Nothin’ But a Hound Dog

Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has given himself a new nickname.  Already known as The Black Mamba, Bryant referred to himself as The Doberman after he hounded fellow NBA player Sarunas Jasikevicius in Team USA’s exhibition win over Lithuania.  Bryant is being looked at on this team as a defensive stopper.  The lifetime Laker has become a regular on the NBA All-Defensive Team, but his defense in often overlooked because his offensive game is so amazing.  In Beijing though, Bryant will have a team full of incredible offensive players at his side, but nobody who can bring the defensive ability that he can.

Kobe is a premier perimeter defender.  He’s got great athleticism, lateral movement, instincts and understanding of the game.  Don’t get me wrong, he’ll get his fair share of points, but he won’t be asked to be the team’s primary offensive weapon game in and game out.  In the game against Lithuania, Bryant absolutely shut down Jasikevicius, who is heralded as a basketball god in his native land but hasn’t amounted to much in the association.  This blogger even read a description of the matchup between the two that said Jasikevicius looked as if he’d never played a game of basketball.  Sounds like The Doberman is taking to his role.

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Posted in General on August 6, 2008

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