In the record books, Saturday’s 103-98 win for the LA Lakers over the Sacramento Kings will be remembered for Kobe Bryant overtaking the great Wilt Chamberlain in the all-time scoring list.
On the night however it was Bryant’s passing that was the difference in a crucial win that keeps the Lakers in the hunt for the eighth playoff spot.
Just two minutes into the game, point guard Steve Nash left the court with an injury, leaving Bryant to pick up the playmaking slack. Like Chamberlain, Bryant is multi-faceted enough to adapt himself to any situation.
Back in 1967/68, Chamberlain made his goal to league the lead in assists, and he did beating out Hall of Fame point guard Lenny Wilkens.
With retirement a question hanging over Bryant, he has come out and said that if he slowed down, he’d become a point guard and lead the league in assists.
Judging by Saturday’s performance, it would be hard to argue. Bryant played all but 23 seconds of the game despite suffering from ankle bone spurs as he amassed 19 points and 14 assists in yet another age-defying performance.
“My foot’s (messed) up, but other than that, I feel great,” Bryant said laughing after the game.
“I thought that was key – those 23 seconds. Otherwise he would’ve been tired,” coach Mike D’Antoni said, sarcastically.
“He just looked at me and said, ‘I’m not coming out tonight.’ Sounds good to me.”
The spotlight inevitably fell on Bryant’s dunk that pulled him level with Chamberlain and the fadeaway jump shot that took him into fourth place in the overall scoring list.
The feat overshadowed one of the Lakers’ best team performances of the season. Aside from injuries, the Lakers have been plagued by two huge doubts; whether they can play as a team and whether they can integrate Pau Gasol’s vast skills into their system.
If they can turn Saturday’s performance into the norm, then the Lakers will be hard to stop come playoff time.
Gasol was at his slick best, firing off 12 points and handing out 10 impressive assists, with Dwight Howard profiting the most. Howard dominated the paint for 24 points and 15 rebounds, beating out the impetuous and impossible DeMarcus Cousins.
A mercurial talent at best, Cousins was his usual self. The Sacramento Kings centre scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds but he was also given the obligatory technical foul, for thumping the scorers’ desk, and potentially lost the game for the Kings by spending the last 24 seconds – with the Kings down by three – trying to hit 3-pointers.
Cousins’ imprudence handed the Lakers the win and the visitors are rounding into form as the playoffs loom.
ALL-TIME NBA SCORERS – Points | Games | PPG
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 38,387 | 1,560 | 24.6
2. Karl Malone – 36,928 | 1,476 | 25.0
3. Michael Jordan – 32,292 | 1,072 | 30.1
4. Kobe Bryant – 31,434 | 1,233 | 25.5
5. Wilt Chamberlain – 31,419 | 1,045 | 30.1
6. Shaquille O’Neal – 28,596 | 1,207 | 23.7
7. Moses Malone – 27,409 | 1,329 | 20.6
8. Elvin Hayes – 27,313 | 1,303 | 21.0
9. Hakeem Olajuwon – 26,946 | 1,238 | 21.8
10. Oscar Robertson – 26,710 | 1,040 | 25.7
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