Kobe’s supporting cast
I remember when Kobe Bryant used to call the other people on his team his supporting cast. I remember him talking after games about how his teammates needed to step up.
I was thinking about this a lot last night as I watched game 7 of the NBA World Championships. Kobe Bryant played horribly for three and a half quarters. The only reason the Lakers had a chance was because of all of his supporting cast. I don’t remember Magic Johnson ever having a supporting cast. I remember him having teammates. I know it’s somewhat of a generational thing, because LeBron James says a lot of the same things. It’s their team, and the other guys are just along for the ride. Turns out that, at times when the main attraction has a bad night, those other guys are pretty good players too.
Some people like individual sports like golf and tennis because there is no reliance on other people. It’s just you against the course or one other guy or the clock. I like team sports ( and love coaching basketball ) because I like to watch how people react to adversity in the context of a team. Do they lash out? Do they disappear? Or do they do whatever they can to win, even if it means checking their ego.
If you watched the game last night, it turned when Kobe stopped jacking up shots that no one could make against double teams and started sharing the basketball. As soon as his teammates knocked down a few shots, Kobe all of a sudden got better looks and started making them.
I am a big Lakers fan and always have been. I became more of a fan of Kobe Bryant last night ( whom I have never really cared for ) because, when it counted, he let the other guys around him have a say in the outcome. I’ll take Magic any day and twice on Sundays, but Kobe is pretty darn good.
