When Kobe Bryant was limited in training camp because of offseason knee surgery, the Los Angeles Lakers didn't know how long it would take for their star to find his usual form. Apparently, five games was enough. Bryant had 30 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds to help the Lakers win their fifth straight game to open the season, 112-100 over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night. "I thought he might start off struggling to find some rhythm and he would build some rhythm as things went," teammate Derek Fisher said. "To see him play this well this early, he's on my team, so that's good for me. But that's not good for everyone else when he's playing this good this early." Pau Gasol added 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Lamar Odom scored 18 for the Lakers, who have won seven straight against their Northern California rivals. Read more: http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=301103023
Kobe was a stud last night. I love the way he's playing right now, doing his scoring early and getting us off to good starts every night. He's also shooting the trey at a really good clip, especially the last 2 games (6/11 over them). It's also great to see him, Odom, Pau, and the bench all clicking on all cylinders at the same time. If we play this way consistently, we're going to be a really, really tough team to beat.