Cody's Blog

Kobe Bryant again showed the world what greatness in the postseason looks like. His 37 point game put him in elite company, tying him with Kareem-Abdul Jabbar at 75 games with 30 points or more in NBA postseason play. In his 14 years donning the Laker purple and gold, the twelve time all-star has earned almost every award possible, from an NBA MVP award in both the regular season and the finals to 10 all-NBA defensive awards as well as 12 all-NBA awards and a 2008 Gold medal in the Olympic games. However, there is still one thing that the sure-fire Hall of Famer has yet to do in his storied career; beat the vaunted Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. The Celtics and Lakers last meeting in the postseason occurred in 2008, when the Celts beat Los Angeles to take home the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. This year, Kobe and co. are looking for a reversal as he seeks his fifth championship ring and the teams second in a row. Bryant single handedly dished out crushing shot after crushing shot with either Jared Dudley or Grant Hill draped all over him. Every time the Suns made a comeback, Bryant silenced the crowd momentarily each time with tough fade away jumpers and three point bombs. Such was true in the second quarter, when, after Jason Richardson nailed a right corner three-pointer to cut the lead to eight points, Kobe calmly dribbled the ball up the court, stopped just left of the top of the key, and swished home a 29-foot three pointer (the regular line is 23′ 9″) to extend the lead back to 11 points with 12 seconds left before the half. However, the Suns wouldn’t give up. Down 17 points and just after a Goran Dragic 5 -foot jumper, Laker guard Sasha Vujacic was called for a flagrant foul when he elbowed Dragic in the face on the ensuing possession. Dragic converted both flagrant foul free throws, and then capped off the 6 point possession with a driving layup that cut the lead to 11 and got the crowd back into the game. But Kobe took over in the final two minutes, scoring 9 points and nailing the coffin shut on the Phoenix Suns icing the game with two free throws in the final 8 seconds, eliminating them from the 2010 NBA playoffs. With the Suns gone, Kobe’s eyes are now on the prize, as he and the Lakers will try and grab that much needed Finals victory over the Celtics starting on Thursday, June 3rd. (Photo: Kobe Bryant reacts after nailing a turn around jumper in the final minutes of the game. Photo courtesy of Chris Carlson AP.)