2. Tonight is going to go a long way in Bryant trusting his teammates.
If there is one that Smush Parker, Chris Mihm, and Kwame Brown can tell you, it is that earning Bryant’s trust is no easy task. As much as Bryant did tonight, the Lakers wouldn’t have gotten the win if not for the rest of the Lakers stepping up and rewarding Bryant for his trust. Kobe passed the ball early and often, looking for open teammates and they didn’t let him down.
Carlos Boozer turned the clock back and scored 18 points while grabbing 9 rebounds. Nick Young continued to earn Bryant’s trust, carrying the scoring load for a while and finishing with 20 points. Jeremy Lin may not have had his best shooting game, but made clutch free throws in overtime to ice the game.
If Bryant sees that he can comfortably pass the ball and have faith that the rest of the team won’t mess it up, he will be more willing to establish them earlier and save his legs for later in the game. With the other players threatening to score, things will open up for Bryant to dominate and he won’t have to put up 27 shots a game.