Kobe Bryant spent the fourth quarter on the Los Angeles Lakers' bench, content in watching the second unit blow the game open. The last thing on his mind was Wilt Chamberlain.
This kind of trend - and attitude - has the defending Western Conference champions off to an NBA-best 14-1 record.
Pau Gasol had 24 points and nine rebounds, Bryant had 23 points and a season-high seven assists, and the Lakers beat the Toronto Raptors 112-99 on Sunday night for their seventh straight victory.
``I think 10-5 would have been great with us, but we've been playing well enough to get that momentum,'' coach Phil Jackson said. ``Now we're just playing on momentum most of the time.
[ ] ``It's human nature to get lackadaisical and for us to believe that things are going to go right for us because they have in the past. But we are only successful in the moment. And you have to prove it again and again, especially in sports.''
Bryant came 15 points shy of reaching the 22,000-point mark faster than any other player. Had he done it, he would have beaten Chamberlain to that total by one day, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
``To be honest, I don't follow anything of that sort. I just go out there and do what I do,'' Bryant said. ``I don't care about that stuff. You guys got me all wrong. I just play. I play hard, and I play the same way all the time. I never concern myself with milestones or anything like that.''
Jackson didn't sound so sure.
``Somebody put in the paper that Kobe needed 38 points tonight to be the youngest player to ever reach that particular thing. I mean, that was like putting a carrot in front of a donkey,'' Jackson said about an hour before tipoff. ``That could really mess up the game for us tonight.''
Not to worry. Bryant spent the third quarter facilitating in the Lakers' offensive scheme after leading them to a 61-51 halftime lead with 21 points. He was 1-for-3 with two points in his 11 minutes on the floor in the third, then became a spectator while Andrew Bynum and the Lakers' reserves went on a 17-4 run that increased a six-point lead to 107-88 with 5:50 to play.
Bryant was the fastest to 12,000 and every level up to 20,000. The two-time scoring champion and 10-time all-star was the second-fastest to 21,000. He averaged 48.5 points in the Lakers' previous four home games against Toronto, including a staggering 81 on Jan. 22, 2006 _ the second-highest total in league history.
One reason Bryant has been so receptive to Jackson's balanced-scoring mantra this season could be that the 13-year veteran no longer is missing a scoring title or an MVP trophy from his voluminous resume.
``Kobe does have agendas at times that will come out,'' Jackson said. ``A couple of years ago when things didn't go well, he went on that tear. So he could get into that. It's a long season, but I hope he stays focused on what the overall plan is.''
Bynum scored seven of his 18 points during the pivotal rally, including an alley-oop dunk off a pass from Sasha Vujacic, and another alley-oop play in which he guided in Jordan Farmar's lob above the rim. Bynum shot 8-for-13 and grabbed 10 rebounds despite a bone spur in his right foot, which he's had since landing on Vince Carter's foot during last Tuesday's game against New Jersey.
``There's going to be a period of adjustment he has to go through,'' Jackson said. ``He's going to have to find a way to get through this. And if he does, then we're going to feel pretty good until the next incident happens _ and then we'll have to deal with that at that time. But unless this moves around in his foot, we're in pretty good shape if he can adjust his play to accommodate that.''
Anthony Parker led Toronto with 19 points and five teammates also scored in double figures. Jermaine O'Neal missed his third straight because of a sprained left ankle. The Lakers held leading scorer Chris Bosh to 12 points on 4-for-13 shooting.
``I know that good teams are not going to let me just get off offensively,'' said Bosh, who came in averaging a career-best 27.7 points. ``They did a great job of trapping and their rotations were really good. I didn't get too many good shots all night and I made some costly turnovers.''
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Where would you rank Kobe Bryant among the all-time greatest basketball players?by 11EDmanLV108,562 views
@glennlweis0849 Pay for advertising your lies, bitch. I flagged your vagina.
reno93535 1 year ago
monuow I am 5 6 and I dunk all the time in official games. I m in my high school's team and my dunking wows everyone (esp the girls lol). It was truthfully extremely simple, I just used the unique training program over at 50 inch vertical (dot) com - I m sure you can probably do it too
Toronto Raptors vs LA Lakers Nov.30/08
glennlweis0849 1 year ago
4:20 loudest dunk that i heard of from a player who plays center
Truth3031 2 years ago
this announcer sounds like he hates his job
mchuzimix2 3 years ago
2:10 didnt touch the net
TONYALLENSUCKS 3 years ago
ya we needed J.O. i relly thought he wuz gonna play
ctx60 3 years ago
There was no way they could win without JO.
BlackJays 3 years ago
the inevitable pwned for the Raps was going to show up sometime in the game...at least we got some effort in the game tho
tonious35 3 years ago
First half was pretty good for the Raps.
McGradyintheHouse 3 years ago