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Same game Bryant says he's no MJ, but comparisons abound
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The San Antonio Spurs are 0-17 in playoff series when they lose the first game. To end that ominous trend, they will have to overcome the Los Angeles Lakers at their best, a team that has Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal playing together as never before. "We have a special team," O'Neal said. "We have a 1-2 punch." Yeah, as good as Ali or Frazier in his prime. Another Lakers victory in the Alamodome in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals Monday night would be close to a knockout blow as the best-of-seven series shifts to Los Angeles. "How can you be a championship team if you don't respond?" said San Antonio's David Robinson, who was a little mystified why he was on the bench so much in Game 1. "This is where you earn your stripes. ... I've definitely got to be on the floor more." Bryant scored 45 and O'Neal 28 in Game 1, a 104-90 win for the Lakers' 16th consecutive victory, eighth in the playoffs. Bryant's performance brought the inevitable comparison to Michael Jordan, a comparison that makes the 22-year-old Laker star uncomfortable. "I'm not Michael Jordan. They'll never be another Michael Jordan," Bryant insisted Sunday. "He's the greatest player of all time. Nobody can fill his shoes -- period." Yet those who ought to know say Bryant's masterful game was indeed Jordanesque. "It was very similar," San Antonio reserve guard and former Jordan teammate Steve Kerr said. "That's what Michael always used to do. A team starts to come back and make a run, especially in their home building, the fans get behind them, then all of a sudden 'bam,' he just sucks the life out of the place. That's what Kobe was doing last night." Lakers coach Phil Jackson found similarities, too. "He was able to finish at the basket very strong against some big players," Jackson said. "That's what everybody wants to say was reminiscent of Michael. But it was also his floor play, the control and poise that he showed when he was out there." The Spurs watched video of their loss and were stunned by their lack of aggressiveness and the way Bryant was able to get to the rim over and over again. "We allowed him to get in the lane and create some havoc," Sean Elliott said. "That's the whole key to him. We didn't want him to get layups and dunks, and he had like 10. You cannot give a scorer easy baskets. That's suicide." The Spurs all agreed it was their worst effort in months, and they were at a loss to explain how it could happen in a game of such magnitude. "We worked hard to get the home-court advantage and to come out and lay an egg like that was very disappointing for all of us," coach Gregg Popovich said. "We know full well how important the game is on Monday. You have to play very, very well at this point in the playoffs if you want to get a win, no matter who you're playing, and we happen to be playing the hottest team in the league." Tim Duncan had 28 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots, but also had seven turnovers. "It was due to a lot of stuff that I did, not reading the defense the right way, not playing the defense the right way," Duncan said. "We've watched a lot of film, and hopefully can capitalize on that in this game." Help is on the way, but not until next Friday's Game 3 at the earliest. Derek Anderson, whose athleticism and quickness are sorely missed against Bryant, practiced Sunday for the first time since he went down with a separated shoulder in Game 1 of the second-round series against Dallas. Anderson will practice again Tuesday, then decide whether he can return for Game 3 in Los Angeles. "We went hard and we were guarding each other and doing the picks," Anderson said. "I got hit and it didn't bother me, so that was the biggest key. I've still got to go slow and see what happens, but it felt good today." Meanwhile, the Spurs face the dilemma that the Lakers present to everyone. The defense has to concentrate on O'Neal inside, and that leaves room for Bryant to operate on the outside, as well as the other Lakers to launch their long-range shots. The Kobe-Shaq feud seemed history when O'Neal called Bryant "the best player in the NBA by far" after Game 1. "We've grown so much since we've been here," Bryant said. "We're playing so well together right now, and there's so much room for improvement." Bryant has scored 93 points in his last two games, but Jackson reminds everyone that O'Neal is still the center of everything the Lakers do. "It may not always be his scoring, but it's going to be his presence and his ability to hold Duncan and Robinson at bay and not let them overwhelm us inside," Jackson said. "Yesterday he did that with some great dunks and some great power plays that really gave us the feeling that he was dominating on the floor. "His presence was the dominating factor, and I think it allowed Kobe the ability to manipulate and maneuver like he did."
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