LeBron Flops, Heat Snap 5-Game Losing Streak
Did LeBron flop here in the final moments of the Lakers/Heat game last night? Or did he trip on Ron Artest’s ankles while getting in position to rebound? The referees called a push, and the Heat went on to ice the game at the foul line … but it looks to me like LeBron was doing his best soccer players impression.
After the Lakers’ second defeat to the Heat this season, Kobe decided to put on a bit of a show for reporters who were working on deadline … and come out and shoot for an hour. Was he pissed about a few bad decisions late? Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo nails Kobe’s calculated move:
He was beating himself up on the floor late Thursday, stealing the stage and sending a bleep-you to James and Wade: Enjoy your night out after a big March victory, because I’m staying back to turn out the lights in your gymnasium.
Bryant wanted the workout, wanted the chance to cleanse himself of missed shots and missed opportunities in the final minutes. Mostly, he wanted James and Wade to understand the lengths they’ll need to go to take his title away.
The loss dropped the Lakers 1.5 games back of Dallas for the No. 2 seed in the West. If the Lakers finish 3rd, they’re looking at Portland or Denver in the first round.
[H/T to flop video from Justin]
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March 11th, 2011 at 10:59 AM
Of course LeBron flopped like the bitch he is. Wade is the only guy on that team with a freakin sack. Wonder how long this goes on before Wade tires of the baggage that comes along with that douche. Not sure Wade is enjoying being part of a team that is universally reviled.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:00 AM
Kobe’s shot selection was ridiculous. I don’t think he stayed after to prove a point…he knew that loss was his fault with the bad shots he took so I guess he wanted to shoot the frustration away.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:01 AM
The Heat’s losing streak was almost as overexposed and overblown as Charlie Sheen.
/this week’s story: What’s Wrong With the Heat?
//two weeks from now: HERE COME THE HEAT!
///Yankees’d
March 11th, 2011 at 11:03 AM
Big win for Miami. Not a major loss for the Lake Show.
I am really conflicted on what Kobe did after the game. If he was honestly just putting the work in, that’s awesome. Love when guys are actual gym rats and doing the necessary work. However, I agree with Woj a bit and think it was fully calculated. It was an extension of Phil inside Kobe. He was doing it more for a “look at me” type deal than the actual improvement of his game.
His 3 point attempt off that inbounds play was awful. Artest not being able to finish after he scooped up the miss was just as bad. If Kobe should have been practicing anything after the game, it was passing the ball into the post to Pau Gasol because he didn’t get nearly enough touches in this game against a team with no inside presence.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:04 AM
Also, this is why Wade needs to be the closer on that team.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:04 AM
As a Laker fan, that game was sickening. First half was all abut the Heat’s 3′s and Bynum being a quiche-eater on the boards.
Kobe’s performance over the last 2:00 or so sucked donkey balls. Wade checked his ass up.
Love these armchair psychoanalysts that will know enlighten us to as to Kobe’s “deeper meaning” for the extra shooting. Dude was probably just royally pissed at his crappy shooting night and wanted the extra shots. As angry as I was watching it, I know he had to be 100 times worse having been in it.
/DAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMIT
March 11th, 2011 at 11:05 AM
That;s quite dramatic.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:06 AM
He definitely stayed after to prove a point. But he is like a mechanic though. And he made a bunch of good points in his post-… workout?… interview. He didn’t like some of the stuff he saw out there, has a travel day, and wanted to get it right before they got to Dallas.
But anyone who’s played basketball and lost to a team that they really want to beat knows what that’s like. The only thing is, we were like that when we were teenagers. Kobe is still like that in his 30s. Yeah, dude is insanely competitive. He may not be outrightly sending a message, but he’s definitely letting people know that he’s not taking losses easily.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:06 AM
“And that’s why I don’t recognize the word ‘no’”
March 11th, 2011 at 11:07 AM
Because he made a fucking layup? I guess LeBron having 4 points in the final 2 minutes is worse than Wades super clutch 2 (with a turnover).
