LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant’s amazing run of 40-plus-point games came to an end at four Monday night against the Dallas Mavericks. But the resurgence of backcourt mate Derek Fisher may have begun on the Lakers' final offensive play of the game.
Bryant actually registered his lowest point total of the season — scoring 14 on 7-of-22 shooting — as the Lakers beat the defending NBA champions 73-70 in the teams' first meeting since Dallas ended LA's three-peat bid in the second round of last year's Western playoffs.
However, it was Fisher’s 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds left that took a low-scoring stinker and elevated it to one of the Lakers' best wins of the year.
Los Angeles shot a measly 38.5 percent, with the Mavericks tossing bricks at a 35 percent clip. But with the score tied and the play set up for Bryant to shoot, Fisher took a pass from Bryant with about five seconds left and drilled a 26-foot trey to invoke memories of clutch performances from the past.
“I’m surprised they just left (Derek) wide open,” said Bryant with an incredulous look on his face. “With (his past success), I have no idea why they’d do that. I’m not surprised he made the shot, not at all.”
Fisher, though, had an explanation for Mavs coach Rick Carlisle forcing the ball out of Kobe’s hands and into his.
“So far this season, I haven’t shot the ball that well,” said the 16-year veteran, “and with the way Kobe has been playing recently, you can understand why a coach would force someone other than Kobe to take the shot. Tonight, it worked out well for us.”
Besides being the Lakers' 10th win of the season and their ninth consecutive at Staples Center, it was a “good-for-the-soul” victory against the team that destroyed them in the second round of the playoffs.
The Mavericks ran the Lakers right out of an opportunity for their second three-peat of the 2000s by sweeping them and embarrassing the then-defending champions.
When training camp opened, one of the first things out of Bryant’s mouth was that the team was going to use the Dallas disaster as motivation all season long. Pau Gasol agreed, but was hesitant to say it on numerous occasions. So, handing the Mavs their sixth loss in fourteen games, felt very good.
It also ended the Mavs' overall five-game win streak. Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas with 21 points, making 8 of his 17 attempts.
Ian Mahinmi had 10 rebounds and nine points, while Shawn Marion grabbed
nine boards.
“It wasn’t the playoffs,” Bryant said, “but it was a good measuring stick for us to see how we match up against them and how we play against them. Defensively, we were extremely solid. But it will be a while before we get to the postseason, and hopefully have a chance to play them again.”
If that happens, the Lakers might get to see a different Lamar Odom. Last year’s Sixth Man of the Year when he was with the Lakers, he has been a bust so far for Dallas, averaging just 6.8 points and five rebounds.
Last season he nearly doubled each of those totals with 14.4 points and 8.7 rebounds. He received a loud, heartfelt ovation when he entered the game in the first quarter, but failed to produce before his former home crowd, scoring 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting from the field.
“Being back here was surreal, entering the building,” Odom said. "It was tough to go through.”
His ex-teammates were happy with the applause for their current foe, with Fisher standing at midcourt encouraging the crowd to keep cheering Odom.
“It was well-deserved,” said Kobe. “Well-deserved. He did a lot of great things here. And playing against him was like practice. Just like practice. We’re all familiar with each other.”
There was nothing Odom or the Mavericks could do to contain Fisher, who scored nine of his 14 points in the fourth quarter.
“It’s what I do,” Fisher said, referring to his ability to make clutch plays late in games. “When opportunities present themselves, I’m confident in my ability to come through for my team, whether it’s making a shot or making the correct read to set up someone else.
“Playing with this team for so many years and with my experience of having been in so many big games, I feel I have a responsibility to the team to not be afraid to step up and make plays. I’ve been fortunate in my career to be on the positive side of some (clutch) plays.”
Overall, though, it’s been a rough year for the well-respected point guard who has played on five Lakers championship winners in his two stints with the team. He’s shooting just 34 percent, averaging 4.3 points and 4.8 assists, prompting criticism from media and fans alike. It’s a subject that irks Bryant daily.
“He’s been doing things like this for his whole career, and at some point you’d think people would know that and give him credit,'' Bryant said. "But people are inherently idiotic.”
Lakers coach Mike Brown might not be quite that descriptive of Fisher’s critics, but he feels that people should look at the entire picture before demeaning Fisher. As president of the Players Association, Fisher was unable to prepare in a normal manner for the season because of negotiations with the owners, and was far behind his teammates on Dec. 9, when camps opened.
“He’s slowly getting back into shape,” said the Lakers first-year coach, “and he’s starting to understand what we want (from him) on both ends of the floor. He’s worked real hard as of late, and it paid off.”
In a big-play way.
