The $20 Million Burn

Stephon Marbury is getting paid twenty-two million dollars this season. To sit on the bench. In street clothes.

That’s twenty-two million dollars. To sit on the bench. In street clothes.

It just has to be repeated to be believed. Even in this day and age of crazy salaries and crazier players and owners, it’s hard to fathom how anyone could get paid so much for doing so little.

The team that’s paying Marbury is the New York Knicks, a franchise that has fallen so far into the abyss of bad, that even the Los Angeles Clippers have a better reputation in the basketball world right now.

Marbury came to New York under different management amid hope that he might find a home in his home town. But if there’s anything we’ve learned about the guy they call Starbury, it’s that he has never been interested in anything but his own damn self.

I mean here is a guy who couldn’t find a way to play with Kevin Garnett. That’s how badly he wanted to be The Man. Everywhere he goes, he only reinforces his rep as a Cancer, no more so than this week when he has not once but twice refused to suit up for the Knicks who are short-handed because of cap-clearing trades and injuries.

It's been argued by some that Marbury has a legitimate beef with his bosses, who decided they didn't want him anymore and would rather he just take a buy out (a percentage of the money he's owed) and go away. This has been an ongoing saga since the middle of last season and every day the $22 million dollar man sits on the end of bench in long pants, has been one more day of the drama. Marbury has sat there quietly and yet ... well his just being there speaks volumes. Say the Knicks deserve what they get. The current owner was the owner when they acquired Marbury -- not like his ridiculous NBA max salary was a big ol' secret neither.

Marbury seems intent on walking away on his terms. Even if it costs him whatever shred of a decent rep he's got left. Seems to me a guy like Marbury who has spent 12 years in the NBA, who has never been near a championship, or ever been considered much of a team player, who has only so much left for pro ball, ought to have embraced this as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

It's not like it hasn't been done before. Think about it ... sports, politics, entertainment, they run on comebacks. It's our national pastime to embrace the bad guy/girl-turned-good story. As much as we seem to relish a good take down, it's the rise from the ashes we truly love. There is not a place in the world that roots harder and louder and with more passion for the underdog than this here U-nited States of America and the capital of comebacks is New York City. I mean pu-leaze, they wrote a damn song about it.

It's to Stephon Marbury's detriment that this is one lesson he has not yet learned.

Gotta be a difficult decision for any team to put a healthy guy on the pines. But GM Donnie Walsh and coach Mike D’Antoni, both in their first full seasons with the team, weren’t around when the Knicks traded for Marbury (getting him from D’Antoni’s Suns). He didn’t fit in then and never evolved from a look-to-score-first point guard with little appreciation for the limits of his abilities and no appreciable defensive abilities. As far as the new Knicks braintrust is concerned, he never really gave the Knicks any indication that he was figuring this out.

I had a chance to cover Marbury when he first came into the league. I knew his college coach from my days covering the ACC and he had always raved about his gifts, athletically and otherwise. But Marbury may be a classic example of a talent crowned way too early. He was such a star in his hometown of Brooklyn that he was called Starbury before he could shave. He grew up as Clyde Frazier might put it, trumping and thumping the expectations of the greats that had come before him. And he left college after just one season as the point guard for a good, but not even remotely great team, even though two of his teammates were future NBAers too.

Point guard is one of those positions in basketball that requires schooling. To be really good, it's not enough to just have the raw skills. Maybe you can't teach "feel" and reaction, but you can teach strategy and how to recognize defenses and understanding the subtlties of offense, knowing where your teammates are going before they do. LeBron James was annointed any number of ways before he even played one NBA game. That had wonderful instincts as a passer was not in question. But go back and watch his first year or two -- oh, he's wonderful to watch but more often than not, it's clear he has almost no idea what he's doing. He's just reacting. Fast forward to the present. The kid has totally upped his game. (Watch out, too. He's gonna get even better and it's going to be wicked fun to watch.)

Marbury has never really stayed in any situation long enough to learn how to be a true point guard. Plus, he bought into his own hype anyway and you would too if the world has been telling you how great you are since the day you dribbled a basketball. Sadly, he never realized that his talent was only going to take him this far and no farther.

Stephon Marbury is stuck. And he doesn't have a clue how he got here.

It's sad. He clearly loves to play basketball. He used to play it with such joy and his size and strength and speed -- he was the whole package. He’s done some good things for the community. As an interview, he was almost always forthright, helpful and polite. He seemed like he had a bright, active mind. But he doesn't appear to be thinking this through. How else do you explain a guy whose basketball life is dying an untimely death by his own hand and he doesn't even know it? You can’t even blame his agent – he doesn’t have one.

Maybe playing might not have saved him, but not playing hasn’t been the answer. If he shows he’s still got some game, he might have convinced a desperate GM to take a shot at him. Hell, Larry Brown hasn’t made a trade since he returned to coaching (his first coaching kid since a brutal and brief stint in New York coaching Marbury). The legendary roster flipper has got to be itching to make a deal, even for a guy he once rode like an evil step father.

But refusing to even suit up is just one more boldly dumb move by Marbury who seems unable to see how much the landscape has changed since he signed his NBA max deal. The Knicks have been overhauling their roster with an eye to a future that has never realistically involved Marbury. They have a slew of youngsters who need to play, players at the age where a well-respected coach like D’Antoni can mold to his system.

The goal of course is something much, much bigger – a reality Marbury seems blind to. The worst-kept secret in the sports world is that New York is gearing up for 2010 and what is expected to be best free-agent class, possibly in the history of the NBA. The way to get there is to stop what they were doing the past decade – acquiring relatively well-known quasi-stars with big, long-term salaries. The thinking was that these players were being dumped for financial reasons that had nothing to do with talent. To be sure, it was Isiah Thomas, as GM, and owner James Dolan -- perhaps the worst sports owner ever, a title for which you might be surprised has a lot of competition – who were the suckers, uh, I mean architects of this strategy.

Of course it failed. Miserably. All it got the Knicks was a roster of grossly overpaid, mismatched guys who they couldn’t give away. It’s now fallen on the new leadership, with Dolan thankfully remaining on the sidelines, to shed these contracts. The endgame is to get far enough under the cap to afford to make a legit run at James or Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh or a combination of two of the above.

Last week, Walsh engineered two deals that put them well ahead of schedule. The guys they traded had salaries beyond 2010 and are still relatively young, but Marbury’s money comes off the books after this season. If it wasn’t for that huge salary, he might be a hot commodity – perhaps for a team that needs a point guard for a late-season run or as a rental to fill in for an injury. But so far, there’s been no takers. Seriously, I wouldn’t want to add him to my rec league team at this point.

And if Walsh can’t get a decent draft pick or a couple guys with low or expiring contracts, there’s no reason to trade him. In a perfect world, a buy out helps both parties. But Marbury would rather be petulant.

Marbury has had a difficult year, for sure but most of it was his fault. After feuding with Brown, he fought with Thomas, who knows a thing or two about volatile, talented point guards who like to shoot. He tried to take Marbury under his wing but in the end, it was his decision to remove him from the starting lineup that doomed Marbury’s season last year. Shortly after he returned to the lineup, his father died during a game. Marbury took some time off, but perhaps came back too early, the tragedy still unresolved for him, as it would be for anyone facing that. The rest of the year was one long lost weekend.

