Kobe Bryant isn’t getting any younger. But that doesn’t mean that his best years are behind him. Kobe Bryant, now 30 years old is hitting what many call his “prime”. Does this mean that we will see another 81 point game from Kobe? Probably not. But what we will see is an increase in his dominance during the season and throughout the playoffs.
Here are some things to watch in Kobe Bryant’s game this up coming season that will help him in his dominance of the league.
A Full Solid Roster
No more Smush Parkers or Kwame Browns! A full season of Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher and co. will help Kobe Bryant in seeing less double and triple teams and will allow him to be in more isolation one on one opportunties. And there is nobody in the game that can guard Kobe one on one.
Smaller Defenders
One thing that teams have been able to do in the past, is guard Kobe with a bigger small forward who gives up quickness to Kobe, but compensates with a wall of defenders behind him. A classic example of this is last years NBA Finals where the Boston Celtics were able to use small forward James Posey or Paul Pierce to guard Kobe. Both Posey and Pierce are not quick enough to stay with Kobe, but didn’t need to because of the wall of defenders to help specifically Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins, and Rajon Rondo.
Because of the size inside the Lakers will now have with Gasol and Bynum, and the inability to over help on defense because of the talent level on the floor, teams will be forced to use smaller, quicker defenders to defend Kobe. This will show us more of Kobe Bryant’s post game which we have not been able to see to much of over the past few seasons. This will give Kobe Bryant more shots closer to the basket much like Michael Jordan had during his championship runs.
The Pick n’ Roll
You saw this more and more during the playoff run last year in the most tense moments of each game. Kobe Bryant would have the ball on the left wing, with Pau Gasol setting the screen, and Kobe having four options. 1) To take a nice open mid range jumpshot (which is like a layup for Kobe), 2) bounce pass to Pau Gasol heading to the basket, 3) a lob pass to Pau Gasol, 4) a kickout to a wide open sharp shooter being either Fisher, Farmar, or Vuyacic.
Expect to see this same thing more and more this season, especially when games are in the balance during the 4th quarter when the Lakers really need a basket. Only this year there are two options for this play, one with Pau Gasol and the other with Andrew Bynum. Both will be able to participate in the Kobe pick n’ roll effectively.
More Help & Energy Defensively
This is a key area where you will see much more dominance in Kobe’s game this year. With all of the offensive options for the Lakers, Kobe Bryant is no longer a “1 man show” offensively. This gives him the energy to dominate games defensively, much like we saw him do during the Lakers 3 championship runs with Shaquille.
Also, don’t forget the all important factor of team defense. Bruce Bowen has been heralded for the past number of years as the games best individual defender. But let’s not forget that he has been Tim Duncan defending the paint for him. With the twin towers inside, and a healthy long and quick Trevor Ariza, Kobe Bryant has much more defensive help than he has had in a long time. This will make him appear more dominant defensively, giving shooting guards a much harder time scoring wise.
All that being said, it’s still Kobe Bryant. Nobody is more ticked off than he is that the Lakers lost to the Celtics in the finals last year. He knows this year is his chance for redemption.
