Kobe Bryant provided pre- and post-game analysis for the Chinese channel Sina, and in it gave his take on how he believes the series will play out.
Quotes courtesy of Pro Basketball Talk:
"“Golden State should win. But they can’t play tentatively. They can’t play scared. You’ve got play. You’ve got to step up and meet the challenge. And right now, Cleveland and LeBron, it seems like they want it a lot more. It seems like the game, this championship means a lot more to them. If you’re Golden State, you have to look in the mirror and ask yourself if you want to step up to this challenge.”"
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Again, much of his takes drip with Mamba mentality. He believes in the grit it takes to win a championship and who can blame him, given his success at that level.
Steph Curry and his Warriors are fighting an uphill battle, however, down two games to one with the fourth game tonight in Cleveland, Bryant believes the Warriors should win the title. If Golden State loses Game 4, it’s hard to imagine they can come back to win three games in a row.
Though, if they take Bryant’s advice and play unafraid of the moment, a win tonight is by no means out of the question. Should that take place, and they win tonight, they’d head back to Oakland to play a three-game series in which two such games are on their home court.
One thing’s for sure, this will probably go down as one of the most entertaining series in recent memory, so much so, that Kobe couldn’t help but get involved somehow. Hey, TNT, please start working on a contract right now so when Kobe finally retires, he can go ahead and take either Shaq or Charles Barkley’s seats on set.