leeprettyp wrote:dockingsched wrote:what motivation is there to get from watching kobe not try on defense?
i'm not trying to put any blame on kobe here and his "leadership", but man, some of the posts u guys make in support of kobe are crazy. yeah he has great work ethic, the best, but in game, there's no denying he's being lazy on defense more often than not.
Kobe isnt the only person who has sucked on the defensive end and thats what u guys seem to miss. Our Center who healthy is a 1 man defense basically has stunk on that end of the court also. And Steve Clifford is the defensive coach Dwight had in Orlando with those crappy wing defenders he played with. We're running a defensive system that is predicated on Dwight being Dwight and to this point he isnt healthy and he isnt protecting the paint and his recovery sux. So to finger point Kobe is the biggest issue I have. I know several players in the NBA personally. Some that play on teams in our own division and each one of them basically say Dwight is the reason that we suck right now on both ends of the court. ( I argue he's not healthy to them) but hey thats how his own personal co-workers feel about him now. The its "kobe fault" argument gets old to me. Hey Doc I respect your opinion but most of u are off base on Kobe is the single problem on the defensive end. I feel our whole team as a WHOLE sux (every single player) on that end of the court
That is true. Gasol has probably been the worst on the defensive end...and the offensive end. Gasol does not protect the paint, he is the biggest liability and he really should be a backup C off the bench, and then a PF just to add him a little bit more minutes. Regardless, Kobe has shown he cannot get Gasol to put his "big boy pants on."
Maybe time for a trade? Absolutely. But until then Kobe needs to get Gasol in line. Gasol is probably the person that needs to dig really deep, more so than any other player on this team.
If Kobe says "It's my team" then he needs to start acting like a leader. You can't just lead by example, he has to push his teammates and demand more from them every game. That doesn't mean being an a-hole, but it means just what it means...demand more from them. The whole team needs more heart and passion, and they need to have it at tip off...instead of waiting until they are behind by 13 points. Kobe..."it's my team"...so if it is, then the buck has to stop with Kobe. There is a lot of talent on the floor and this team has the pieces to get it done. Time for these guys to have some belief and start winning, or start crying in the locker after losing. Miami Heat cried like babies their first season together because they wanted it bad. This team needs to do the same thing. I want to hear about tears, or see some tears on the court.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfNaI0JvczQ[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHrOfo8pwdU[/youtube]