And when the Knicks brought in Walsh who in turn kicked Thomas to the curb -- to the delight of Knicks fans everywhere -- and brought in D'Antoni, the window of opportunity for Marbury was going to be small. I don't know how hard he tried to fit into D'Antoni's run-and-gun system. I don't know how he was in practice or if he made an effort to fit in, especially at the realization that other, younger players were going to play in front of him. I know he came into camp in great shape and he sort of said the right things to the press, but apparently Walsh and D'Antoni didn't get the impression that there star was going to be okay as one of the anonymous boys at the end of the bench.

So they asked him to take a buy out. Negotiations continued and no deal materialized. And then they told him that he wasn't going to play and the season began and the Knicks were not as bad as everyone thought they'd be. And then, well, then the LeBron James fire sale began in earnest -- a lot earlier than expected.

During the past week, the Knicks made two separate trades, dealing (among others) the team's two leading scorers this season. And one player they received in return, guard Cutino Mobley, has yet to play because of a problem discovered on his routine physical. Another guard is hurt and with Mobley not in uniform yet, the Knicks found themselves undermanned. Marbury was asked to suit up. He said no.

After he skipped Tuesday night’s game against the Pistons, teammate Quintin Richardson was quoted as saying he felt that Marbury wasn't even part of the team anymore.

“I don’t consider him my teammate. He hasn’t played with us all year,” Richardson told the New York Times. “He didn’t want to play with us. I don’t look at him as a teammate because teammates don’t do that.”

Times columnist William Rhoden wrote one of the few recent columns that doesn't make Marbury out to be the bad guy. His point is valid to a point -- I think he glosses over Marbury's role in this whole drama -- if he was a good teammate in the first place, there wouldn't be any need for this silly melodrama.

Whatever is motivating Marbury, he seems bent on sticking it to Knicks management. I would argue that most Knicks fans would like to do the same thing, too, but it’s doubtful many of us would do it at such a cost to our own reputations. As hard as it is to believe one team could make so many bad moves in such a short period of time, buying out Marbury doesn’t seem like one of them. If Walsh and D’Antoni don’t think he’s committed to the team, than what choice do they have?

Sports is a business. You look out for yourself. We’ve all heard athletes repeat those mantras. But doesn’t looking out for yourself include owning your mistakes and demonstrating that whatever your personal goals may be, you believe in the brotherhood of team?

If Marbury has proven consistent at anything over his career, it’s that he’s only out for himself. He had a chance to repair some of that damage. Whether he got bad advice or he’s just mad doesn’t matter. He’s not going to win this war.

That doesn’t mean he’s not going to get his. Oh, he’s gonna get paid. It might even happen this week, as the Knicks seem ready to give into his petulance and pay him his $22 million dollars. I’m sure he’s going to see it as a victory.

But at what cost to his own soul?

Update (November 28, 2008): The Knicks announced Sunday that they have suspended Marbury for one game for refusing to play. The suspension carries a one-game fine -- which is just under $200,000 for those counting at home. Meanwhile, Marbury was quoted in the New York papers as saying he doesn't "trust" D'Antoni and that the whole situation is the fault of Knicks' management. The NBA Players Association said they would appeal the "baseless" action. The plot thickens.

Marbury during better days.

Shyonelung at the Game

Went to see the Phoenix Suns play the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena in Oakland last night. Shaq was in the building, folks although he was in street clothes. I did notice he was joking and laughing with his new teammates. Alas, the Suns lost in a track meet but they did seem a little more freer than they've been this season. Like maybe they were having fun again. Ah, the weight of expectations. The impact of the big fella will interesting to see, the most interesting game coming up on Feb. 20, right after the All-Star Break against the Lakers and their new acquisition.

Here's some pictures from the game Wednesday night. Click on any of them to see them actual size.

Steve Nash, using his feet in pregame warmups




Shaquille O'Neal sighting. (He's the one in street clothes).



Baron Davis in the lane. Grant Hill (33) and Raja Bell closing in.



Mismatch. 6-2 Baron Davis tries to guard 6-11 Amare Stoudemire


Al Harrington driving to the hoop.



Artistic shot of Amare



Steve Nash and Boris Diaw



Warriors young star in waiting Monta Ellis



Warriors 'Captain' Jack -- Stephen Jackson, driving late.


Suns forward Amare Stoudemire goes up to rock the rim



Ellis driving the lane. He scored 37 points in the win.

The Kid Goes to Beantown?

Moon Over a Pug
Whew! What a day in sports. The genius succumbs to Leukemia, a big loss for sports fans who appreciate guys who can use big words and know what they mean. R.I.P., coach.

Then the MLB trading deadline creeps up -- they showed how many minutes and hours were left in a counter along the bottom of the screen during ESPN's Baseball Tonight earlier -- and now this big shocker -- Kevin Garnett appears headed to Boston after spending his entire career in Minnesota.

KG, the Kid in Beantown. To play alongside Paul Pierce and recent acquisition Ray Allen. You gotta be kidding me. But if reports are true and the trade gets consummated in the next couple of days, the balance of power in the already shaky East, is about to change.

And there's going to be one pissed off shooting guard somewhere in LaLa Land.

Garnett has been loyal (to a fault, some say) to his peeps in 'Sota and has never come out and asked for a trade, no matter how bleak life seemed for a club that just could not get passed the first round of the playoffs. The one time they did was losing to eventually NBA title runners-up Lakers.

And Boston wasn't his first choice for a new address. He wanted to go to a team that could win, preferably in a warmer climate (those below-zero Lake Wobegon winters gettin' to ya, Kev?) and for awhile it looked like that would be Phoenix, playing alongside his new good buddy, Steve Nash.

But former Celtics teammates Kevin McHale and Danny Ainge (now GMs for the Wolves and Celtics, respectively) got together for one more assist and score. The deal, which would net Minnesota young comer Al Jefferson, is about the best the Wolves could hope for with what's on the market and available. And it frees them up to fill out their roster with draft picks, through free agency and trades. More important, perhaps, it allows this team to move on in a way that helps their future and doesn't disrespect the contribution of the NBA's classiest man, to a franchise that picked a young diamond in the rough straight out of high school and found if not silver trophies, than a heart of pure gold.

I love this deal for Boston, too. Allen, Pierce and KG make a nice nucleus and in the talent-poor East, it has to anoint the Celtics as the team to beat. Suddenly, Boston is a basketball town again. Danny Ainge saves his job and maybe Kevin McHale saves a franchise.

Are you starting to feel it? Me too. I can't wait for training camp.

Draft Madness, The Day Before

Healdsburg at Night
Tomorrow's NBA draft is looking like a can't miss for drama and intrigue with even the no-brainer nos. 1 and 2 picks looking like a toss up at this point. I wouldn't blame Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard for taking Kevin Durant at number one, instead of the consensus pick of Greg Oden.

