LAKERS -at- KNICKS - 12/23 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[LakerSanity]

I think Kobe gets bored in the triangle sometimes. The triangle offense to me is like playing blackjack... you bet $10 bucks on every hand, one after the other, knowing the odds and playing by the books.. but you also count cards, which means you bet more on higher counts thus allowing you to win 52% of the time. However, that takes discipline and patience - it takes milking the shuffle and being a professional. After enough time though, if your patience runs thin and you see a high count, you say "F--- It" and bet way too much, taking any an unneccessary risk. Sometimes you'll win big, but most of the time, diverting form your "52% winning" strategy means your turning yourself into a loser because your addicted to the "gamble" or the "big risk."

I don't see it as Kobe being selfish or Kobe only looking out for his owns stats or Kobe wanting all the credit and to win games by himself. What I see is a player who is so competitive that simply playing "within" the system sometimes is boring to him and at some points during the game, after throwing a few passes in a row or doing the same thing time after time after time in the tri, he says to himself "f--- it" and takes a 30 foot 3pter just to keep himself awake and on that "gambler's high" as his competitive drive demands. It's an immaturity in his game that I am not sure will ever end until he gets more legit criticism from both his team and outside oberservers in the media for doing it. Up to this point though, he tends to get acclaim more making those plays, so by being rewarded there is no reason for him to stop.
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[rpadma12]

^ It's just amazing to me that a 12 yr veteran and a champion can still get into stupid things like that. He was acting as if he was on the playground and taking bets on what kind of difficult shots he can make. Like you said, Phil had none of this earlier.. he would keep him in check. Has it gotten to the point where Phil has gotten too mellow with him and there is no one else on the team to do that? Tex has in the past; but he is rarely around the team these days.

If it was someone like Ricky Davis, even those who say that it was "entertainment" would be calling him out.

I'm a fan of Kobe's talent.. but seeing things like this is disturbing and you start to wonder if those who say a Kobe led team will be mediocre are right.. I mean, he can play wonderful basketball and then turn around and completely be out of it in terms of discipline. That will lead to mediocrity when things get going in the middle of the season as the good teams separate themselves from the pack.

[LakerSanity]

The one thing about Kobe that no one can really argue against is that Kobe lacks EMOTIONAL discipline. Over the summer, we saw a large example of this off the court with his trade demands. Through the seasons we have watched him, we have seen this on the court with some of his shot selection and one-on-one challenges against big name opponents. Sometimes he's like the gambler who says "I know I just lost five straight bets, but screw you, you're not going to beat me, so here is bet #6" (i.e. Kobe's 3rd or 4th dumb 3).
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[dawglaker]

he may be a 12 year veteran, but hes still only 29 ? relatively young

[melo061]

[Wolverine]