With the score tied at 80 and less than three minutes on the clock, this was not the time for Bryant to show off his new-found passing ability.
The physical, 6'7", 220-pound Gerald Wallace blanketed Bryant on the perimeter. A slight hesitation opened a driving lane to his right, and Bryant hammered on the gas.
With Wallace on his hip and 6'9", 235-pound Kris Humphries waiting at the rim, Bryant forged through the paint and took flight from outside the restricted area.
By the time he had completed the thunderous one-handed flush, Twitter nearly exploded.
Some observations were subtle:
Kobe...
— gary washburn (@GwashNBAGlobe) February 6, 2013 Others were not as reserved:
Kobe Bryant just dunked on the Nets, maybe all of them
— Eric Pincus (@EricPincus) February 6, 2013 KOBE. DUNKS. HARD!
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) February 6, 2013 Damn. Kobe with the crazy one-handed dunk in traffic, like he's 22.
— Jared Zwerling (@JaredZwerling) February 6, 2013 Bryant's effort was lauded by L.A. fans, but the appreciation was not lost on the New York side:
Welcome to Brooklyn Kobe
— Frank Isola (@FisolaNYDN) February 6, 2013 More importantly, Bryant helped lead his Lakers (23-26) to their sixth win in their past seven games as they defeated the Nets 92-83.
With both Dwight Howard (shoulder) and Metta World Peace (suspension) unavailable, Bryant attacked the Brooklyn defense with a team-high 21 points. He added eight rebounds, four steals and four assists in his 37-plus minutes.
Brook Lopez led the Nets (28-20) with 30 points and 11 rebounds.
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Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
