Empty the Bench

It was true before this week, and it will probably be true until the day he hangs it up for good. Nevertheless, Kobe has given everybody a not-so-subtle reminder that he is still the NBA’s premier scoring threat and that, perhaps, he should be mentioned in the same breath as Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash as this year’s MVP of the league.

Think about it: how many times have we seen Kobe purposely defer to his teammates this season, passing up a number of shot attempts in the name of getting others involved early and in the flow of the game? Not that scoring is the only stat that goes into voting consideration—far from it—but how many more 50+ point games would Kobe have had if he played a bit more selfishly earlier this year? For that matter, how many more wins would the Lakers have? We’re not saying that deferring was a bad thing for Kobe or the Lakers, but it’s no coincidence that the Lakers were riding a seven-game losing streak before Bryant took matters into his own hands and embarked on this historical scoring spree that has produced four straight victories.

And it’s a streak that’s still intact, of course. If you somehow haven’t heard, Bryant has become just the second player in NBA history to score at least 50 points four games straight, putting up 65, 50, 60, and 50 against Portland, Minnesota, Memphis, and New Orleans, respectively. And get this: the Lakers will now enjoy a five-game homestand that includes only one team, the Houston Rockets, with much interest in playing defense. There’s a very good chance we’ll still be talking about Kobe and his amazing 50+ run next weekend.

Of course, Bryant’s fantasy owners couldn’t be happier with this avalanche of stats because it’s not just points he’s delivering; over the last week, Kobe is averaging 53.3 points, 52% FG, 93% FT, 3 three-pointers, 6 boards, 2.7 assists, 1 steal, and just 2 turnovers. Sick. With most formats heading to the playoffs on Monday, Bryant’s overall offensive explosion could have a huge effect on seeding… as well as on the first round of the fantasy playoffs given the Lakers’ schedule next week (Golden State, Memphis, Houston, Sacramento).

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