The reason why everybody thinks Oden should go first is that the history of the NBA has proven two things pretty conclusively. The first is that a dominant big man (on offense or defense or both) is essential to a championship run. Think Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Shaquille O'Neal and Tim Duncan, for starters. The second is that dominant big men are about as rare as a Kobe Bryant assist. (Throw out rules one and two if Michael Jordan is on your team).

The theory goes that if you can land a 7-footer who has a pulse and doesn’t trip over his own size-20 kicks, you’re way ahead of the game. If he happens to have soft hands and quick feet, then you’re in very elite company. It is widely believed that Greg Oden is such a player, even though he spent exactly one year in college and only played about half the season because of a thumb injury.

He's got the whole package for sure. He's agile, can score with his back to the basket and is an adept defender and shot blocker. He seems motivated and smart and with a little time in the weight room and some good old-fashioned NBA experience, he's got the goods to be the dominant big man everybody thinks he could be.

So if you've got the number one pick, you're supposed to say screw what your team needs, just take the big fella and build around him. If you were to do that, they say, everything else will take care of itself. It's hard to argue with success. Harder still to argue against Oden when you take a gander at this still-filling out frame and hear him say things about winning and teamwork and oh, that irresistible lopsided smile. Truly, he is a can't miss, sure thing NBA number one pick. Whew. Game over, right?

Well .... let's back up a second, shall we?

The Portland Trailblazers were the surprise recipients of the number one big during the draft lottery drawing earlier this month. I say surprise because the NBA is I believe the only league where the worst team doesn’t automatically get to pick first in the ensuring draft. This is to prevent said worst team from tanking games at the end of the season to assure itself the number one pick. The Trailblazers, it should be duly noted, suck so getting the first pick isn’t exactly going to make them title contenders. Not yet, anyway. Still, they had a five percent shot at getting the top pick and wouldn’t you know it, the ping pong balls came out upper Northwest.

The Blazers finished fourth in the Western Conference’s Northwest Division with a record of 32-50. Presently their roster looks like this:

F-C: LaMarcus Aldridge
G: Dan Dickau
G: Jarrett Jack
F: Raef LaFrentz
F-G: Darius Miles
C: Joel Przybilla
F: Zach Randolph
G: Sergio Rodriguez
G: Brandon Roy
G-F: Martell Webster

Free Agents:
C: Jamaal Magloire
F: Travis Outlaw
F: Ime Udoka


Aldridge, Jack and Brandon Roy are serious ballers and make for a very tidy core for the Blazers. If the Blazers decide to hang onto sometime knucklehead Randolph, then Oden might not be the ideal fit for them. Sure, they could use another rebounder what with Randolph having to shoulder the burden (23 points, 10 boards last season) but what the Blazers really need is a true scorer. A guy who can take the load off Randolph offensively and who can make the most out of a team that is loaded with ball-handlers and distributors.

So, when do you pass up on a sure-thing big man with the number one pick?

When the second pick in the draft is every bit as promising as the first.

At 6-foot-9, former Texas phenom Kevin Durant is not a true big man but he plays a big, big game. Inside, outside, upside your head, he’s the type of player who makes defenses seem invisible.

Definitely skinny for a guy who weights 225 pounds but I swear he could be like Magic if he had the hops of M.J. Stir that in with your bowl of Wheatina for a second.

College statistics should be tempered due to the wide range of competition (or lack thereof) but Durant’s numbers cannot be ignored, especially since Texas opponents had only one game plan from the get go last year: stop Kevin Durant. Man child still went for 25.8 points and 11.1 rebounds as a freshman.

We’re talking 47.3 percent from the field, 40.4 percent from beyond the arc and nearly two blocks a game besides. I like Durant in part because he sounds like a kid who gives a shit and because he wears no. 35 to honor his AAU coach who died at that age. And he’s from Washington, D.C., where I spent a good part of my misspent youth. It’s all good.

I imagine there will be an outcry of mammoth proportions if the Blazers go against conventional wisdom and select Durant but I won’t be part of that chorus.

I truly believe you cannot go wrong with either pick but if I’m the Blazers, I’m leaning toward the wing man as the best fit for my team. One thing that makes the choice a lot tougher is who is picking second in the draft. That would be Seattle, as in the Seattle Sonics, as in the one team that if Portland happens to pick wrong will not only haunt them for years but haunt them for years in their own freaking backyard.

Who could blame Pritchard if he O.D.’s on Alka-Seltzer before tomorrow night’s draft?

The Sonics, ironically or not, are in a very similar position as the Blazers. They have a decent core of young players and a chance to vaunt up in the title-in-waiting line by virtue of this here draft.

They finished 31-51, one spot behind the Blazers, wouldn’t ya know, and yeah, they’re getting a worse pick. Go figure. They can’t feel half as bad as Celtics and Grizzlies fans, however. Seattle’s roster:

G: Ray Allen
C-F: Nick Collison
F: Mickael Gelabale
C: Johan Petro
G: Luke Ridnour
G: Earl Watson
F: Chris Wilcox
G: Damien Wilkins

They have a key free agent in Rashard Lewis who they would like to re-sign and there is interest in slick point guard Ridnour (Atlanta may offer one of its two first-round picks for him), but there’s little question that Oden is the best fit for them.

I’d really like to see what sharpshooter Ray Allen will do with a dominant big man to ease his scoring load. He’s as good a passer as scorer although he doesn’t get credit for this and Oden showed he could pass out of the post in college.

Either way you can see why Kobe is so intent on getting out of the West. Which returns us to the Lakers bit to trade for KG so Kobe can have a future HOF at his side.
At this point, the deal is pretty much dead. Wolves GM Kevin McHale says he doesn’t want to trade KG within his own conference. That’s why rumors this morning have KG going to the Suns instead. I know, I know, the Suns are in the same conference as the Lakers. What gives?

Who the fuck knows? But I’ll give you S.O.L.’s theory. McHale, as you probably know, is the former Celtics big man who along with Larry Bird and Robert Parrish made up the imposing front line of the title-contending (and twice champion) Boston teams of the 1980s. If there was one truth those guys, it was how much they hated the Lakers. Hate might not even be a strong enough word, such was their rivalry.

I wonder if McHale, of the lunch pail, blue collar worker bee, rip your eyes out school of basketball, has ever truly gotten over it. And let’s face it, Boston nemesis Magic Johnson is a part owner of the Lakers so anything McHale does to help L.A. might just be too much for him to stomach, even if in the long run it means making his team better. (And who knows for sure if it will?)

McHale is considering the Suns deal because, if as rumored Atlanta is in the mix, Minnesota would receive two more first-round picks to go with it’s number 7. Three picks in the first round is a Godsend for a team that needs an influx of young talent and who won’t get a thing for its superstar if he stays for another season and becomes a free agent. As for trading a guy like KG for draft picks, it’s no knock on The Kid in a draft that’s pretty strong from, say, one to 15 or so -- and really, is there that many guys you could bring in right now who would generate the same kind of excitement as their beloved KG? Why not try a bunch of unknown rookies and throw them out on the floor and let them play their butts off and win the fans' hearts, just as KG once did?

