How the West was won: Lakers outshine Suns to meet their Fate in NBA Finals
Jan 3rd, 2010 by Aaron Hotchner
Many critical interpretations of Moby-Dick view the vessel Pequod not as a simple whaling ship but a representation of human society itself. In this society, a group of individuals united in common purpose i.e., killing the White Whale are led by one singularly committed man, the famous Captain Ahab.
Apply this paradigm to the Los Angeles Lakers. Their little society led by singularly committed team captain Kobe Bryant, LA™s quest is clear: defeat Phoenix™s Suns in the Western Conference finals, return to the NBA Finals, & slay their White Whale Boston™s Celtics. Or, shall it be added, die in the doing of it.
Game 1 in LA (officially a Mediterranean climate, not a tropical one) saw the Lakers harpoon Phoenix 128-107, behind 40 points from Kobe. Notched on 56% from the field (50% from behind the arc) & 91% from the line, Bryant also found time (in only 35 minutes of playing time) to corral five rebounds & hand out five assists. The Suns boasted a balanced attack, finishing six players (Barbosa, Dragic, Lopez, Nash, Richardson, & Stoudemire) in double figures, but Bryant™s performance keyed a Laker™s effort that included 21 points from Pau Gasol & 19 points/19 rebounds from Lamar Odom.
In game two™s 124-112 win, Kobe proved as able a passer as scorer, racking up more postseason assists (13) than any Laker since Magic Johnson circa 96. Receiving many of those passes, Pau Gasol poured in 29 points on 57% shooting & snatched nine boards. Again, scoring duties was shared between many Lakers, with Bryant™s 21, Artest™s 18, & Odom™s 17 points all contributing to overwhelm Phoenix™s defense. Behind 15 assists from the steadily mellifluous Steve Nash & 27 points from Jason Richardson, the Suns stood tall, but ultimately fell short.
Two in Phoenix found the Suns roaring back to life, especially with Amar™e Stoudemire™s dominant 42 point, 11 rebound display leading Phoenix to a 118-109 game three win. Bryant fell one short (36 points, 9 rebounds, & 11 assists) of a triple-double that night, & came nearly as close game four – 38 points, 7 rebounds, & 10 assists. Despite Bryant™s efforts in that contest, Phoenix topped LA 115-106 especially on the boards, (51-36) & bench scoring, where they had a 20+ point edge.
The weather started getting rough/The tiny ship was tossed/If not for the courage of the fearless crew . . .
Back home & series evened 2/2, the Laker captain continued his near triple-double tradition. Leavening a 30 point, 11 rebound & 9 assist stat line with four blocks, Bryant was nearly bested by Steve Nash, whose 29 points & 11 assists kept the Suns in it to the wire. With the score tied in the game™s waning moments, Bryant renowned for clutch play making hoisted a 3-pointer that missed, but luckily fell right into the hands of Ron Artest. Redeeming an up & down night, Artest laid the ball in, delivering a 103-101 win.
After that squeaker, game six found stormy waters ahead. In Phoenix, rabid fans were anxious to see their Suns live to fight again, & LA could see the Finals in sight. Despite strong scoring shows by Nash (21) & Stoudemire, (27) the Suns fell to a Lakers attack spearheaded by 25 from Artest & Bryant™s 37, nine of which were scored in the game™s last two minutes. When all was said & done, Los Angeles stood alone, winning all the Western Conference™s marbles with a 111-103 victory
Whither aided by the Fates themselves or driven by his own insane desires to revenge himself upon a Celtic™s squad that wronged him, Kobe is now in a position worked towards for an entire season. For his sake, I hope he™s perused Moby Dick in the end Ahab, destroyed by his singled-mindedness & rage, took almost every Pequod crew-member down with him.