Kobe Bryant’s new less-is-more approach is working

This echoes a recent report from Sam Amick of USA TODAY Sports which said it was unlikely that Scott would get a pink slip midseason.

Kobe passed Michael Jordan on the NBA’s career scoring list at Target Center last season, and Wolves public address announcer Rod Johnson introduced him before the game as “one of the greatest players of all-time”. “‘Sometimes we came out on top, sometimes the Lakers did”.

The Wolves hung in there, though, and capitalized during overtime to come away with the win, albeit barely. Though I would of liked to see him shoot the ball more he did well controlling the tempo and getting his teammates involved. “There aren’t too many people who understand how you bring it night after night for all those years at that level”, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “You just think about all the great memories you’ve had”. For Bryant, he finished with 12 points on the night in front of a contingent of Lakers fans. Bryant became annoyed with Howard’s more laid-back approach toward the game. He has been acting deferential on offense and his 45.5 percent shooting will be a career-low if it doesn’t improve. But he did show a few flashes of his old form early on Wednesday. He had 11 points on typically inefficient five-for-13 shooting.

Should the Lakers fail to make the end-of-season play-offs, (which they probably will), Bryant’s final game is set to be at home against Utah on 13 April.

On the other hand, fans can vote for their favorite players and Bryant still remains a popular figure to many.

“I thought he played well”, Lakers coach Byron Scott said.

Kevin Martin, who was coming off a scoreless night on Monday, put in 37 points on 6 of 9 shooting from three-point distance in this one.

Martin scored 17 points in the fourth quarter alone, making four three-point field goals, helping the Wolves erase a five-point deficit with under 10 minutes to play.

Russell had his moments, although he did miss a shot which could have given the Lakers the lead in that 123-122 overtime loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Zach Randolph led Memphis with 21 points and 16 rebounds.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant walks past fans before the second half of their NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City, Utah, November 7, 2012.

The win snapped a four-game losing streak for Minnesota, which wrapped up a four-game homestand with a 1-3 record.

Now, with more than a quarter of the season having passed, Aldridge is more comfortable as a San Antonio Spur after signing with them as a free agent over the summer.

Rookie of the Year candidate Karl-Anthony Towns finished the game with a strong performance again by recording 26 points and 14 rebounds.

Without Bryant on the floor and with the second unit, which included D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, the Lakers crashed over the final 12 minutes.