Kobe Bryant's History-Making Moment Leads Lakers and Sunday NBA Takeaways
Kobe Bryant moved past Michael Jordan on the NBA's all-time scoring list with a pair of free throws a little more than midway through the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers' 100-94 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves Sunday.
It was easily the high point in what has been, to say the least, a challenging season for Bryant and the Lakers. And as tempting as it is to keep the focus on Bryant's inefficiency, Los Angeles' irrelevance in the postseason picture or whatever other cynical takes come to mind, there's just no denying the significance of any achievement that puts Jordan in the rearview.
Yes, context matters. And yes, Jordan tallied his 32,292 points far more efficiently and in about 200 fewer games. But there's something to be said for sustained production, and Bryant's ability to stay on the floor for as long as he has finally paid off Sunday.
In a season that has involved precious little happiness, Bryant visibly enjoyed his moment. After the game, he freely admitted its significance (via Serena Winters of Lakers Nation):
Jordan, in a prepared statement, offered exactly the kind of cool, impersonal congratulations you'd expect from one of the most pathologically competitive personalities in the history of sports (via Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press):
MJ can play congenial all he wants, but you just know some part of him seethed at moving down to the No. 4 position.
Kobe came into the game shooting a career-worst 38.7 percent from the field, and his 7-of-20 effort will only drag that figure down. He led the Lakers with 26 points, though, and amassed 10 of them at the free-throw line.
Lest there be any concern that Bryant would coast after snagging Jordan's spot, don't worry. With the game winding down, he took control of a key possession in typical Kobe fashion, as Bleacher Report's Kevin Ding noted:
Whether Bryant's amazing moment serves as a springboard for better things going forward remains to be seen. L.A. has won three in a row for the first time all season, and its 8-16 mark looks borderline respectable considering the difficulty of the conference competition out West.
Maybe we're witnessing the first stages of a turnaround.
Then again, issues aplenty remain; the Lakers' lack of capable point guard play leaves them ever more susceptible to takeover stretches by Bryant and Nick Young, who offered just seven points of support on 2-of-9 shooting against the Wolves.
Defensively, there are still no viable rim protectors or perimeter-stoppers.
Whether Bryant sits in third or fourth place on the scoring list, the Lakers still have roster deficiencies he can't fix.
In a way, though, those very shortcomings make Bryant's achievement all the more impressive. There's little realistic light at the end of the tunnel—this year or next. Despite that bleak outlook from a team-success perspective, Bryant is still running himself into the ground on a nightly basis (he led the Lakers with 35 minutes on Sunday) out of a sheer refusal to stop competing. Postgame, Kobe spoke about being "honored to still be competing" (via ESPN NBA's Baxter Holmes):
There's a self-destructive element to that behavior, no doubt. But there's also something inspiring about it, perhaps something only Jordan would respect or understand. Kobe discussed his intense competitive nature, describing it as something that requires "channeling the dark side" (via B/R's Kevin Ding):
There won't be many more milestones ahead for Bryant—certainly not any as significant as this. But he'll keep trying, keep fighting and keep doing things in his own uncompromising way.
It's hard to know what that'll mean for the Lakers' future, but at least Bryant is adding to the franchise's storied past in the meantime.
And for all of the MJ fans out there lamenting Jordan's slip down the all-time standings, remember: Bryant has a long way to go before he surpasses all of His Airness' records. That includes "minor league hits," as SB Nation's Rodger Sherman pointed out:
Good luck with that one, Kobe.
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Warriors Celebrate Sweet 16
Here's how you know Kobe passing Jordan was a big deal: The Golden State Warriors won their 16th game in a row, ran their overall record to 21-2 and still got second billing in Sunday's takeaways.
Victory No. 16 didn't come easy, but the struggle made it plenty sweet.
The Dubs needed overtime to beat the New Orleans Pelicans by a final score of 128-122, giving them an impressive back-to-back set of wins after knocking off the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas on Saturday. Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, and Klay Thompson chipped in 29 as the team did its best to compensate without Andrew Bogut (knee tendinitis) in the lineup for the second straight game.
Perhaps the most encouraging sign for the Warriors (not that they need many more) was Andre Iguodala's season-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Iggy has been hesitant on offense all season and only stepped up after Harrison Barnes went to the locker room a victim of a brutal Dante Cunningham elbow.
Draymond Green played 48 minutes, scored 11 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, handed out five assists, blocked four shots and did innumerable unquantifiable "Draymond Green Things" on both ends.
There's no rest for the streaking Warriors, though. They head to Memphis to take on the 19-4 Grizzlies on Tuesday.
History All Over the Place
Kobe wasn't the only guy making new entries in the record books Sunday. The New York Knicks fell apart down the stretch, notching just one inconsequential field goal in overtime en route to a 95-90 loss to the visiting Toronto Raptors.
Despite 34 points from Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks' record dipped to 5-21 their worst start ever, per ESPN Stats & Info:
Here's some salt for the wound from CBSSports.com's James Herbert: "This was a golden opportunity with DeMar DeRozan out, Kyle Lowry turning the ball over nine times and Lou Williams shooting poorly. New York failed to take advantage of it."
Also historic was the ridiculousness of Melo's latest postgame hat, courtesy of Seth Rosenthal:
Seriously, he's just messing with us now, right?
The Suns Should Be Freaking Out
In one fell swoop, otherwise known as the Oklahoma City Thunder's 112-88 drubbing of the Phoenix Suns, things changed dramatically for Jeff Hornacek's team.
Not only did Phoenix drop below .500, but it also saw the terrifying Thunder trim their deficit for the No. 8 playoff spot out West to just a half-game. When Kevin Durant returned Dec. 2, the Suns' lead was five-and-a-half games.
The Thunder are looking like their old selves, and they're making up ground like they're playing Minecraft. Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman provided some stats illustrating their return to dominance:
I think we know how this story is going to end.
Phoenix has now lost five straight, and this one was an absolute blowout. Durant needed just 24 minutes to collect his 23 points, and Russell Westbrook called it a night with 28 in only 27 minutes. OKC is going to snatch Phoenix's playoff spot sooner rather than later.
Now, the only question is how many other teams will overtake the Suns by the time the dust settles on the season.
Mike Dunleavy is Honest
After scoring a team-high 22 points (19 in the third quarter alone) in the Chicago Bulls' 93-75 takedown of the Miami Heat, Mike Dunleavy offered up a frank explanation for a game that featured a crawling pace, 32 combined turnovers and some seriously ugly shooting from the Heat (via Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com):
The Bulls are now 11-3 on the road, thanks largely to what we can only assume is Dunleavy's teetotaling influence.
The temperance movement is alive and well with the Bulls.
Kawhi Leonard Needs a Military Rank
It's time for Kawhi Leonard to pull rank...or at least pull a rank. Because anytime you enter territory in San Antonio Spurs lore that hasn't been occupied by anyone since The Admiral, you've probably earned a cool nickname. NBA.com/Stats noted Leonard's history-making performance:
Leonard wasn't a Navy man, but we can at last start him off at "The Ensign" and let him work his way up.
San Antonio knocked off the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center by a final of 99-91 behind Leonard's 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists, five steals and six blocks.
Salute him next time you see him.