If McHale chooses wisely, the Wolves would have, say, Al Horford, Yi Jianlian and perhaps Nick Young or Acie Law, or maybe Joakim Noah and Yi Jianlian. Not a bad group to start off the post KG years, I would think.

As for KG to the Suns? Wow. Who wouldn’t want to see that for a guy who is widely believed to be the classiest guy in the league. But what would Phoenix have to give up to get their prize? Word is that would be Amare Stoudemire, the 24-year-old all-NBA big man supreme. I love KG. LOVE HIM. Seriously, KG, will you marry me? Sorry, I digress but come on, what’s not to love about The Kid? Grace, class, smarts, game. The whole package. But I don’t trade Amare for KG. I just don’t. Amare is younger and he’s mature for his age and as good as he is, we haven’t even begun to see his potential yet. No way, no how.

Would I trade Shawn Marion instead, as the other rumor barks out there? As much as I’d hate to give up the soul of the Suns, I’d say you couldn’t not make that deal.

Whether either will happen is a coin flip right now but a lot of NBA experts feel certain that KG will be moving on draft day.

Where and for what remains to be seen. More after the draft. Stay tuned, sports fans.

Kobe Chronicles, Continued

Pug On a Rug, 2007
Have enough of the Kobe Bryant Soap Opera yet? It's a lot less guilt free than watching an actual train wreck.

Kobe, you may recall, woke up one morning during the week that LeBron James was stealing Kobe's All-NBA crown and realized his NBA ring collection was likely going to stall at three.

Instead of crying into his bowl of Wheaties, Kobe embarked on a long, strange day of schizophrenia, giving a different take on The State of Kobe with every new interview over a 24-hour period. First he wants the Logo to return, then he wants to be traded and then, he’s a Laker for life. A couple of weeks later, he travels to Spain to have a sit down with Lakers owner Jerry Buss because he doesn’t think the organization is clear on his demand to be traded. As if all that flip-flopping came out of somebody else’s mouth.

Well, as it goes with the world of sports and celebrity when the Franchise complains, the brain trust says “how high can we jump for your kingly self.” What they’re really saying is if we didn’t spend a freaking 100 million bills on your ass and give you a God-damned no trade clause, you’d be playing basketball in Memphis right now.

The latest rumors features Minnesota nice guy Kevin Garnet, a.k.a. KG and The Kid, a.k.a. one of the league’s classiest guys, coming to Staples Center to run with the self-labeled Black Mamba, or as we like to call him here at S.O.L., The Black Hole.

According to the very reliable Chad Ford of espn.com, the sticking point of the three- or four-team deal with would include the Celtics, Pacers, Lakers and Wolves and players like Jermaine O’Neal, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom, is whether the Celtics will give up Al Jefferson to Minnesota. Right now, it’s a deal killer for the Celtics, in part because they have their own superstar to appease in the disgruntled Paul Pierce (get someone to run with me or I’m gone). Just an aside here, but has there been any trio of players from a Championship dynasty that have sucked so badly at being team general managers than Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Danny Ainge? I don’t think so.

If The Kid ends up in L.A., it will be good for his pocketbook in that after spending his entire career in the Midwest, he will finally get that big city exposure he so richly deserves. But pairing him up with Kobe would be like a cosmic joke on Garnett, who has never complained and has endured years of playing for a team being run by a revolving door of officials with heads up their asses; been victimized by the league’s most selfish players who happened to be also be his teammates (hello Starbury and Sam I Am) and along the way lost his best friend to a drunk driver.

If there is a basketball God, Kevin Garnett will end up in Phoenix to play with Steve Nash. It looks very unlikely at this point, but summer’s here and hope springs eternal.

I'm not sure what I make of reports that Kobe still wants out even if they get Garnett. But I do have a couple of theories. (You didn’t think I was going to remain mum on that).

One, as someone suggested to me recently, is that the Phil and Kobe Honeymoon show is over, that Phil once again believes what he said about Kobe in his book two years ago (he’s uncoachable). And Kobe believes that Phil has the upper hand with management, especially since he's literally sleeping with the bosses daughter.

Second, as I’ve already talked about in previous posts here, Kobe remains convinced that there isn't a realistic deal the Lakers could make right now that would make them good enough to compete for a title against the great teams in the West (Spurs and Suns) and the comers (Dallas, Utah, Houston, perhaps Denver and soon-to-be-vastly improved Sonics and Blazers). If the Clippers play to their potential (that’s coin-flip territory right there) and Golden State finally gets its shit together for, I don’t know, a full freaking season, then even a lineup that includes KG and Kobe would still be fighting an uphill battle to even make one of the eight Western playoff spots.

I believe that Kobe is a big-picture guy where his own legacy is concerned. I think he’s always comparing himself to the next guy, always keeping score. You want to see this in a competitive athlete, as long as it’s not pathological.

He saw how Michael Jordan sometimes had to be acerbic in his rise to greatness and I think he thinks that his current petulance is just him being like Mike. "I just want to win," he's been saying for the last few weeks. "I want to go somewhere where I'm not a scapegoat." This is like that guy who gets a toupee and it looks like a toupee but he thinks it’s the shit, even though everybody’s laughing at him. You can’t be a scapegoat, if you’re actually guilty as charged.

I mean who is he kidding? This is the guy who either chased Shaq out of town, or (if you want to give him the benefit of the doubt) didn’t give a shit that the Shaq was going, because it meant he would finally be the man. And now that he is the man, he's jumping ship like a rat with a life preserver on a boat in dry dock. (Probably overdid the metaphor here, but you guys get my drift).

From Kobe’s point of view, even bad behavior can be excused if it’s in the service of winning. It follows then that no matter what anybody thinks of his actions now, nothing will make them forget about Pouting Kobe like a few more rings. And right now, in his selfishly cloistered mind, the quickest route to an NBA title awaits him in the East. The ends justifying the means I suppose.

Meanwhile about that Draft Lottery, word is that the Trailblazers are now leaning toward Kevin Durant over Greg Oden. There’s rumors that Oden may be susceptible for future health problems regarding his recently broken wrist and a disk in his back. I don’t believe the stories. I think it’s just Portland’s way to justify not doing what everyone says is a no brainer – which is taking Oden with the number one pick. I’m of the school of they can't miss either way, and I know this will sound crazy, but I think Durant is a better fit for the Blazers. They already have a really good post player in Zach Randolph. Even if he is a bit of a flake and a knucklehead, he’s gonna give you that 20-10 a night and with a wing man like Durant, the Blazers will be dangerous. Mark my words. After watching Durant play, I think he will be one of those rare unstoppable scorers in this league from Day One, a LeBron, Kobe, Michael, K.G., kind of guy.

Mets Mojo

I hope I don't jinx my boys but the Mets have begun to rebound nicely from their June Swoon (losing 14 of the first 18 games they played this month). The ugliness was tempered somewhat by the fact that their nearest competitor in the division at the time of the slump was Atlanta and the Braves suffered a similar downturn. However, as the Mets have won four straight, including a sweep of the Oakland A's at Shea this weekend, the Braves just halted a four-game losing streak (in which they scored like one run in 50 innings). So despite playing like shit, the Mets continue to the lead the NL East going into the All-Star break.

