Kobe Bryant only played two games at Staples Center all of last season due to his injury woes, so Los Angeles Lakers fans have been chomping at the bit to see him again on his home court. Those fans finally got to see Bryant back in action when the Lakers took on the Golden State Warriors in preseason play on Thursday night.
Kobe Bryant looked like old self vs. Warriors
The Lakers got stomped by the Warriors on Thursday, but Bryant gave the home fans something to cheer about.
Jeff Gross
While the Warriors stomped the Lakers, 120-105, Bryant gave the Lakers faithful something to cheer about, scoring 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting in 23 minutes. The 36-year-old added three assists, three steals and two turnovers, and most importantly, he’s feeling good:
Kobe after playing Game 2: "I feel more than comfortable."
— KEVIN DING (@KevinDing) October 10, 2014 Here are the full highlights from Bryant’s performance:
So what can we learn from Bryant’s effort?
1. He could consistently hit that fadeaway jumper until he’s 50: Michael Jordan made a killing posting up and knocking down fadeaway jumpers, especially in the latter stages of his career. It was basically an unguardable shot that helped offset a decline in athleticism. Bryant has turned the fadeaway jumper into his best weapon as well, and he showed it off on multiple occasions against the Warriors, in both post-up and non-post-up situations.
2. He can still get to the line: Bryant may rely on jumpers now more than ever, but he still has the ability to get to the free-throw line. He made 5-of-7 from the stripe against the Warriors, using some crafty moves to draw fouls. While he almost certainly won’t get to the line as much as he used to, expect him to get there a healthy amount of times thanks to all the tricks he has learned over the years.
3. He still has quick hands: To put it nicely, Bryant's defense has taken a dip the past few seasons. On far too many occasions he loses his man for open shots, and it happened against Golden State. But while his defense is not nearly what it once was, he still has quick hands that can help force turnovers, as evidenced by his pick-pocket of Stephen Curry. The resulting dunk was kind of sad, though.
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