Banged up Bryant set to shine
May 17, 2010 13:44:24 UK
Kobe Bryant may be 'banged up', but the LA Lakers talisman is fully focused on beating the Phoenix Suns in Game One of the Western Conference finals.
Bryant has barely touched a basketball this week, giving his troublesome ankle and arthritic finger time to heal.
That purplish, jagged gouge over Steve Nash's right eye also should be one week less ghastly by tipoff time in the tonight.
Although both stars play a beautiful game, Bryant and Nash realize postseason basketball is rarely pretty, and they wouldn't expect to escape the postseason without a few ugly souvenirs of the playoff grind.
After both teams got a week off to rest and recalibrate, the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers will attempt to reach their third straight NBA finals when they take on the Phoenix Suns, starting in Game One on Monday night.
On the Money Line for the opening game, the Lakers can be backed at 1.31, with the Suns available at 3.60.
"It's all part of the game, every part of it," Bryant said. "I love a long layoff. Everybody on our team is pretty much banged up, so it's good to get rest and get ready for what's in front of you."
Bryant has been cagey about his interest in revenge on the Suns for ending the Lakers' season in the 2006 and 2007 playoffs, alternately embracing and downplaying it.
Although the Lakers and Phoenix both swept their second-round opponents and won six straight playoff games overall, neither expects to ride last week's wave into Staples Center. "With this break, we're back to Square One now," Lakers point guard Derek Fisher said. "To empty that jar out and then fill it back up is not easy, but we have to be prepared to do that."
Phoenix forward Amare Stoudemire realizes Los Angeles is favoured because of length and strength: the superior size of the Lakers' frontcourt with 7-footers Gasol and Andrew Bynum, along with Bryant's ferocious competitive edge.
Yet the Suns routed San Antonio in four straight second-round games, negating Tim Duncan's size advantage and suggesting they're a title contender after missing the playoffs last spring.
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