2011 NBA Playoffs May Be Determined by Ankles of Kobe Bryant and Derrick Rose
The 2011 NBA playoffs are shaping up to be among the most exciting in recent memory, and the first round is still far from over.
An abundance of surprises, from the Memphis Grizzlies taking a 3-1 lead on the San Antonio Spurs to the Indiana Pacers playing hard to get with the Chicago Bulls, has helped to stir what is typically a pretty docile end-of-April basketball pot.
This year's postseason took yet another turn, or two rather, on Sunday when Derrick Rose and Kobe Bryant both came up lame with ankle injuries in their respective teams' losses.
The Lakers and the Bulls came into mid-April as the favorites to meet in the NBA Finals in June, but how might their injuries impact the chances of their teams making deep playoff runs? And how might Rose and Bryant's vulnerabilities embolden their opponents along the way?
Ankle Injury Trips Up Derrick Rose's Explosiveness
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Derrick Rose's ankle injury is of particular concern to the Chicago Bulls, a young team looking for some playoff mojo after suffering first-round losses in each of the past two springs.
Rose led the Bulls to 62 wins during the 2010-11 season—the highest win total in the NBA and the most wins of any Chicago team since Michael Jordan's second retirement—despite the periodic absences of big men Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer.
As such, Rose is widely considered the favorite to come away with league's regular-season MVP award, though Rose has been even better since the playoffs got underway.
Through four games against the Pacers, Rose is averaging nearly 28 points and six assists per game, with 39-point and 36-point games already under his belt.
Rose is expected to play in Game 5 after being diagnosed with a sprained ankle, though the injury figures to hinder Rose's explosiveness—arguably his greatest and most important asset as a basketball player.
Will D-Rose be able to blow by the Pacers' Dahntay Jones on one leg? Or will the rest of the Bulls have to step up in support of their hobbled point guard?
Or better yet, will they be able to?
Less Effective D-Rose Opens Door for Indiana Pacers to Push the Series...
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The series between the top-seeded Bulls and the bottom-seeded Pacers has already been something of a nail-biter, with no single game decided by more than six points.
Indiana has managed to play Chicago surprisingly tough, despite finishing the season with a 37-45 record and barely squeaking into the playoffs after the dismissal of head coach Jim O'Brien.
With a win under their belts and their opponent's best player limited by a sprained ankle, Danny Granger and the Pacers will likely be emboldened to parlay their success thus far into another win or two.
And though Indy isn't likely to move on to the second round, winning a game or two against the team with the best record in the NBA would go a long way toward boosting the squad's confidence, especially going into the 2011-12 season.
...Making a Second-Round Matchup with the Atlanta Hawks That Much Tougher
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A longer first-round series doesn't bode well for the Bulls in the second round, where they are likely to face the Atlanta Hawks.
Sure, the Hawks don't exactly scare the Bulls, nor should they. Larry Drew's team is essentially a loose agglomeration without any true big men or lead guards.
That being said, they could give Chicago a heaping helping of trouble in the second round if Derrick Rose can't get his ankle back together in time.
Can Young Bulls Get by Boston or Miami Without a Healthy Rose?
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Assuming the Bulls limp past the Pacers and Hawks in the first two rounds, they'll be warmly greeted by one of the East's other two powerhouses—the Heat or the Celtics.
Those teams will probably wear each other out in the second round, leaving Chicago to match up with a similarly weary squad.
As far as health is concerned, a bum ankle might hinder Derrick Rose significantly enough in his ability to defend and blow by Rajon Rondo for Boston or Dwyane Wade for Miami, putting the rest of the upstart Bulls in the spotlight to carry the load.
That figures to be a tough task for a team that had never seen the good side of a playoff series before this year.
Kobe Bryant Not (Mentally) Phased by Latest Ailment
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And what about Kobe Bryant?
He's been through this shtick plenty of times before, to the point that Bryant decided against having his presumably sprained ankle properly evaluated, preferring ignorance over the prospect of sitting out a game or two to heal.
Kobe is all too familiar with this story, having played through broken fingers and torn-up knees before, sacrificing his body in pursuit of championship glory.
This year is shaping up to be no different than the others, though at 32 years of age, Kobe is no longer the spry young chick he once was. That means that the present extent and future impact of even the smallest injuries pose much bigger problems for No. 24 than they did back when he could heal himself like Wolverine.
