PRACTICE REPORT: 2/22/07 El Segundo, CA Lakers.com hung around after practice to see what Kobe Bryant had to say about the recent 6 game losing streak, the trade deadline, and what the rest of the season holds for the Purple & Gold. Lakers Guard Kobe Bryant How disappointed are you that Jason Kidd wasn’t acquired in a trade? “I think everybody was looking forward to Jason coming out here, obviously that would have been an amazing backcourt. But it didn’t happen so we just move on from there.” Is that a bit of a letdown? “Not really. That’s business. That’s just the business of the NBA. You do things to try to benefit your team, make your team better, sometimes you don’t.” With that not happening it makes you have to dig out of that hole even more now? “It is what it is. We gotta get our guys healthy, come back and be ready to play. We’ll be fine.” How is the team reacting to the 6 game losing streak? “Guys are obviously upset and disappointed about the way we’ve been playing. Which is a good thing. That’s something that you want to see. These guys care and are ready to fight for the way we should be playing.” Has the team forgotten how to play defense? “You just have to harden up a little bit. There’s a point in time in the season where teams get better, they improve. That’s what our competition has shown, that they’ve been able to get better and we haven’t been able to reach that level of play as of yet, but I’m sure we will.” How much do you think it will help the team to just get a win at this point? “We gotta work on our execution and improve in that department. Confidence wise we have to believe that we can finish these ball games. I don’t wanna see guys hanging their heads, thinking that we’re out of a situation. I hope to get one win under our belt and we’ll go from there.” On the 6 game losing streak: “It’s tough. It happens for a reason. We just gotta battle back out of it and become a better team. I don’t think anyone has wavered from the fact, at least I haven’t, that we can make some serious noise in the playoffs with the roster that we have. I don’t waver from that. This is a bump in the road that we’re gonna have to get through and when we get through it we’ll be a better ball club. ” You said everything happens for a reason, what is the reason? “It makes you tougher, it builds character. Either you’re gonna fold the tent and go home because of six damn loses in a row or you’re gonna man up and respond to the challenge and become a better ball club. I like to think we’ll do the latter.” Do you really want to take your frustration out on Boston? “It doesn’t matter who we’re playing against. We could be playing against a team like the Mavericks tomorrow. We gotta get a win, it doesn’t matter who we play. I believe that we can win, beat anybody. We just gotta go out tomorrow night and get on the right track.” Do you need a more balanced attack to win? “We need defense. It’s not offense. We score enough points, we need defense. We’re letting guys get too many easy opportunities, getting lay-ups, we can’t let that happen. Defensively is where we need to handle our business. That’s something that we talked about today, we came out here and worked on some things defensively. Tomorrow we should be ready to go.” Is that a heart and desire and effort kind of thing? “It’s execution. It’s execution like offense. It’s just execution. Understand how we’re gonna rotate, how we’re gonna trap guys, who we’re gonna trap, and how to rotate accordingly.” On the Andrew Bynum trade rumors: “Andrew is a phenomenal talent. I think anybody would be hard pressed to give him up. It’s a good thing that everybody wants him. That’s a player that we believe can be a star in this league.” Is it just about being patient on the court? “Naw, we’ll be alright. We’ve played like crap the last 6 games. So now it’s about getting better as a team and getting through this. Once you get through something like this, from my experience, once you pull through something like this as a unit you become a much more cohesive unit. ” http://www.nba.com/lakers/news/070222_practice.html He's too damn optimist, lol. But I'd like to see him tighten up his D as well.
<div class="quote_poster">Brian Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Kobe's always too mellow in his interviews. It's getting..........boring</div> He's very protective of his image, which makes him boring, but you can blame the media for it. After the way he's been treated by the media the last few years I wouldn't give them anything to write about either. If Kobe makes a controversial statement, it's always going to be shown in a negative light.
<div class="quote_poster">bronbron23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">He did say crap...</div> Omg, what a dirty mouth rapist. I hope Kobe gets injured, and the Lakers don't even make the playoffs. I'm so disappointed the NBA showcases this man, he is a terrible character.