March 11th, 2011 at 11:08 AM
Yeah, I think anyone who plays sports and fucks up in a big game tends to do stuff like that. I know if I can’t get my shooting right in a pickup game, I’ll stay extra till I’m absolutely wiped to I guess “cleanse” it out, so I get what Kobe was doing there.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:10 AM
The thing that scares me now is Kobe doesn’t appear to be able to get around anyone and get to the rim. He tried and Wade just flat denied him. For now I’ll chalk it up to tired legs towards the end of a road trip, but I’m still scurrrrred for the playoffs.
The refs were shit down the stretch as well.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:10 AM
I’ll give LBJ credit for his jumpshot, but Wade was the guy that was huge down the stretch. Lebron’s other two points were from Wade playing defense and running the break, and it was Wade who guarded Bryant down the stretch and made him make piss-poor decisions.
Also, I HATE when Artest touches the ball. He looks so uncoordinated and slow its frustrating. And he manages to miss way more than he makes.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:11 AM
Of course LeBron flopped like the bitch he is.
Does this now make him less boring??
March 11th, 2011 at 11:13 AM
Its strange that the Lakers are the team the Heat can beat, because on paper Gasol/Bynum should absolutely destroy them down low. But Wade does a great job not giving Kobe easy looks and LeBron doesnt even guard Ron Ron, he just floats defensively.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:13 AM
BTW.. anybody read Simmons’ running diary from last night. He knocks those goddamn things out of the park. I like his “Irrational Cinfidence guy” theory. And he’s crazy right about that.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:14 AM
I know right? Whenever anyone passes him the ball, I’m like, NO! Give it up, Give it up! Don’t shoot! Unless he makes it of course.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:15 AM
If the Lakers finish 3rd
Won’t happen.
And given that the Heat are unlikely to meet the Lakers in the Finals, don’t think Kobe’s show matters.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:15 AM
I hate to defend him, but it looked like he stepped on Artest’s foot – being off balance may explain why he went down “easy”.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:16 AM
I think he forgot that these guys are younger than he is, and he can’t beat quicker players off the dribble. Too much mano-a-mano showman type stuff, Kob usually doesn’t do that much – I think he let the pressure faze him a little (i.e – he knew there would be a LOT of people watching).
Wade embarrassed him on the offensive end though….that LBJ pick sent him flying. I feel sorry for the Mavericks.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:17 AM
It’ll either be Boston vs. San An or Boston vs. LA.
Either way, this Heat team is not beating the Celts 4 times.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:18 AM
Lakers need another guy to constantly knock down threes against the Heat. That and somehow figure out away to punctuate on their height advantage. The first part is ideal but difficult to fix now. The second one, I think I have to blame Phil for that. Bosh has dropped at leats 20 in both games versus the Lakers.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:18 AM
These ‘spanish’ versions of NBA uniforms are about the laziest fucking attempt at cross culture appeal I think I’ve ever seen in professional sports.
/Heat is Calor in Spanish.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:18 AM
I guess that could be. I couldn’t see through the red that had overtaken my vision when it happened. Either way, IT WASN’T A FUCKING FOUL YOU STUPID OFFICIALS! Jesus I hate NBA refs.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:19 AM
The Lakers can’t take advantage of Miami’s PG troubles and thus can’t capitalize when Miami goes with their Wade-LBJ-Miller lineup.
Also, Kobe really suffers when he’s forced to guard at the other end.
I think both of these teams would give them more trouble than Dallas or OKC.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:19 AM
I found it interesting how Adrian said Kobe has a better relationship with Wade, more personal, than with James. James and Bryant have completely opposite personalities.
I know from Team USA, Kobe is closest to Carmelo and Wade.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:20 AM
Roundup going for another 1,000 comments today…
March 11th, 2011 at 11:20 AM
WTF is Los Lakers. Los Angeles already has a fucking ‘Los’ in its name!
