Show time

Kobe emerges from Shaq's shadow in Game 3

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Lakers guard Kobe Bryant put his own brand of show time into Showtime Sunday night against the Nets in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

After one timeout, with the Continental Airlines Arena crowd chanting, "Let’s Go, Nets," he bopped his head in rhythm as he took the floor. Later, after making a big shot, the 23-year-old prodigy pointed at his biceps to his teammates on the bench.

After two relatively quiet games, Bryant finally emerged from Shaq’s shadow in Game 3, hitting big shots and playing his usual stellar all-around game.

He scored 12 of his game-high 36 points in the fourth quarter, including a critical 10-foot runner in the lane late in the contest. It was just enough support for the Lakers, who took a 106-103 victory and a 3-0 series lead.

"Great players make great plays," Nets coach Byron Scott said. "Kobe hit some big shots."

On a night when Bryant hit a variety of twisting jumpers and tough fadeaways, he saved two of his best for last. First, he used a behind-the-back dribble to shake Nets forward Kenyon Martin for a 22-foot jumper that put L.A. ahead 100-96. Then he spun through a double-team by Jason Kidd and Kerry Kittles, somehow managing to hang on to the ball despite Kittles’ swipe, before sinking the 10-footer in the lane to give the Lakers a 104-100 lead with 19.1 seconds left. "It was a big play," said Bryant, who donned a Wayne Gretzky Oilers jersey at his news conference -- appropriate for the man who had just put the Nets’ title hopes on ice. "I didn’t want to lose possession of the basketball. I didn’t want to let my team down."

For the Nets it had to feel like Mike Tyson against Lennox Lewis. They avoid getting blasted by one of Shaq’s meaty fists only to get flattened by Bryant’s right cross.

"I thought Kerry came up with the steal," said a disappointed Kidd, who guarded Bryant much of the game. "So when I saw Kobe had the ball, I tried to stick my hand in there, and he turned to his right.

"I just tried to make it as tough as possible. Big players make big plays. Kobe made a big play. I’ve seen it time and time again."

For Bryant, the Game 3 heroics had to be particularly sweet. Through the first two games, he had contented himself with being largely a set-up man for Shaq. While he might have scored his usual points, he didn’t really get a chance to put on a show.

But if Shaq has been L.A.’s nuclear bomb against the Nets, Bryant has been the stealth bomber. He’s the one who has patiently set up the Lakers’ offense, creating shots for teammates and prowling the perimeter to space the floor for Shaq. He’s also the one who has blanketed Kidd for stretches when needed, hit the boards for key rebounds and found teammates with long passes downcourt to ignite the fast break. During one timeout Sunday night, he even pulled young forward Slava Medvedenko aside for some defensive advice.

"I’ve been very impressed with his ability the last two years to adjust and adapt," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said before Game 3. "He’s engineering our offense from the lead guard role."

Like all great talents, though, Bryant sometimes feels the need to spread his wings. He showed that Sunday night, eschewing Shaq now and then to attempt a few twisting, turning jumpers -- some right in the face of his defender.

Though his performance wasn’t perfect -- he clanked two big free throws in the final minute -- he hit 14-of-23 shots while adding six rebounds and four assists.

"Shaq is Goliath. I was just playing off him," Bryant said. "They collapse on him and make it hard for him to breathe down there. Then that’s when I take over."

Though occasionally frustrated with often being his team’s second banana, Bryant seems finally to have found a niche he can enjoy: the closer.

He might not be able to lead his team in scoring these days, but he wants to be the guy to take the big shot.

"Kobe enjoys that situation," Kidd says. "Stepping up and making the big basket or being involved in a key play."

And the scary thing, as Scott pointed out after Game 3, is that he’s still just 23 years old. "He’s got a lot more years left, and he’s going to get better," Scott says.

It might not satisfy him completely, but Bryant will have to take it for now.

Marty Burns covers pro basketball for CNNSI.com. Click here to send Marty a question or comment.

 

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