"I think that really helped us," D'Antoni said. "It helped us against the Clippers with Chris Paul. (Bryant) wants to take the challenge, and it really helps us."
"He disrupts the whole offense on the ball," said D'Antoni, who added that Bryant will draw either Brandon Jennings or Monta Ellis when the Lakers host the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. "He's done that a couple games, so we'll continue to milk that one."
Kobe's a guy that likes a challenge, so to give him a challenge I think sometimes is best for us," Nash said. "Sometimes when he maybe is guarding someone who isn't going to demand his interest, he can wane a little bit. But when we put him in a position where he's challenged, he can be phenomenal.
We all agree that Kobe is probably still our best on-ball defender (Ron Artest while physical lacks the foot speed) and for this team to succeed he will need to focus more on defending these speedy starting PG's so we can hide Nash on that end of the court. I do agree at this stage of his career Kobe gambles to much while playing off-ball defense on players he doesnt truly respect (ego thing..but hey thats Kobe) which leads to wide open shooters. Kobe on-ball defense is still good.
This can work for this team if he allows Nash to control the offensive side of the ball and Dwight to control the interior on offense and defense. The Cavs game can be an example of what we need in regards to roles on this team. We all know Kobe can avg 25ppg in his sleep but for this team to succeed and be clicking on all cylinders we need Bryant IMO to accept the role of defending the other teams speedy PG's from getting into the lane. While not all of the defensive issues should be blamed on Kobe, this could be something that shows the other players that a commitment to playing hard on that end of the court can help turn things around.
The Combo at the PF position of Earl Clark and Jamison and the Center combo of Howard and Gasol should be ok for now (to be honest I think we should move Pau for role players that fit the system better and also solid wing defenders). Also sux Jordan Hill got hurt because both he and Earl Clark would've made it easier to move Pau. At this point both players are better Pick n roll defenders and are just better athletes. It doesn't take Einstein to see Pau has not lost 1 but 2 steps and cant play the PF position at all in todays league. He is a Center and he aint playing over Dwight.
While I'm not totally sold on this Mike D. fast pace chuck a quick shot and 3 offense. We can at least fix things on the defensive side of the ball. Also I hope Nash gets a little aggressive on offense while running the pick n roll to keep the defense more honest. He needs to shoot more if this is gonna work because more than likely Kobe's offensive productivity is gonna suffer at this stage of his career
Thoughts fellas?
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