March 11th, 2011 at 11:21 AM
Two games vs. Dallas this month are going to be huge.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:21 AM
Pau still can’t sack up on defense. Luckily he can give it right back to Bosh on the other end. The 3′s in the first half were tough. If they don’t all drop, Heat would’ve been down at least 10 at the half.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:22 AM
Lol. The Angels The Lakers. SOunds so funny.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:22 AM
Only giving it a quick glance, it appears that Dallas’ schedule down the stretch is a little easier than the Lakers’.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:23 AM
Kobe’s much less effective when he’s guarding a player who actually scores. They should put him on Bibby/Chalmers or a shooter and have Fisher guard Wade (I’m not sure how that would fare but its better than expending all of Kobe’s energy).
March 11th, 2011 at 11:24 AM
Probably because Kobe, like everyone else in the world, realizes LeBron is fucking cockhead.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:24 AM
WTF is Los Lakers. Los Angeles already has a fucking ‘Los’ in its name!
Lol. The Angels The Lakers. SOunds so funny.
I think it’s a dumb promotion, but if you’re going to do it, do it right.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:25 AM
No… no no no no no. Because for that little bit of energy you just saved for Kobe, you just transformed it into Wade having a buffet of girl’s scout cookies in front of him. No no no no no.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:26 AM
So you never read Phil’s book I see. Seriously, any Kobe fan calling LeBron a cockhead is just plain delusional.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:27 AM
That book is from 2004. PJ came BACK and coached the team and they’ve since won 2 championships together. That’s a stupid argument to say the least.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:29 AM
I didn’t say Kobe was not one as well, but he is not in the same stratosphere as LeBron. LB is a punk on every level. Kobe’s not a punk, just has a ginormous ego (as did MJ, who was no punk either) which I think is necessary to be the best in the game.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:31 AM
Actually if Mike Bibby can drop 3′s like last night that’s a fear from last nights game.
This final blizzard broke me. Snowblower died 85% way through the drive earlier. Shovelled the rest and called off. Just cleaned out the golf bag, polished the shoes and cleaned the clubs, and marked my golf balls with the Sharpie.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:31 AM
LeBron is too much of a pussy to even be in the dunk contest. Probably afraid losing would tarnish his brand.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:32 AM
He is a cockhead.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:33 AM
Let’s agree they can both be cockheads, one who took his team to a title however.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:34 AM
How much did Simmons get paid to write about Goldfish Smores?
March 11th, 2011 at 11:35 AM
Even I think it’s a very small issue, but it still bothers me that LeBron has never done the dunk contest.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:36 AM
The part that gets me is he said he would do it, then backed out.
March 11th, 2011 at 11:52 AM
Pau Gasol for MVP!!!
March 11th, 2011 at 12:08 PM
LeBron learns from the best
March 11th, 2011 at 12:11 PM
Fuck the Lakers.
/exits
March 11th, 2011 at 12:13 PM
Kobe’s performance over the last 2:00 or so sucked donkey balls. Wade checked his ass up.
Wade played solid d on him got away with a couple of fouls but solid d none the less. I was hoping that the Lakers would have let Lamar handle the ball and slide Kobe into the post where he can use his size advantage over Wade instead of running pick and rolls where he can de double teamed or isos.
March 11th, 2011 at 12:17 PM
Kobe hit a couple of big shots right before the foul by Wade on the steal and the hack on the arm. It was borderline, so it was good D. But I guess people tend to conveniently forget the baskets he hit when they run with the whole “shutdown” thing.
March 11th, 2011 at 12:29 PM
Also, I think Kobe played good defense on Wade, its just the Heat run alot of screens to get Wade free as with the layup at the end of the game when i think it was Lebron who set a killer screen on Kobe.
March 11th, 2011 at 12:49 PM
God these Ballin threads become pretty insufferable pretty fast.
March 11th, 2011 at 1:22 PM
I think you are forgetting the three or four turnovers/terrible possessions down the stretch because Kobe couldn’t penetrate. He took some terrible shots and got his pocket picked a time or two as well. When Kobe can’t penetrate(and there is no debate that Wade stopped that from happening) Kobe is a LOT less dangerous.
March 11th, 2011 at 2:07 PM
The Heat played well and made the shots they needed to… the Lakers played poorly… and yet the Heat barely won. Bad sign for Miami.