Here's hoping the good karma keeps on coming. Go Mets.

The Party's Over

Oops.

S.O.L. was wrong, wrong, wrong. Wrong about Lebron? Maybe a little but in time I believe he will become the great player he showed in his stirring march to the Finals. Wrong more about the Spurs.

Never have I seen a team not called the Lakers or the Celtics look so dominant with so much ease. Talk about firing on all cylinders.

I hate the way that Phoenix series played out. I'll forever believe they stole it from the Suns. But once the Spurs hit their groove, not even the Prime Time Lakers could have stopped them.

Tony Parker is a man among men now. A top-five player in the league in scoring points in the paint. -- at 6-feet tall. There's refs taller than he is, folks. Okay he's French. And yeah, he's dating a Desperate Housewife (soon to be married to her) but no way no how never can you call this kid soft. And he's 25 years old, folks.

Spurs are team to beat until someone tells me otherwise.

Welcome to the newest NBA Dynasty. T.D. Parker, Bowen, Ginobli. You might argue not one of them is quite in or finished with his prime.

I'm still in H-town. I'll post more about my adventures soon.

Tonight, the Mets are in the House That Ruth Built, on a losing streak that's their worst in two seasons and against a revitalized Yankees club that has won nine straight. Something's gotta give.

I was right about The Sopranos, wrong about the Cavs. So, what's one more prediction?

Mets win two of three.

Signing off from
Santa Moncia, CA

The Kobe Chronicles

Louie the Pug
I so wanted to write about the Mets crazy fun comeback Tuesday night but it will have to wait. S.O.L. cannot let an uncharacteristic Kobe meltdown go by without adding my two cents.

On a message board elsewhere, someone made a joke about the effect of the draft lottery on Kobe Bryant. The poster mused that upon seeing that two young, talented teams in the West were about to get better fast by virtue of this year's top-two-spot-heavy NBA Draft, Kobe saw his future and it suddenly dawned on him that there would be no more NBA rings in it.

With Portland and Seattle drafting one-two in this year's NBA draft and getting what everyone has rightly concluded are franchise-altering players, the best side of the NBA just got downright beastly. Even without adding a Greg Oden and a Kevin Durant, the Blazers and Sonics were already chockful of talented youngins.

And Kobe's Lakers? Mired in fat salaries and mediocrity, and with no apparent or obvious way to get better as fast as their leader wants, they are no longer a lock to even make the playoffs next year. And even the thick-headed Kobe can see the writing on the wall.

I don't think it's farfetched to imagine Kobe waking up the other morning and choking on his Wheaties. Think about it. With everything being equal and barring major injury, there's no way the current Lakers jump passed even an unimproved Dallas, Phoenix, San Antonio, Houston, Denver or Utah. That's six of eight playoff spots tied up for the near future. For the sake of argument, let's say Golden State is a lot closer to their second-half selves than their first (and why not, after the trade and when two of their injured stars returned, they were almost unbeatable) and let's further argue (though with some reservations) that the Clippers will rebound from a strangely disappointing season (also marred in part by injuries).

Six plus two equals Lakers in the lottery .

Let's suppose though, that I am overrating the Clippers. Not a hard thing to do in my book and then let's give Kobe the benefit of the doubt and add a healthy Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown playing out his contract year (they should do a study on how athletes perform in the walk year. I bet we'd discover to our "surprise" that it's statistically their best seasons). An older and presumably wiser Jordan Farmar and the return of Chris Mihm (I know, big fucking deal) and improved play of Andrew Bynum. Let's say this is enough to make the Lakers competitive for a playoff spot.

But realistically you're looking at one or two spots at best, and that's if you think Denver or Golden State are overrated, too (and I'm not saying they're aren't). But really, who was better more recently -- Warriors, Nuggets or Lakers? See what I mean?

If you believe in the Nuggets and the Warriors and you think the jury's out on the Clips, that leaves Seattle, Lakers, Memphis, Portland, Clippers and Sacramento to fight for the one playoff spot.

Forget the Kings and the Grizz for the moment (they suck) and a blind soccer fan can see what Kobe sees -- a long way up and no place to go.

The Clippers have the pieces in place in Brand, Corey MG and the young point guard Livingston (who is coming off a season-ending injury and has a lot to prove) plus a good bench. They were as beset by injuries as anyone last year and Brand is a true leader who will not let his team falter for a second year in a row. The clock is ticking for him playoff-wise too.

Seattle and Portland will get better right away with their draft picks -- Seattle in my mind will get better faster (if they can re-sign free agent Rashard Lewis) but even without Oden, the Trailblazers are loaded with young talent and ask anybody who ever played in the NBA (who isn't named Don Nelson or Michael Jordan) and they'll tell you hands down the most important element of a championship team is a great big man.

And speaking of Rashard Lewis who surprised a lot of people by opting out of his contract after the season (and after the draft). It's possible he re-signs with Seattle (or re-signs and is dealt elsewhere like to S.O.L.'s Knicks who have offered Jamaal Crawford, Nate Robinson and others to the Sonics) but what if he ends up in Houston (his hometown) or what, God help Kobe, takes less to go to San Antonio or even Dallas or the Suns? And who doesn't think any of those teams, especially the Suns, Mavs and Jazz, who came oh-so-close to breaking through this year, will not go out and get better. All three are in good financial shape to make a move. Even Houston has options.

For real, Kobe is seeing his career flash before his eyes. Even he should see, though, that the Lakers only true long-term solution is to sit tight, draft wisely and wait for next summer at least when Kwame Brown and the Space Cadet comes off the books. Maybe then, they'll get a great draft pick, Bynum will have developed into an elite center and Farmar a steady point guard and with the cap room they can sign a big-time free-agent. But we're talking minimum two seasons and the big question isn't whether the Lakers can do it or even if Lakers fans can stand another down year or two, it's if Kobe can wait.

Chances are, based on the last week of frantic interviews and such, Kobe won't want to wait. He'll stew until they trade him (unlikely) or make a splashy trade for someone like Jermaine O'Neal (more likely and more uncertain) and then make the playoffs the next five years but lose in the first or second round because there's not enough players around Kobe and (O'Neal or whoever max-contract guy they trade their future for) because there's not enough money to left.

(And by the way, the only way they can get a guy like O'Neal is to trade Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown and who would take that deal? They'd have to give up something of value along the lines of the young Andrew Bynum or Jordan Farmar).

I'm Kobe, I take my chances. I bide my time and take care of my body. I shoot from the outside and pass up the pinball machine of the lane, and I practice being a better teammate and a good leader. And I pass the ball, a lot. I mean I become the Distributor of the Year and challenge Steve Nash for NBA assist leader and I do it with grace and dignity and with an eye to making my teammates better, not pay mind to who is leading the league in scoring.

