November 9
New Orleans Times-Picayune
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Hornets Coach Byron Scott and guard Devin Brown are frequent golfing companions, sparking the obvious question to both Sunday night. Was Brown beating Scott on the links? Why else would Scott choose this, of all nights, to toss Brown into a potential inferno, making him the starting two guard against the Los Angeles Lakers and their other-worldly shooting guard Kobe Bryant. The query elicited laughs from both. But by game's end, Brown and the rest of the unsmiling Hornets had been torched by Bryant's 28 points -- 26 in the first half -- as the Lakers ran away to a 104-88 victory at the Staples Center, where the Hornets will play the Los Angeles Clippers tonight. Scott made the move to ..."
November 7
Memphis Commercial Appeal
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Lakers guard Kobe Bryant dunks against the Memphis Grizzlies during the second half Friday. Bryant scored 41 points while becoming the youngest player to reach 24,000. Promises to play something that resembles defense. Now, the guy who writes the checks is about to have his say. Michael Heisley, the Grizzlies' Chicago-based owner, flew to town Friday in time to watch his team lose 114-98 to the Los Angeles Lakers in Staples Center. But Heisley isn't in Los Angeles for a leisurely weekend getaway. He joined the team for the expressed purpose of addressing some of the team's problems. Heisley will have several meetings, including a sit-down with Iverson, today with the goal of trying to get ..."
July 7
L.A. Daily News
columnist Ramona Shelburne
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He has passed 30, won his championship without Shaquille O'Neal, and solidified his place among the all-time greats. But by the end of this month, Kobe Bryant has an opportunity to do something even he thought was next to impossible: Retire as a Laker. Two years ago, he said he'd rather play on Pluto than continue to wear the purple and gold. Three seasons before that, he opted out of his contract to become a free agent and nearly signed with the Clippers. And in his younger years, the Lakers themselves entertained the idea of trading their sometimes petulant young star. But like all good marriages, the relationship has grown deeper with age. Bryant said Monday that it would be a ..."
June 15
L.A. Daily News
columnist Ramona Shelburne
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It was a long embrace. A decade in the making. First close, then with arms outstretched and smiles wide, both men taking a moment to savor the journey they had taken together and the legacy they completed moments earlier. There were other hugs as the Lakers won their 15th NBA championship with a 99-86 victory over the Orlando Magic on a wild Sunday night in sticky Central Florida. There were other smiles, other men who had reached a peak life experience, but none were as sweet as the long embrace shared by Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant as they carved their place in the history books together. Jackson now stands tallest among NBA coaches, a 10th championship ring placing him one ahead of ..."
June 11
Miami Herald
columnist Israel Guitierrez
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There are times -- it often happens when tiny Tim Kurkjian is talking on TV -- when it is incredibly easy to despise baseball for its convoluted statistics and overly specialized roles for its players. Nothing against Kurkjian, who by all accounts is a saint and appears to do more research on a daily basis than most Supreme Court justices have in their careers. But the sport just appears to be unnecessarily specific unlike any other game. Then there are the rare times when other major sports could use some of baseball's strict organization. That may never be more true than when Kobe Bryant is playing and the entire world mindlessly calls him ''the best closer in the game,'' and expects us ..."