not relevant at all and the Pats finally(!) went down. Up until December, Indy looked like a good pick. A lot of distractions brought them back to earth. That being said, I like Denver over Carolina in Detroit. Denver's got the moxie and Indy out of their way and Carolina's defense is underrated and has been all season. Check back with me in a week though, it may change.
One thing I would like to talk about is Herm Edwards. This guy is getting grilled in the media for leaving the Jets with time still on his contract and going to Kansas City whose opening was caused by the tearful retirement of Dick Vermeil. How can you blame him for going for a better job with a better team with a better organization for more money!?! I think he is an underrated coach given what he had to work with in the Jets and he was still able to get them into the postseason a couple years. He is inheriting more talent than he ever had and an organization that wants him in the job. The Jets undervalued him and after a 4-12 season after starting a different QB every game he was rumored to be on his way out without a contract extension. It's called reading the writing on the wall, folks, he jumped to a better ship before the one he was one sank.
One other resolution...I will try to spread the love around and not talk too much only about my favorite teams. That being said I do believe the Rebels are in for a rant. As are the Lakers. As are the Redskins. As are the Cubs. Well, I said I would try to not talk too much.
The Mountain West is definitely having a down year. Utah is 1-3 and Air Force and CSU have the best overall records in the league. I'll give credit to the Academy, they have some legitimate wins and if they win 11 or 12 games in league, they deserve to go to the NCAAs. Homecourt means so much in this conference and stealing victories on the road is tough. UNLV had a golden opportunity to pick up two early road wins with 3 of their next 4 at home and they could have established themselves early in the conference season as a force. San Diego State turned around a six point halftime deficit and ran away with the second half behind second chance points. Their offensive rebounding was nonstop and kept the Rebels from stealing a second road win. Don't give up on the Rebs though. I think they are one of the deepest teams in the conference and if they can work up enough moxie to win three or four more road wins and hold court at home, they may have a serious chance to win the tournament in March.
That's all for now. Enjoy the premiere of 24 tonight, but don't tell me what happened, I'm still two seasons behind. That's only two days for Jack though.
laters
cvz
Rebels by 10
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)