“Don’t
jinx me, man. Don’t jinx me,” Bryant said following the Lakers' 93-83
win over the Miami Heat at Staples Center. “But if I can walk and I can
run, I’m gonna play.” And usually play very well.
Wearing a
bothersome face mask to protect the broken nose he suffered when the
Heat’s Dwyane Wade mauled him in the All-Star Game, Bryant has scored
102 points in the three games since, all Lakers victories. On Sunday he
shot 14 of 23 from the field for 33 points, leading the Lakers to their
first win over Miami since LeBron James joined the team. James had 25
points, 13 rebounds and seven assists.
Metta World Peace had
17 points and seven rebounds for LA, while Andrew Bynum had 16 points
and 13 rebounds. Pau Gasol added 11 points and 10 boards. The bench also
stepped up on both ends of the floor, actually increasing the Lakers’
lead from seven to 16 points in the second quarter.
Bryant
said prior to the game that this was an important test for the improving
Lakers, to see how they match up with one of the NBA’s elite, and a
team they lost to by 11 on Jan. 19 in Miami.
“We did
extremely well,” Bryant said. “I felt like we’re much better than we
were when we played them in Miami. We matched their physicality and
their energy, which was a big problem for us in Miami. I thought (the
win) was very impressive.
“It’s fun to compete against the
best. It’s always enjoyable. They pose so many problems on the offensive
end and the defensive, so it’s always a fun matchup.”
And it
was even more enjoyable for the Lakers to watch Wade, who scored 16
points, foul out with 5:14 left in the game and the Heat trailing by
just seven. The Heat already were without forward Chris Bosh, who missed
his third straight game following the death of his grandmother.
“He’s
a huge part of their team,” Bryant said of Bosh, who’s averaging 18.4
points and 8.3 rebounds. “He can go inside, he can go outside and he
causes problems on the defensive end.”
For Heat coach Eric
Spoelstra, not having Bosh is no excuse for the loss — the Heat’s second
in a row, dropping them two games behind Chicago for the top spot in
the East.
“Chris is a major component to what we do on both
ends of the court, that’s why we don’t listen to anybody when they
(criticize) Chris’ importance,” Spoelstra said firmly. "He’s one of the
very best players in this league, but more importantly he has a great
impact on how we play. He settles us. He’s very even.
“But we’re a no-excuses team and this is a no-excuses season.”
Unlike
the All-Star Game and Friday night’s loss to the Utah Jazz, in which
LeBron passed to a teammate for a possible tying or winning shot instead
of taking it himself, Sunday’s loss produced no excuses from James. He
had his usual outstanding all-around performance and gave the Lakers
credit for simply outplaying his team.
“(In Utah) we gave
ourselves a chance to win but we just couldn’t finish it,” James
lamented. “(Today) was a little bit different. They played exceptionally
well and came away with another win on their home court.
“That’s
a good team. That’s a really good team. They’re 16-2 at home for a
reason. They’re one of the best teams in the league at home.”
On the road, however, it’s a much different story.
The
Lakers have lost two-thirds of their games away from Staples Center,
going 6-12, and if they want to be taken seriously as a championship
contender, they’ve got to improve dramatically in their last 15 road
games.
“We’ll be all right,” Bryant said. “I have no doubts
about that. We’ve been playing a lot better (on the road) than we were
earlier in the season. It’s just about understanding what your strengths
are and playing to that. The testament to any championship team is to
understand what your weaknesses are and protect those, then understand
what your strengths are and playing to those.
“I feel like we’re starting to figure out how to support each other in that department.”
