Kelvin Kuo/US Presswire
Our regular run-down of Kobe sightings in the digital sphere:
• BusinessInsider.com's Bethlehem Shoals goes over what he thought Kobe got wrong in his free-agency "rant" last week, when Bryant said the current system in the NBA gave the advantage to the current teams of NBA players:
"Yet players are much freer than they were pre-1999, albeit not nearly as rich," Shoals writes. "This might be what's coloring Kobe's false nostalgia. After all, as a friend point out, no one got screwed worse by the 1999 lock-out than Kobe Bean Bryant. He was one of only five players to vote against the CBA that year, in large part because he was set to hit the free agent market that summer. When it passed, he was stuck with a starting salary, instead of whatever Jerry West -- who know full well what he had -- was willing to throw his way."
• ESPN.com's Henry Abbott notes that there a number of a players he'd rather take than Kobe to take a shot in crunch time as he describes the situation in Miami with Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.
• The Orange County Register's Jeff Miller argues that Kobe's recent comments about the free-agency situation were just another example of Bryant being Bryant -- nothing other than that:
"Bryant, of course, understands how to alienate the home folks," Miller writes. "He did the same thing here in 2007, questioning the aptitude of well-chronicled incompetent Mitch Kupchak and the commitment of noted do-nothing Jerry Buss."
• HoopsHype catches up with Bryant at a recent practice, getting answers on issues like Andrew Bynum's return to the Lakers, the team's struggle with big games so far this season and a few other interesting topics.
-- Pedro Moura
Noah Graham/NBAE/Getty Images
These were two of the easiest points Kobe scored against Toronto five years ago.
DENVER -- Saturday will mark the five-year anniversary of the night Lakers guard Kobe Bryant scored 81 points in Los Angeles against the Toronto Raptors, the second-highest single game point total in NBA history.
"I just remember we were down 16 points to a bad Raptors team and we had just lost I think to Houston the game before and it was just kind of doom and gloom. We needed to win and I just got hot," Bryant said Friday after shootaround in preparation for the Lakers' game against the Denver Nuggets.
The Lakers ending up winning the game 122-104 against a Toronto team that had a record of just 14-26. Los Angeles actually trailed the Raptors by 18 points early on in the third quarter before Bryant really went off, scoring 51 of his 55 second-half points from that point on. Bryant scored 14 points in the first quarter, 12 in the second, 27 in the third and 28 in the fourth.
Read the rest of the story at this link.
Cary Edmondson/US Presswire
Dunks are certainly high percentage, but Kobe Bryant has been making shots from all over the court lately with a high efficiency.
Dissecting Kobe Bryant's game is basically a full-time job for fans and media alike, and while he's frequently described as efficient -- darn near ruthless, actually -- in the economy of his footwork, the speed at which he can dial up his offensive game or reach sweet spots around the court, Bryant isn't necessarily viewed as an ultra-efficient scorer.
Those finding fault more generally with his game call him a volume shooter, latching on to games like Dec. 28 in San Antonio as an example of how, when push comes to shove, he'll always scuttle the offense. No question, from time to time it happens, but overall Kobe measures games very well. As a team the Lakers have assorted issues this season, but fundamentally don't have a Kobe Problem. Not even close.
Particularly right now.
Over his 12 most recent games, Kobe's shooting percentage is a robust 49.3, and the economy in his game has been outstanding: 25.1 points a night on only 18.41 shots a game, all while averaging nearly five assists (4.83). Only twice has he shot worse than 45.5 percent from the floor.
Kelvin Kuo/US Presswire
Our regular run-down of Kobe sightings in the digital sphere:
• The Los Angeles Times' Mike Bresnahan reports on some takeaways in Bryant's game from Monday's win over the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder, noting a variety of key plays he completed down the stretch:
"Bryant was a study in psychology throughout the game, yelling at Lamar Odom for not running a play the right way, then getting on Ron Artest for not taking an open shot," Bresnahan writes.
"He also provided encouragement, offering a chest bump after Gasol hit an open jumper with 3:49 left to put the Lakers up, 98-88."
• The Orange County Register's Kevin Ding humorously writes about Kobe's new movie, "The Black Mamba." Directed by Robert Rodriguez, the film is expected to be released in February over All-Star weekend. A trailer was released Tuesday showing Bryant facing his "biggest challenge yet."
• The Times' Mark Medina presents an interview from Lamar Odom with Playboy, featuring an interesting comment from the forward when he was asked who was better, Kobe or LeBron:
"It's hard to say who's the best. Last year you would have given it to Kobe, and three years ago of course he won the MVP . . . even though my dude LeBron is having another extraordinary year, Kobe is skilled. He's at the point in his career where he doesn't have to average the most points. People think whoever averages the most points is the better player. They're both playing at high levels and they're both incredible players, but I always have to go with the home team."
--Pedro Moura
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
Big wins or average wins, Kobe Bryant says consistency is key.
After the Lakers' loss to their Staples Center neighbors, Kobe Bryant said Clippers fans can start getting excited when their team gets up for teams that aren't so elite. Watch him on the Land O'Lakers blog 
