The Masked Mamba

Posted by Dan Dragicevich.

After Kobe Bryant broke his nose in the all-star game, he seems to be once again on a mission to prove himself.

Once the all-star break ended and the regular season picked back up again, Kobe Bryant told the media that he had no enemies or rivalries in the league. Although he may not show his aggression toward other players, he sure uses it for determination.

In the three games after his injury in the all-star game, Bryant has posted tremendous numbers by scoring more than 30 points in all three games. He has posted scores of 31, 38, and 33 while shooting at a percentage of over .450 from the field. In the pre-game interview before Sunday night’s game against the Miami Heat, Bryant expressed how he had no animosity towards Dwayne Wade after the aggressive foul Wade had on Bryant in the all-star game. This is a perfect example of how Bryant is one of the more wise veterans playing the game.

For someone to say that they are not upset at someone for breaking their nose and giving them a mild concussion in an exhibition match is obviously lying. Bryant never said this, but how could he not be pissed off at Wade for that? Although what Wade did wasn’t a cheap shot; there is still no reason why someone should be playing that aggressive of defense in an all-star game. In my opinion, Bryant is playing this off perfectly because by saying he isn’t mad he can pretty much do what he wants. In last night’s game against the Heat, Bryant could have taken advantage of the situation and fouled Wade as hard as he wanted and it wouldn’t have been known as a “revenge” hit because he said he wasn’t mad. Although Bryant didn’t actually foul him hard in that game, he metaphorically did by posting up 20 points on Wade in the first quarter and then methodically winning the game for the Lakers by hitting timely shots. Bryant ended the game with 33 points and a Laker win and to him that is the most important thing.

As I said before, Kobe has been an unstoppable force these past three games and it seems like if he wants to score 30 in a given night then he will. Kobe is that kind of special player that can almost do what he pleases on the court. Of course he wants to make his team better and to win games, but if he wants to prove a point and post up 30 points in 3 straight games then that is exactly what he will do.