Lakers Already Having Problems with Undermanned New Orleans Hornets
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Kobe's latest injury wouldn't be such a big deal if not for the fact that the Lakers, as a whole, limped into the playoffs and have yet to really find their groove against the New Orleans Hornets.
With Chris Paul shredding LA's defense and Pau Gasol doing little to keep the team's offense afloat, the Lakers are in greater need than ever of the Black Mamba's defensive skills and ability to take over a game in crunch time.
Doing so is difficult enough for the aging Bryant without yet another nagging injury, which makes the prospects of him rising to the occasion so brilliantly once again that much more unlikely.
Note, though, that it is far from impossible. Again, assuming the ankle is merely sprained, Kobe has played through more devastating injuries over longer periods of time under more intense pressure in the past.
And if his attitude toward this one is any indication, Kobe won't let a bum ankle keep him and the Lakers from dispatching the pesky Hornets on their march to the three-peat.
How Will Kobe Keep Up with Athletic Wings in Second Round?
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The Lakers-Hornets series is slated to at least six games and could very well go the distance if Kobe Bryant's ankle proves to be more of an issue than even he anticipated.
If the elderly LA roster perseveres through the Hornets' opening-round salvo, Kobe and company will find themselves matched up against either the Mavericks or the Trail Blazers in the second round.
Let me be clear: Either of those opponents would make for an inferior foe for the Lakers in the second round, though not quite as inferior as the Utah Jazz were in a second-round sweep last time around.
A sweep would become something of an improbable occurrence, though, if Bryant is forced to face off with an athletic wing, like Portland's Gerald Wallace or Dallas' Shawn Marion, who could both contain Bryant physically on offense and wear him down on defense.
And with Kobe out of the picture, either of those squads would have a legitimate shot at stealing a game or two against the two-time defending champs, especially if Pau Gasol continues to be as much of a non-factor as he's been thus far in the 2011 playoffs.
Or Against a Freakishly Athletic Team in the Western Conference Finals?
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If athleticism turns out to be a problem for Kobe and the Lake Show in the second round, then how can they hope to overcome the freakish ability that can be found up and down Oklahoma City's roster?
With the Nuggets' backs against the wall, down 3-1, and the Spurs headed toward a shocking first-round exit, the Thunder are looking more and more like the favorites to face the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals by the day.
Fans in LA will recall how an up-and-coming squad led by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook pushed the battle-tested Lakers to six games in the opening round of last year's playoffs, despite Ron Artest's noteworthy blanketing of Durant on defense.
This year's OKC team is just as athletic, if not more so now that Serge Ibaka is starting, and it is more experienced across the floor, particularly with Kendrick Perkins, an NBA champion with the Boston Celtics, starting in the middle.
Can Kobe's Lakers really count on their experience and knowledge of how to win to carry them through to the NBA Finals if and when they show just how unhealthy and unathletic they are compared to Scott Brooks' young bucks?
How Might Each Fare If Lakers and Bulls Met in the NBA Finals?
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So, after all of that, how would the Lakers and Bulls do against each other if both teams hobbled their way into the NBA Finals with Kobe Bryant and Derrick Rose still slowed by injuries?
As integral as Kobe is to the Lakers' chances of three-peating, he has plenty of help on his roster, with players like Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Andrew Bynum and Ron Artest who, individually and collectively, are capable of elevating their games and contributing enough to keep Phil Jackson's Zen boat afloat on its path to the Larry O'Brien trophy.
The Bulls, on the other hand, are much more dependent on Derrick Rose playing like the NBA MVP if they are to have any shot at winning their first title since the Michael Jordan era. Certainly, Carlos Boozer can do his part, but he's far from the type of player who can carry a team for any extended period of time.
And sure, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah are quality role players, but without Rose, the Bulls would be without a single player who can regularly create his own shot or even set others up for success.
Hopefully, for Bulls and Lakers fans as well as basketball fans in general, Kobe and D-Rose will meet in the NBA Finals with healthy ankles and souls hungry for championship glory, thereby giving the viewing pubic a series for the ages.
Only time (in the trainer's room) will tell if such a scenario comes to fruition.
