Did Magic finally talk to Kobe?

[Penberthy]

I've been wondering what caused the turn around in Kobe's style of play. I have been hoping to see this kobe for about 4 years now. IT FINALLY HAPPEND AND IS BEAUTIFUL.

My question is, why?

Did nash convince him?
Did the horrible record?
Did magic?

More importantly, will it last?

I think yes. I think Kobe is going to aim for 10 dimes+ for the remainder of the season. He wants to be able to look back on this championship season and point at these past two 14 assist games as the "turning point," when he figured out what needed to be done and did it. I think tonights game will be very telling in regard to his commitment to this new style of play. Keep your fingers crossed.

[dockingsched]

I think some teammates may have gotten to him during that clear the air meeting. perhaps some asking/pleading for him to share the ball more.

[TyCobb]

I think he just realized how high maintenance D12 is and started feeding him at the rim so he can play with more energy on D.

[Slava]

Did we not just overhaul our entire offensive scheme to make him the primary creator from the post?

[GAME TIME]

Magic , He's to busy twittering bashing the Lakers, and kissing Lebron's ass


They were tired of losing.. I'm sure Gasol and Nash were in the forefront of sharing the ball more.. and Kobe was probrably voicing in Dan Tony ear to slow the tempo down and work the inside out game more to appease Dwight

After to what happened in the Miami game when they trapped Nash, they changed their system to work Nash on the other side of the court and let Kobe playmake or work the bigs for an inside out game.

[Jetset]

they've been talking, kobe asked magic for advice on how to lead this team. the only difference is that kobe's the primary ball handler now instead of nash. has nothing to do with them talking.

[DEEP3CL]

they've been talking, kobe asked magic for advice on how to lead this team. the only difference is that kobe's the primary ball handler now instead of nash. has nothing to do with them talking.

Any evidence of this said convo?

[Jetset]

they've been talking, kobe asked magic for advice on how to lead this team. the only difference is that kobe's the primary ball handler now instead of nash. has nothing to do with them talking.

Any evidence of this said convo?

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/stor ... dle-change

[Luxury]

I guess aiming for 10+ assist would be ideal for a person who's goal-oriented. But the number of assists shouldn't be of main concern.

As long as he's attacking in confortable spots with proper spacing, he should just make the "right read" as Nash says. Double or triple teams come, find the passing lane and dish it off. If they leave the best iso player in the history of the NBA to play one-on-one, then pick him apart.

Lets focus on the Win/Loss column, and not something auxilliary like APG.

[cbrown32]

they've been talking, kobe asked magic for advice on how to lead this team. the only difference is that kobe's the primary ball handler now instead of nash. has nothing to do with them talking.

Any evidence of this said convo?

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/stor ... dle-change

Because Kobe called Magic on his day off...on December 14th..."they've been talking."

And Kobe was the primary ball handler when that convo went down, while Steve Nash was still out, so that clearly isn't the difference in their play.

This is a pretty good article by Adande that kinda answers your question OP:

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/88881 ... es-head-on

[Jetset]

Because Kobe called Magic on his day off...on December 14th..."they've been talking."

ummm.......yeah actually. and you're kidding yourself if you think they haven't spoken since then, he even talks about how easy it is to talk with magic. not really sure what you're getting at.

And Kobe was the primary ball handler when that convo went down, while Steve Nash was still out, so that clearly isn't the difference in their play.

was kobe looking to distribute during that time as the primary ball handler or was he distributing like he is now while he's the primary ball handler? it's almost as if you're arguing just to see yourself post.

[AcecardZ]

I'm super happy Kobe has decided to take more of a facilitator role but I highly doubt a conversation between he and Magic had anything to do with it. Kobe is as alpha as they come and if the idea isn't his I just don't see him being interested. I welcome any evidence to prove me wrong though.

Also regarding said facilitator role. How much less taxing on Kobe's body is it for him to play the role of facilitator than it is for him to try to score the ball every time he gets it in his hands? Is it any less taxing or is it more taxing?

[Mamba Venom]

Kobe is Shang Tsung

He finally learned how to do Nash. It's a cool trick.

[AdonisDeMarion]

OP to be honest I could care less, I'm just glad my Lakers are playing like they should've been playing. I'm also glad that Bryant is shooting less and I can stop pulling my hair out too....lol


OP all jokes aside if they had a talk I'm damn glad they did, the power of our stars will help us once we get to the post season....no team wants to face this Lakers team or this type of Kobe Bryant either.

[Lyrix]

I'm super happy Kobe has decided to take more of a facilitator role but I highly doubt a conversation between he and Magic had anything to do with it. Kobe is as alpha as they come and if the idea isn't his I just don't see him being interested. I welcome any evidence to prove me wrong though.

Also regarding said facilitator role. How much less taxing on Kobe's body is it for him to play the role of facilitator than it is for him to try to score the ball every time he gets it in his hands? Is it any less taxing or is it more taxing?

It definitely looks less taxing, but he also said he was hiding on d against Westbrook. I'm thinking he was just taking a jab at Russell though, he pretty much just played him like Rondo that game. Truthfully Kobe's a warrior and will play through whatever and it's winning us games, so he better keep playing this way.

[VanExeleNT]

I have been on this board 4x 5x criticizing Kobe and the last time I gave up and said I won't post on here again because people just shoot down the idea that Kobe was the problem. Well he was and now he is the solution.

I have never been a Kobe Hater, I am a Kobe fan and always have been but I am a Laker fan before Kobe. For multiple reasons, his age, his opponents skills/age, this current roster, this current coach, for all these reasons and more Kobe's old style of play will not work and will not result in us winning a championship. I have been saying that and beating that drum all year long, that Kobe needs to take 10-15 shots a game. He not only is doing that now but he did one better and he is actually play making, I just wanted him to stay out of Nash's way but I was wrong on that, Nash can't execute against great defensive teams (i.e. thunder, heat) but Kobe can and he is making all the right decision, I'm angry that it took this long because this team is too talented to be where it's at and it was Kobe's job to see this earlier but he didn't, I'm glad he sees it now and I hope he continues to play this way, because if he does there is no stopping this powerhouse team.

Everyone is playing harder now, everyone is smiling again, everyone is playing for one another, heck even Jodie Meeks and Jamison are getting minutes (as they should have been from the start), we certainly have had a 'come to jesus' moment.

I thank Kobe for making the Lakers fun to watch again, he will always be in my mind the most skilled scorer this league has EVER seen and ever will because he can score in a gizzlion ways but the fact that he finally realizes that in order for this team to win @ this point in his career, he will have to pass, I am thankful and I applaud him.

NOW I APPRECIATE YOU KOBE. I will always appreciate the 5 rings and the clutch shots but the fact that you can change who you are for the betterment of the team, makes me believe in you again as a Leader of a team. Thank you.