And I don't care about W's either. I concentrate on getting better first and if we make the playoffs, than we give it our best shot but if we make the lottery, good for us cause we'll be smart and draft well and bring the kids along. Meanwhile, the bad salaries fall off our books and I personally woo a young superstar free agent to Lakerland. And I make him feel welcome.

And then our time comes around again and I'm only 31, 32 years old and even though there's miles of wear and tear on me, I'm still fresh cause I've been saving myself for this moment, when I can lead a young, talented group of playoff upstarts to the Promised Land. And I know we'll get there, because when the game is on the line and my team needs points, I can deliver. Or I can pass off to an open teammate ala Jordan-to-Steve Kerr or Tim Duncan-to-Bruce Bowen or LeBron-to-Daniel Gibson, because I've done it a thousand times the last three seasons and by now, they know I trust them to make it when I can't.

And my legacy will be written in stone -- a young stubborn, wildly talented superstar reinvents himself as a true leader and winner. And Los Angeles will be my oyster and no. 24 will dwarf the memories of Magic and Baylor, of the Logo and even Shaq.

That's how I would want to be remembered, if I'm Kobe Bryant.

Back to reality, however.

I don't think Kobe sees this in his future. I think he, like a lot of people, wants a quick fix and he's not willing to live with his part in creating the mess in the first place. Part of his latest disaffection, which has included calls for the Lakers to trade him, is his frustration at being blame for the departure of Shaquille O'Neal. In recent days, even, he has posted on his website how it was Jerry Buss who forced out Shaq and not Kobe. But I wonder if Buss would be so fast to dump Shaq if he and Kobe were getting along instead of openly feuding? Would he have balked at paying the Big Fella if Kobe said it was sign Shaq or see ya when I see ya?

What do you think, sports fans?

He doesn't see this which is one reason why I think he doesn't get his present situation either. He doesn't see how hard it's going to be for the Lakers to be competitive right now and how smart it would be to stick to a two- or three-year plan.

He doesn't see that his coveted legacy is the only thing that's taking a hit right now. Kobe's always looked out for himself first, no matter how many times he's protested otherwise. This week it's just more Kobe being Kobe and the Lakers will be worse for it I think.

Welcome to the NBA

Los Angeles Sunset
Roll out two welcome mats this week for young comers, LeBron James and Deron Williams.

For Deron (pronounced like Darrin), the welcome party was not a good one. Coming off a great Game 3 performance in which he single-handedly got his team back into their playoff series against the Spurs, Williams had to fight the effects of a stomach flu and a tough defense down the stretch in watching his team flail, fade and fall to the Spurs in the crucial Game 4. Now the Spurs get two of three in San Antonio to close out the series and get to their fourth title game in the last decade.

Meanwhile, the young Jazz have only to sit and wonder why. And part of the reason is with the meltdown of the team's one supposed veteran. Derek Fisher, until now an inspirational figure and floor leader during Utah's playoff run, completely fucked his team last night. His flopping has always been more suited for World Cup Soccer than the NBA and when he wasn't getting the calls last night, he lost his cool and Utah lost the series.

I'm not sure this is a game you can rebound from but Deron Williams is such an unusual character and such a gifted player, that I think it's entirely possible to see this series return to Utah. Playoff teams have to grow up sometime. Why wait til next year?

Halfway across the country, the NBA's so-called lessor Division is playing basketball too. The feeling among most experts is that Detroit and Cleveland are playing for the right to lose the NBA finals to whoever comes out of the West. I think it's overstated but there's no doubt that the East is way behind the West in terms of fielding the NBA's best basketball teams.

Like the Spurs, the Pistons rushed out to a 2-0 lead and looked headed to an easy series win. But LeBron James continued his maturation as player and leader and with each passing quarter, his play has subtly and not so subtly improved by noticeable increments. Cleveland didn't so much as beat the Pistons on Sunday, LeBron took it from them.

Word is that shooting guard and quality defender Larry Hughes will miss tonight's game with a food injury but I'm not so sure this will slow down LeBron just yet. I think a switch went off somewhere in the course of the fourth quarter in Game 2 and he's coming to understand how to win playoff games. I don't know if he has the horses to help him but I do know that the Pistons are beatable (Chicago won two straight off the Pistons in the last series after they took a 2-0 lead against them) and Dwayne Wade proved last year that they are susceptible to a one-man team.

The Pistons strength is keeping the game close until the fourth where their quality defense (especially in playoffs) and ice-water shooters (Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton) hit just enough down the stretch to give them the win. But in a close game, there's no guarantee of stopping a guy like LeBron when he gets it. And right now, he's getting it in a big way.

It's clear by now that S.O.L. fears the end of the basketball season is upon us and for that reason, I'm rooting for the underdog in both series. I'm not ready to give up on the hoops obsession, even if USA basketball is coming this summer. Shit, especially since USA basketball is coming.

Poor Kobe

Kobe announced this weekend that he’s frustrated by the lack of progress by his Lakers and the inability of the front office to surround him with a championship caliber team.

Kobe’s solution is to invite Jerry West back to L.A. when the Logo officially steps down from his current job in Memphis.

The irony here runs deeper than a black hole. In the Kobe-said, Shaq-said fallout in L.A. two summers ago, plenty of blame went around. But no one can convince me that Kobe did not want to be The Man in Lakerland, at any cost. The cost was, apparently, Shaq being run out on a rail – all the way to South Beach where he got his, with the help of Dwayne Wade and a bunch of has been backups.

Meanwhile, Kobe has the Lakers to himself, continues to fail to learn what it takes to be an actual leader of them and wonders why he’s been watching the playoffs (and in his mind less talented players) from the confines of his own home?
Deny all he wants, but Kobe could have gone to Jerry Buss and been a real man and said “do what it takes to keep the big fella – I’ll make it work”. But he didn’t and if anyone’s surprised at the results, they’re not paying attention.

You can’t call yourself a leader. You have to actually be a leader. You don’t have to be a nice guy, you have to get your team to believe – not in you but in themselves. You have to show them the way and let them know they can follow you over the steepest cliff and if they crash, you will crash together. And never, for even a second, let them think you will ask of them what you wouldn’t do yourself.

You want a team leader? Watch the Utah-Spurs game tomorrow night. Take a gander at a kid named Deron Williams. Shoot, you could have your pick tonight in Cleveland – between LeBron and Billups. You want leaders. Them there’s leaders.

Don’t cry for Kobe. Unless you want to cry for his thick head.

Suns Burned

Somewhere in the middle of the chippy third quarter Wednesday night in Phoenix, it was clear how badly the Suns missed their two best big men. It was visible on the offensive side of the court for the Suns when playmaker extraordinaire Steve Nash would work the pick-and-roll. He'd go around a pick, get into the lane and when the defense closed in, he'd pass it off to .... Kurt Thomas?

Thomas was game but he's no Amare Stoudemire and that reality, more than anything else last night is what burned the Suns, putting them in a 3-2 hole in their best-of-seven playoff series.

