from: philly.com (七六人的專欄作家寫的 :P)
Posted on Sun, Mar. 09, 2003
By Stephen A. Smith
Rising to New Heights
LOS ANGELES - To know Kobe Bryant, it's necessary to comprehend only three
things:
He is arguably the best basketball player in the world, playing for the best
team.
He knows it.
That's pretty much all he wants anyone to know about him.
Ask Bryant about his wife, Vanessa, and he uses his smile to evade the
question. Ask about the rest of his family and he might tell you that it's
none of your business. Bring up Michael Jordan, call Bryant his heir apparent,
mention the obvious similarities in gait, heroics and hardware, and don't be
surprised if Bryant decides to ask you: "What's my name?"
Ko-be, Ko-be, Ko-be.
Like Lakers-haters everywhere, most Philadelphians are not much interested in
knowing anything more than they have to about Bryant. The way he has been
playing, however, has left them little choice but to learn.
At age 24, Bryant already has three NBA championships on his resume and
millions in his bank account. He also has a baby girl named Natalia, who was
born on Jan. 19. Plus the offer of a three-year, $54 million contract
extension sitting on his table. And still more records to eclipse.
"Life is beautiful, man," Bryant said on Friday, hours before the Lakers beat
the Minnesota Timberwolves, 106-96, at the Staples Center. "We're playing
better. We're winning games. I'm happy personally and professionally. I can't
complain about a thing."
Despite the fact that the Lakers, the three-time defending NBA champions,
enter today's game against the 76ers in Los Angeles as the sixth-place team
in the Western Conference, Bryant is fully aware of what he has accomplished
this season, what his goals are, and how dominant he is in a league desperate
to be rid of its dependence on just one star, namely Jordan.
February - Black History Month - was a time for honoring some of Bryant's
heroes. During it, he made a little history of his own.
Bryant averaged 40.6 points while shooting 47.2 percent from the field last
month. He scored 40-plus points in nine consecutive games and led the Lakers
to an 11-3 record. Including his last two games in January, he scored 35 or
more points in 13 straight.
On Wednesday, Bryant scored the 10,000th point of his NBA career, becoming
the youngest player to reach that mark.
Magic Johnson, the Hall of Famer who is now a Lakers executive, described
Bryant's efforts as "unconscious." Bryant's teammates appear awestruck, and
the debate about who is the game's best player appears to be unnecessary at
this moment.
Bryant's team is on a roll. Despite the ineptitude of Rick Fox, the lack of
production from Robert Horry and Derek Fisher, and the questionable health
and desire of Shaquille O'Neal, the champions have recently looked like,
well, champions.
And O'Neal, the big fella with the size-22 shoes, hasn't had as much to do
with their success as he has in the past.
Bryant's critics are keen to remind everyone that Bryant has benefited from
playing alongside O'Neal. He has been called arrogant and spoiled. Despite
his Lower Merion roots, some Philadelphians have disowned him, failing to
recognize that they never owned him in the first place. But despite the
critics, Bryant has continued to cement his greatness.
So when winning is the norm, when championships are anticipated, when the
spectacular can't be denied and your talents now dwarf those of a teammate
who is the game's largest and most dominant force, where do you go now?
"He's the greatest player in the game right now, definitely one of the top
three players," O'Neal said. "All I can say is that I'm glad Kobe is on my
team.
"He's matured. He's playing great. He went on that amazing 40-point streaky
thing. He's won a lot of games and hit a lot of shots.
"And while he's doing that, I'm just chillin', getting a little bit of rest
and getting myself in shape. But I'm not worried. Little Brother is holding
it down."
And then some.
Bryant scored 40 points against Phoenix on Jan. 29. Two days later, he dropped
38 on Sacramento. He did not score fewer than 35 points in a game for nearly
four weeks, reaching or surpassing that figure against Utah (twice), Indiana,
New York (twice), Denver (twice), San Antonio, Houston, Portland and Seattle.
After starting the season 11-19, the Lakers were still saddled with a 19-23
record on Jan. 24. Then Bryant took his game to new heights - predictably
because of Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
"It was do-or-die time for us," Bryant said. "We had a tough stretch coming
up, and we really weren't playing well. And we were in jeopardy of being out
of the playoff race. So Phil came to me with this new vision that he had. He
told me he wanted to open up the offense a little bit more, with me being
more assertive and putting the ball in the hole.
"So with those challenges, I could respond to that. There was a lot on the
line. It just couldn't be avoided."
Even O'Neal has gotten away from calling Bryant his sidekick, preferring to
call him "my little brother."
"I feel like I definitely deserve to be in the upper echelon in this league,"
Bryant said when asked if he deserved to be recognized as the best in the game.
"But is it that important to me, to be recognized? Not at all. I have a job to
do, just like everybody else on the team. I'm just a piece of the puzzle. A
huge piece, but still just a piece.
"It just doesn't really matter to me. "We win with Shaq, we win with me, we
win together. That's always been my attitude, regardless of what people may
think."
The Lakers play 82 regular-season games and about 20 playoff games, extending
Bryant's season well into June. Yet he says he takes off only about two weeks
after that.
"Then I get right back in the gym, get focused and go to work," he said. "I
hit my weights, do my running and [agility drills], and do my basketball work.
Overall, it's about eight hours a day."
Not everyone can be Cal Ripken. Showing up for work every day is no cause for
celebration for most of us. The difference with Bryant is that, unlike most
of today's athletes, he shows up for work when he doesn't have to.
The hard work has not worn Bryant down. It has helped him elevate his game
and become a candidate for league MVP honors.
"It's all nice, fine and dandy," he said, "but that's not what I want my
career to be about. I enjoy winning too much. The individual accolades would
mean nothing to me if we weren't winning.
"It wouldn't make my home life more difficult, but it would be more difficult
to go to work if I wasn't winning. I never want to know how that feels."
No, he never wants to feel the way most of us do. Then again, he never has.
--
Strenth, is measured in pounds;
Speed, is measured in seconds;
Courage, you can't measure courage.
--
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