Lakers-Bobcats

 

For Christmas this year, my parents came up with the great idea of giving me a pair of tickets to two Lakers games at the Staples Center.  The first game was last night with the Lakers playing the Charlotte Bobcats [a team I used to cheer for regularly when I lived in Charlotte].

 

First of all – the Staples Center is incredible.  This was only my second Lakers game [and second trip to the Staples Center] and for an arena that’s a decade old, it’s still in immaculate condition.  Greg and I repeatedly commented on how clean and nice of a facility it was… and we were in the upper deck!  I’m sure it only gets nicer as you get closer to the court.

 

Also… as soon as we walk into our section I lean over to Greg and whisper ‘Check it out.  There’s Larry David.’  And sure enough Larry David was standing in the entrance to our section talking with some camera guys.  [ftr... it's not that unusual to see Larry David at a Lakers game.  What is unusual, as Greg pointed out, is for Larry David to be hanging out in the upper deck.]  So Greg and I take our seats [which were amazing btw- center court, bottom rows of the upper deck] and a few moments later Jeff Garlin [David's co-star in Curb Your Enthusiasm] walks up and starts talking with Larry and the camera guy.  And that’s the moment that I realized that they were shooting a scene for the new season of Curb Your Enthusiasm IN OUR SECTION.  It happened right in front of us, and they spent the next 15 minutes shooting a scene where Larry and Jeff make their way up to the very last row of the Staples Center with Larry complaining the entire way [in true Curb fashion].

 

As for the actual basketball game – it was fantastic!  I was honestly a little apprehensive at the start.  Kobe was something like 0-8 in the first quarter.  Then he missed his first shot in the second quarter and I was afraid we were in for a long night of Kobe trying to grind through an off shooting night.  Then he hit his first shot…  And that’s all it took.  From that moment on, he was untouchable.  He finished with 12 in the first half and dominated throughout the second until he fouled out on a touch foul in the first overtime.

 

The one difficult thing about NBA games is that you HAVE TO accept that it’s never going to replicate the environment of a college basketball game (especially in the state of North Carolina).  It’s offsetting at first when you realize how quiet the crowd is throughout majority of the game.  But both teams put on a show and it was an amazing game to see live.  Charlotte led most of the game until about halfway through the 4th quarter when the Lakers were finally able to tie it up.  Clutch shots were made by Kobe and Derek Fisher leaving Charlotte with one last chance to keep the game from going into overtime.

 

And just like in his old days at UNC, Raymond Felton brought the ball up the court, faked like he was going to drive and took a wide open jump shot as the buzzer rang.  Only Ray’s shot didn’t fall.  That miss – along with several key free throws down the stretch [none missed by Felton, btw] seemed to allude to another ‘final lap collapse’ for Charlotte.  But the collapse never happened.  The Bobcats went into overtime immediately targeting Kobe on offense and were able to get him called on a pretty crappy touch foul for Kobe’s 6th [finishing his night with a strong 38-8-5].  And from there, Charlotte rolled.  Without the offensive prowess of Kobe, the Lakers looked lost and Shannon Brown [who?] stepped up and hit several key shots to put the Lakers away in the 2nd OT. 

 

I have to admit that seeing Felton play was ALMOST as impressive as watching Kobe… but for far different reasons [as well as this writer's acknowledgment that he's unable to speak on this subject objectively].  Watching Kobe Bryant play in person is jarring.  It’s just hard to fathom that someone could be SO MUCH more talented and gifted than anyone else on the court (especially in this day and age).  But Felton is different.  Felton’s skill set as a professional basketball player probably ranks him somewhere around the middle of the pack.  But again, [reminding me of his days as a Tar Heel] what sets Ray apart from the pack is his hunger and his desire.  There were a handful of times last night where Ray just wanted it more than anyone else on the court.  And he gets the ABSOLUTE MOST out of what talent he has.  Ray finished with an extremely impressive 21-11-9 (1 assist shy of a triple-double!!) and definitely contributed majorly in the incalculables department. 

 

Fantastic game – Fantastic night – Sean May was injured (SHOCKER!) – Felton reminded me why he was and still is my favorite Tar Heel – Definitely one of my most memorable experiences since moving to LA two years ago.