You won't likely see as gutty a performance (on both ends of the court) from an aging defensive specialist like Thomas in a bigger game. He gave it all he had. But while Thomas is known for his ability to play tough under the basket, it's in bursts of minutes here and there, a total of 20 or so a game. Last night, he played nearly 40 minutes and by halftime he was sucking wind so bad he could barely answer Craig Sager's halftime interview questions. Or maybe it was Sager's lime green coat.

Considering their handicap, it was amazing to watch the Suns nearly run the Spurs off the court in the first half. They held them to season lows in points for a quarter (13 in the first) and a half (33 at intermission) but they couldn't score at their usual blistering pace and their short rotation all but gave out by the end of the game.

You could blast the league (as S.O.L. did yesterday here) for suspending the Suns best big man Amare Stoudemire and his backup Boris Diaw, and in my oh so humble opinion, you'd be right. But those two knuckleheads knew the rule and left the bench anyway, so some of the blame ought to be on their very broad shoulders.

The dirty, black-hatted Spurs -- a team I liked before this series -- now has the series lead, ahead 3-2. But as tough a loss this must have been for the Suns to handle (they held the lead for all but perhaps five minutes of the game), they have to feel good about the way they played and how easily they could have won this game despite being without two of their most important players (Did I mention that Stoudemire is leading his team this series in scoring and rebounding).

You could even that the Suns are missing another player too, even though he's on the floor for everyone to see. I'm talking about Leandro Barbosa. This is the cat who shredded the Lakers during the first round. There is just no way the Brazilian Blur should not be torching the Spurs up and down the damn court. The Spurs really don't have anyone who can hang with him. The problem is that his success really hinges on his shot and right now that shot is just not falling. Last night he was 3-for-12 for a measly eight points, only two more than the number of fouls he picked up (6).

S.O.L. predicted a Suns win last night and was feeling pretty damn good after the first quarter -- though I admit to being nervous at the relatively close score. A new day dawns for the Suns come Friday night in San Antonio?

Remember the Alamo, indeed.

Suns fans. Keep your tickets for Sunday. Game 7 will happen.

More Mets and the NBA Plays Rough

Route 101 North, at Sunset May 2007

The Mets have won four out of five games since shaving their heads. A small sampling to judge whether shaving heads makes you a better baseball team, considering they were 7-3 in the 10 games before they got really short haircuts.

More important, it seems to have done wonders for David Wright, who started the shearing in the first place. The Mets' poster boy has spent the first month and a half of the season mired in a slump. He seemed to be picking up from where he left off last season when he opened by extending his end-of-season hitting streak from last year, but it was clear he wasn't comfortable at the plate.

He finished April with a .244 batting average, one home run and a paltry 6 R.B.I. Not what you want to see from the number five hitter on the major's best run-scoring team.

But since shaving his head before last Tuesday's game in San Francisco, Wright has 7 hits, three home runs and a game-winning double. You know how swimmers and cyclists shave their heads (and other body parts) so they can be more aerodynamic? Well, Wright's got four stolen bases since the barber paid him a visit to his hotel room, including three in one game (a career high). I'm thinking now that Jose Reyes has finally joined the baldies on the team, I expect him to steal 200 bases this year.

Most important development this weekend is how the Mets played against the Milwaukee Brewers, this year's version of the 2006 Detroit Tigers (or the 2005 White Sox) as MLB's most surprising team. The Brew Crew came into Shea with a swagger -- and the major's best record. They looked like world-beaters in crushing the Mets 12-3 on Saturday but that impressive work was sandwiched between two methodical victories by the Mets. It was the first road series loss of the season for the Brewers.

Rough and Tumble

Right now, the most fun-to-watch teams left in the playoffs are getting beat down by more bigger, more physical teams. Saturday's Spurs-Suns Game 3 was about as physical game as I've seen since the Lakers-Spurs series in 2004. That's when San Antonio crushed the Lakers at home in the first two games in part because this youngster named Tony Parker was driving to the basket with abandon and success. Only when the series went back to L.A., suddenly Parker was mugged every time he went to the hoop -- except the refs weren't calling fouls anymore. In the first two games of the series, the foul calls were even at 51 apiece but over the next four games -- all Lakers wins -- the Lakers got 126 fouls to the Spurs' 87.

I'm not blaming the refs for this disparity, just pointing out the importance of aggressive play during the playoffs. The first two games Parker pretty much scored at will in the paint, driving and scoring layups or dishing to an open man. He seemed to be going at a different speed than the Lakers' defense.

That all changed in Game 3. The Lakers, having nothing much to lose with a 0-2 deficit, started collapsing on Parker when he drove into the paint and making it hard for him to get off a shot. No question he was getting fouled on some of those drives but it was the playoffs, man, and the theory is you don't get those calls in the playoffs. The Lakers held court and then used a miracle shot by Derek Fisher with four-tenths of a second on the clock to steal Game 5 and that was all she wrote for those seemingly fragile Spurs. Parker scored 50 points in the first two games of the series. The last four? That's right, 50 points -- total.

The Spurs learned a lesson back in 2004 and used it with authority in Game 3 at home against the free-flowing Suns. Two things they did great on Saturday. One is they stayed in front of the King of Point Guards. And two, whenever he did get by a defender, there was always someone waiting to help out on D. But they also played tougher physically and there was a lot of extra-curricular banging and bumping in that game -- by both teams. The only difference it seemed to me, was that the Spurs didn't let it effect them and they made their shots

Nash did not respond to the pounding correctly in the first half -- he looked and acted frustrated. It didn't help the Suns that their biggest man on the floor was saddled with three fouls in the first half and played 19 seconds in the third quarter before picking up ugly number four. But there's hope for Suns fans, in S.O.L.'s view. Nash played a great quarter and for all his youth and too much talking, Amare is a smart kid gifted with an instinct for the game. Plus, for the first time perhaps all season, Boris Diaw played like he did in his coming-out party last year in the playoffs. I believe the Suns are tougher than they get credit for and I predict the series goes to Phoenix tied 2-2.

Up here in the Bay Area, the Golden State Warriors have been all the rage. And why not. They all but swept the defending Western Conference champions out of the playoffs and their open three-point-shooting, in-your-face, speed-demon style is fun as hell to watch. Plus, they opened the playoffs with four victories on their home court, almost all of them by double-digits.

The buzz kill has come in the face of the Utah Jazz. Using tough inside play and showing the discipline to withstand the inevitable roaring-crowd-fueled runs by the young Warriors, the Jazz host Game 5 on Tuesday on their home court leading the series 3-1. No one is really counting out the Warriors but it's hard to see them winning three straight, even with the kind of magical playoffs they've been having.

The Warriors can win if they keep hitting those big threes, but they have to find a way to stop Carlos Boozer from scoring inside. Boozer has become a real floor leader for the young Jazz and he's battling a rep as being too soft under the basket. Okay, so it's not saying all that much against a Warriors team that plays small ball, but still, Boozer has to make those big shots. When he hit two consecutive tough inside jumpers at a critical moment early in the game with a frenzied crowd in his ears, you just had to know he was going to show up at crunch time. And let's face it, if Boozer isn't scoring inside, Fisher doesn't get those open looks in the fourth and maybe they're going back to Utah tied 2-2 instead of up 3-1. It doesn't help Golden State's mojo that Fisher is having a storybook run of his own and Deron Williams and Paul Millsap are growing up before our eyes.

