Did Kobe Bryant purposefully tank Game 7 against the Suns to make a point? That’s what Charles Barkley said during Inside The NBA after the game. It’s not a hard argument to make, either. He only took three shots (two were three point attempts) and scored one point on a technical foul free throw. In the waning days of Shaquille O’Neal‘s final season with the Lakers, some of Kobe’s teammates alleged the very same thing. Usually the rap against Kobe is that he takes too many shots so is it really fair to criticize him for taking too few?

Certainly, his “supporting cast” was definitely not up to the challenge. Although Lamar Odom dominated Shawn Marion for most of the series, on Saturday Odom blew layups, fumbled away the ball and was essentially a non-factor in the game. Smush Parker continued his poor showing and Kwame Brown disappeared as most had expected. So it’s their fault, right? Not Kobe’s?

No, it’s entirely Kobe’s fault. Instead of drawing the double-team on post-ups and passing his teammates, he just passed to his teammates, evidently expecting them to make something happen on their own. He could have attacked the basket and created opportunities for his teammates, but he chose to remain passive for the entire second half. His passivity continued into the after-game press conference as he subtely hinted that he had done his best by playing “team basketball” and that his teammates were simply not up to snuff. Essentially, he acted like a 6-year-old who says, “Oh if that’s the way you want it, that’s exactly what I will do.” He obeys the parent’s decree to the letter but not to the spirit.

This is the same argument that Michael Jordan used to give back in the day before he was universally acknowledged as the greatest of all time. When asked why he didn’t make his teammates better like Magic Johnson, Michael said that Magic played with James Worthy, Kareem and Byron Scott. All Michael had was Horace Grant, John Paxson and Scottie Pippen. I’m waiting for the day when Kobe says, “But Michael had greats like Horace Grant and Scottie Pippen on his team.”

Kobe and the Lakers got the two best players that the Miami Heat had when they traded away Shaq. That’s a fact. The Lakers traded away Caron Butler (who, BTW, had 20 rebounds in Washington’s loss to the Cavaliers on Friday) because Kobe couldn’t find a way to play with him. Now I wouldn’t be surprised to see Odom traded away if Kobe demands it this summer. Michael and Magic were great because they really did make their teammates better players. They did so by learning what was already great about them and using it. Kobe hasn’t learned to do that yet and, at this point, I’d be willing to bet that he never will.

Here’s a selection of what other bloggers are saying:

• Kobe Quitter
• Up Yours, Kobe

 

And here’s a few relevant news stories:

• FoxSports
• Los Angeles Times
• NBA.com
• Box score.

Update: Out of curiousity and because I still had the game on my Tivo, I watched the second half of Game 7 again tonight, this time focusing only on Kobe. During the third quarter he never touched the ball inside the three point line. He was involved in some pick-and-roll plays out there, but he either hoisted a three pointer (twice – see above), or he passed it back to the screener. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, he posted up about four times, but only one of those resulted in him taking it to the hoop, when it appeared he intentionally threw it off the backboard and fouled Raja Bell trying to get to the rebound. Four minutes into the fourth quarter, Kobe again became passive and spent the rest of the game outside of the three point stripe.

Another factor which I didn’t really notice the first time I watched was Raja Bell. Bell totally worked over Kobe in the second half – torching him for at least twelve points and playing excellent defense on him. Perhaps Bell got into his head, partially explaining the inexplicable.

Update II: Skip Bayless says Kobe is a “spoiled brat” and TJ Simers theorizes that something was said at halftime that pissed Kobe off. I concur with both.