Kobe Bryant clouds the Lakers’ chances in the playoffs

Kobe Bryant / Jenson Chan - Flickr

Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant tore his Achilles tendon on April 13 and is expected to be sidelined for nine months. Due to his absence, the Lakers lost in the first round of the playoffs after they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs.

Bryant made a tremendous contribution to the Lakers during the regular season. He led his team by scoring 27.3 points per game and adding 6.0 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game. His great offensive skills led him to become the fourth leading scorer of all time in the NBA this season.

Not only did Bryant provide his team with valuable scoring, he also motivated his teammates to do better and helped them grow as players. "Kobe is a different type of player, just like I said, just sitting back and watching Kobe and how he handled himself the whole year was great for me to watch,” said his teammate Dwight Howard to the LA Times.

Even though Bryant wasn’t able to play against the Spurs he encouraged his team to continue to make good defensive and offensive plays. “What I would say if I was there right now? Pau get ur a-- on the block and don't move till u get it #realtalk," tweeted Bryant as he coached his teammates from home.

Without Bryant, the Lakers lacked motivation and had difficulty scoring against the tough defense of the Spurs. As Bryant recovers there is hope that next year the Lakers will have a strong season. With the help of Pau Gasol and Howard, Bryant will try to make the Lakers a winning team. His main focus is to recover from this injury with the same mentality he always had.

“We don't quit, we don't cower, we don't run. We endure and conquer" said Bryant on Facebook.

The 2012 NBA All-Star Weekend

All Star 2012- Cinefilo- Flickr

The 2012 All Star Weekend at the Amway Center in Orlando was a spectacular show of the NBA players’ abilities. Kobe Bryant broke Michael Jordan's record for most career All-Star points, while Kevin Durant took home MVP honors. Other players showed their skills in the various challenges that comprise the All-Star Weekend.

 The Western Conference defeated the Eastern Conference in the All-Star Game 152-149. The West got off to a quick head start and had 88 points by the first half. By the third quarter, things changed and LeBron James hit three three-pointers and cut the West’s lead from 21 to 12. Shortly thereafter, Dwyane Wade’s hard foul of Bryant gave him a nasal fracture. Despite his injury, Bryant then surpassed Michael Jordan’s record of 262 points for most All-Star career points on a dunk and now has 271. By the fourth quarter, Bryant and Russell Westbrook’s great scoring led the West to a victory.

Former Knicks player Allan Houston’s half court shot won Team New York the Shooting Stars Challenge. The team consisted of Houston, WNBA player Cappie Pointdexter, and Knicks player Landry Fields.

Kevin Love beat Durant, Mario Chalmers, Anthony Morrow and others to win the Three Point Shootout. In an amazing performance of ability, Love won two tiebreakers, one with Chalmers and one with Durant, to claim the ultimate victory.

Fan votes named Jeremy Evans winner of the Slam Dunk Contest. The Utah Jazz player started off with a bad play, but then shocked the crowd with his most amazing dunk. Gordon Hayward, a fellow player, sat on a chair and threw two balls in the air. Evans jumped over him and dunked both.

In the Rising Stars challenge, Team Shaq defeated Team Chuck 146-133. Kyrie Irving played phenomenally, showing his skills with an alley-oop to Paul George and several long range shots. He finished with 36 points. Others, though, didn’t play very well. Jeremy Lin, a previous sensation, made only two points. As Team Shaq co-head coach Ron Adams thought, it was an enjoyable game for all. "There were a lot of dunks," he said in an Associated Press article "I think the guys had fun … it was a fun game. Interesting game."

Overall, The All-Star Weekend was an impressive performance of the NBA’s best players.

Where are the players now?

    The National Basketball Association lockout has been going on for months, giving the players a lot of free time. Both the players and the coaches want more money, and neither of them seem like they are going to budge. With two weeks cut off from the season, and probably more coming, the big question still remains: What are the players going to do now? 
   Some of the players are starting to follow up with their talk and go overseas. Former Utah Jazz point gaurd Deron Williams is now playing for the Besiktas in Turkey. Tony Parker left to go play for his home team, ASVEL Villeurbanne, in France for minimum wage. Other big stars, such as Kobe Bryant, are still debating leaving, though. He wants to go play for Virtus Bologna in Italy.
    "Italy is my home. It's where my dream of playing in the NBA started. This is where I learned the fundamentals, learned to shoot, to pass and to [move] without the ball… all things that when I came back to America, the players my age didn't know how to do because they were only thinking about jumping and dunking," says Bryant. They have stopped all the flashy attempts to lure him, and it is just the deals now. “Help us Obi-Wan Kobe… you are our only hope,” writes a fan to Suite 101.

    Some players are thinking of trying other sports as well. LeBron James tweeted, "When is the deadline for a team to sign a free agent [in the National Football League]?" James was a wide receiver from the pee wee leagues to high school. After practicing once, he tweeted again, this time saying, "Just got done practicing with the St.V Varsity football team, full pads and all. Felt great being back on the field. Should I?" Another player that is looking to play a different sport is Kobe Bryant. Bryant was looking at playing baseball in the Arizona Fall Leagues.

    The majority of the players, especially the rookies, are just waiting it out. They want the deals to be completed so they can go back and play on their teams for the NBA, not anywhere else. Malcom Lee, a Minnesotta Timberwolves rookie, says, "It's the same life [as college]. No income checks are coming in, none of that good stuff that comes with being in the NBA."  

1997 Dunk Contest - Kobe Bryant

Megan Stiner / Wikimedia Commons

Kobe Bryant: Winner of 1997 Dunk Contest in Cleveland, Ohio.

First Round: Kobe Bryant - 37
Finals: Kobe Bryant - 49

Final Standings: 1. Kobe Bryant 2. Chris Carr 3. Michael Finley

First round, Bryant was down seven points from Chris Carr who had scored 44 points. By the end of round two, it was Bryant with 49 points and Chris Carr with 45. Not only did Bryant make a stunning upset in the dunk contest, he was only 18 years old. Bryant is the youngest player ever to win the contest; a record that has yet to be broken at this day and age. He, along with Michael Jordan and Brent Barry are the only three players to have won an NBA championship and a slam dunk contest. By winning this dunk contest, Bryant started his rookie career as a fan favorite and won his first NBA championship three years later.