NBA: From Showtime to No-time

Brace yourself Laker fans, it’s going to be a trying season.

Defending Champions are supposed to play like just that- champions- aren’t they? This bunch would have a hard time making it through the CBA playoffs, much less the meat-grinder that is the NBA playoffs.

After displaying total resiliency during last season’s Western Conference Finals against Portland, many thought they had finally matured to the point where they could not be stopped. Shaquille O’Neal had become the most unstoppable force since Mount Vesuvius. Kobe Bryant had for the moment started playing unselfishly, and showing flashes of the brilliance the youngster possesses.

They had a prominent three-point threat in Glen Rice, who at least had to be respected even if he was not his old self. They had a veteran on the floor that had been there and done that in A.C. Green, even if he was not the same player who had donned the purple and gold in his youth. And finally they had one more crafty veteran in Ron Harper, who had played in the system before and knew how it was supposed to work.

So what’s different with this team? Apparently everything. Shaq is now the number two option, bowing (albeit unhappily) to the new NBA scoring leader, and also being hindered by a strained Achilles tendon. What were supposed to be upgrades on defense have not materialized in Horace Grant replacing Green and Rick Fox replacing Rice. Isaiah Rider has been anything but the third scorer that they hoped they were getting when they took the titanic-sized gamble in signing him. Role players not playing roles, starters not knowing what their roles need to be, that’s the problem. What’s the solution? A return to normalcy will do nicely.

Kobe needs to understand that while he may have the most overall talent in the league, this team is most successful when Shaq is the number one option. The inside-outside game that propelled them to a championship has been absent for most, if not all, of the year. When the ball goes inside first, teams are forced to double- and triple-team O’Neal. That naturally opens up the rest of the floor. And the Lakers do have the talent to take advantage of that. What they can’t do, is let Kobe take wild shots and try to gather long rebounds.

Long rebounds come from jump shots and lead to fast breaks- which in turn lead to more points. The Lakers are now among the worst defensive teams in the league. Head Coach Phil Jackson says it’s a matter of desire. I say it’s a matter of maturity - on Kobe’s part.

The news isn’t all bad. Rick Fox fortunately is finding his stroke again; hitting 16 of 24 shots from behind the arc in a six game span. Shaq is still rebounding like nobody’s business, and Horace Grant is supplying exactly what they expected out of him, 8 points and 7 rebounds per game. Kobe is capable- if not yet ready- of being the eclectic superstar everyone knows he can be. This team needs to remember what their strengths are, and get back to playing to them, not away from them.

Sadly, Ron Harper stuck around one season too long. His contribution to the team is almost negligible. Isaiah Rider needs to put up or shut up. And Kobe needs to defer to O’Neal. Bryant’s an intelligent kid. He’ll get his points, I promise. But more importantly, he’ll get his rings.