Spurs Look To Stay Perfect At Home As Lakers Come To Town

ABOUT THE LAKERS (3-19): Los Angeles coach Byron Scott recently demoted forward Julius Randle and rookie point guard D’Angelo Russell to the bench, but the two youngsters kept the Lakers in the mix for a victory in Wednesday’s game. Russell would end up scoring nine of the Laker’s last 11 points from regulation and into overtime.

Silver is right to point out Bryant’s impact internationally.

“I’ve made plenty of them, missed plenty of them too”, Bryant said he told Russell.

The Lakers players aren’t thinking that way, of course. “We’ve had some epic battles”.

SAN ANTONIO The journey Kobe Bryant traveled has sparked varying emotions. Bryant tapped his chest and pointed to the crowd, acknowledging the cheers and chants of “Kobe” as he walked off the court. With Bryant calling the shots, and Luke Walton waiting in the wings with the Warriors, there’s no need to pay Scott the remaining $8.5 million for the two years left on his contract after this season.

During the last four minutes of the game, the 18,000 fans kept chanting “We want Kobe”, when in all reality, you didn’t want Kobe because your team would’ve most certainly lost. The Lakers are trending in the other direction at 3-19 and look mismanaged from the floor to the front office.

“He’s going to retire as one of the NBA’s greatest players”, said Silver of Bryant. Many fans may have wanted to “Be like Mike”, but Kobe Bryant made today’s stars dream about setting their own standards to reach and what it would be like to be better than Kobe or MJ.

Aldridge fed a cutting Manu Ginobili for a reverse layup, and Ginobili returned the favor on the following possession, lobbing the ball into Aldridge for a layup.

Still, the Lakers probably will find the Spurs in a foul mood. He also put up a 56.9 field goal percentage and shot 52.9 per cent from three-point country. Scott does not expect Clarkson to play Saturday in Houston…. Lakers G Kobe Bryant will play one more game in San Antonio, on February 6, before his retirement at the end of the season.

He will be facing another strong point-guard on Friday-Tony Parker. Selected 24th by Cleveland before being traded to Minnesota on draft night, Jones had one point and one assist in two games for the Timberwolves this season….

“I love Pop”, Bryant said. My take: I wouldn’t vote for him, but I won’t be mad if he gets in. “Every chance I get, I always sit next to him and bend his ear”. In a Toronto town that, in a very Kobe-like move that I’m sure he kind of dug, refused to acknowledge that he once dropped 81 points on in a recent tribute video.