Love watching the Warriors. Love the fan support -- even the Lakers and Kings haven't done what the Warriors did last night -- but I've got a family the magic runs out in Salt Lake.

Speaking of the NBA Playoffs, we all had to watch the games on ABC this weekend. I love Mike Breen - I think he's one of the best broadcasters going these days. But the sexy chicks singing that stupid "right now" song? Please, get rid of that shit. It's beyond bad. It's embarrassingly bad. ABC -- please cease and desist. Right. Now.

50 By Any Name Ain't So Sweet

Kobe Bryant and his 50-plus output for four games in a row has been the talk of the pro basketball world. Kobe’s taking the Lakers on his back. He’s mad as hell and doesn’t want his boys to miss the playoffs. Could he break Wilt's other record? Man oh man.
Anyone who reads this blog knows that S.O.L. thinks Kobe, while an extremely gifted scorer, is overrated and doesn’t belong in discussions of the greatest NBA players ever. I mean compare him to Pistol Pete, but Magic and Bird and Jordan? Dr. J? Oscar? Elgin? No. No. No. No.

Bryant has been shooting lights out of late – and he’s getting to the foul line a lot too. While he goes to the line fairly often (despite what his coach claims), he goes through stretches where he has huge swings -- four times here, 13 there. But the last four games, he's been living at the foul line. An interesting development considering it started after his coach called out the NBA refs for supposedly targeting Kobe. Fodder for the conspiracy theorists I suppose, but it's bullshit. And more than that, it proves how much Phillip has changed his tune since his sabbatical from the NBA.

Before the streak, Kobe’s Lakers had lost seven games in a row ( this a few weeks after dropping six straight) and were within two miracle shots by Kobe from losing number eight. To put this into perspective, no Phil Jackson team has ever lost more than five straight before this season.

Those shots he took, by the way, were the same ones he’d been chucking up and missing at the end of those string of losses. The same shots he criticized another scoring machine for taking himself during his 60-point outburst.

Don’t believe me? Find a replay of the end of their loss in Philadelphia. The Lakers were within striking distance in the fourth quarter when Kobe dribbled the ball the length of the court and with something like 16 seconds left on the shot clock, took a desperation three from three-feet behind the arc. It clanked off the rim and the Sixers turned the predictably long rebound easy two on the other end, all but sealing the win.

Afterward, Kobe's not-so-thinly-veiled comments were directed at his team, not inward. Never inward. "It was just bad execution," he said. "We've seen teams deny me on the floor before. When they do that, that's when you go deeper in the offense."

Translation: my teammates didn't make enough shots.

Maybe you should involve your teammates, Kobe. Translation: pass the damn rock.

Most players take shots like that and they're riding the pines. Not Kobe. He's 'great'. And when they go in, he's the MVP. (Don't get me started on Kobe should be the MVP nonsense. I hardly want to dignify that by explaining how wrong that is.)

Look at who the Lakers beat during Kobe’s 50-plus streak. Portland, Minnesota, Memphis and New Orleans. These teams are combined 60-plus games UNDER .500. Translation: they suck. Two of them - Portland and the Grizz -- are among the worst defensive teams in the league. Give the green light to any number of NBA players on any given night and they'll put 50 up against those guys. Way to go Kobe! Wanna play my high school next?

Pardon S.O.L. for not getting all giddy over Kobe or the Lakers. All of them but one weren't decided until the final minutes. Kobe's points barrage was the difference you say? Against teams like those, it shouldn't be. Not one of those wins makes up forthe Lakers getting blown out at home against Dallas or on the road against a fairly middling Denver team or getting LeBron-ed by Cleveland just before the All-Star break - or losing the season series against S.O.L.'s lousy New York Knicks. Playoff teams are supposed to beat lottery-bound teams.

Ah, but a Lakers fan would argue that these last four games have been different because they have their starters – Luke Walton and Lamar Odom – back from injury. Nice try but it don't fly here.

I like Walton’s game. He’s a nice complimentary player (which is like calling black athlete “articulate” I think) but he’s not going to make a huge difference on this team. And Odom. Man, I’ve always loved Odom’s game but reality has trumped perception – as well as he fills up a box score, Lamar just isn’t a difference maker. He loses focus, he makes bad plays and for whatever reason, he has difficulty finishing at the rim (if there was a stat for missed layups, he'd be in the top three in the league). He is probably the most frustratingly inconsistent talent in the NBA. Add to the mix his shoulder injury, which will probably require surgery in the offseason.

I think the Lakers have done yeoman’s work getting production out of big man Kwame Brown but expecting more from him at this point is just dreaming. And Brian Cook is never going to be the rebounder they need at the four, even when he comes back. And Vlad the Snowman? If the Lakers are counting on him to lead them into the second round of the playoffs, Chick Hearn is going to call out the fridge from the afterlife. This is the guy Jackson calls a "space cadet."

The better teams have proven they can stop the one-man Kobeshow, as we'll see in the coming weeks. First two should-win games - the enigmatic Golden State and crappy Memphis, again -- spurring predictions that Kobe will go for 60-plus six games in a row. Color me excited. Let's see him go for 60 against Houston (Jeff Van Gundy would rather eat his shoe than let Kobe score that many points) AND win the game. After the Lakers have a brutal stretch of eight home-away matchups - two against Denver, two against the Suns and two against the suddenly surging L.A. Clippers. Seriously, if the Clips continue playing well and take those two games against the Lakers, they could pass them in the standings. Not that I'm predicting that here.

And while Kobe’s firing up 20 more shots a game then his teammates (as he did against New Orleans), how is that going to prepare them for when it’s on them to make baskets?

This leads to another oft-made point here and that is that if Kobe wants to be considered great, he has to not only play great, he has to be a leader -- on both ends of the floor. At one time, he was considered a premier shut-down defender but he doesn't seem interested in playing 'D' anymore. I refer you to this excellent blog. Basketbawlful writes eloquently about what he calls the myth of Kobe's defense. In it, he makes a number of compelling points in comparing Kobe to Steve Nash, who is widely considered a defensive liability (not by S.O.L.).

(And really, the discussion about who's a better player between Nash and Kobe ought to end on who makes their team better. In almost any category you want to measure, any meaningful statistical analysis, Nash means more to his team in terms of wins and loses than Kobe does. Simply put, Nash makes his teammates better.)

Basketbawlful is one of the few NBA observers who has noticed how often Kobe's been torched by the guy he's guarding this season. Did anyone notice how many points Memphis' Mike Miller (sounds like a blues guy, doesn't it?) put up against the Lakers? That's right, folks, 33. And who was guarding him? Oh, dear, yes. We already talked about Agent Zero's 60 (Kobe ASKED to guard him in the fourth and it made a difference only in Arenas getting more points). And when LeBron was going off on the Lakers in the fourth quarter of their victory last month, he was doing it against Kobe, in the fourth, with the game on the line.