Kobe Bryant did not go to morning shootaround in Oregon, as the Los Angeles Lakers prepared to face the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
Kobe missed shootaround today. But he will suit up tonight against Portland — Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) November 28, 2015
Bryant skipping shootaround is not especially alarming considering the 37-year-old completed about 75 percent of Monday's practice. Bryant has missed three games and several more practices due to rest. Prior to taking off on the trip, Scott said that he intended to tweak minutes for several guys, but the coach remained staunch in his conviction that Bryant's minutes did not require tampering.
Byron Scott said minute adjustments coming for tomorrow's game...but not for Kobe: "His are going to stay about the same." — Shahan Ahmed (@shahanLA) November 27, 2015
Likely in his final season, Bryant is off to a slower start than anyone could have ever imagined. Out of 121 players that qualify for NBA league leader statistical rankings, Bryant is dead last in the NBA by shooting 31.1 percent from the field. Meanwhile, he ranks 21st in the NBA in field goal attempts, so the five-time champion is shooting often and missing more often than, literally, the next 100 closest players in terms of shot attempts.
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A major contributor to Bryant's poor shooting start is his inability to hit the three-point shot. Of the 16.4 field goal attempts per game the 37-year-old launches nightly, 7.0 of them come from beyond the arc. Why does that matter? Well, Bryant ranks 104 out of 104 players that qualify for three-point shooting percentage. He only hits the long bomb at a rate of 19.5 percent, which is cemented to the bottom of the NBA rankings.
Nearly half of Bryant's field goal attempts come from deep, 42.8 percent to be exact. Effectively. Bryant would be only a slightly below average shooter if he did not jack up an abnormal number of three-pointers. Bryant is shooting 39.8 percent from inside the three-point line.
To be fair to the future Hall of Fame guard, the Lakers' offense often hands him the ball late in the shot clock and forces him to shoot up a three-point shot. Also, he's been open on a significant number of those missed shots. And while speaking positively of Lakers coach Byron Scott is approaching blasphemy in several Lakers' circles, the misses have come early in games, so his tired legs are hard to blame for the abysmal shooting
While watching Bryant hurts the eyes and is gruesomely painful these days, he truly could be jacking up more shots and make this into a new level of bad. Bryant's 16.4 shot attempts are the lowest they've been since the 19-year veteran's first year as a starter, back in 1998-99 (excludes season where Bryant only played six games in 2013-14).
Even if Bryant is back hitting at full blast or catches fire for a quarter, the Lakers have dysfunctions on both sides of the ball that trump any single misfiring offensive player. After all, this team is dead last in the Western Conference, and only 0-17 Philadelphia can claim to be worse. Lucky for everyone, the 76ers and Lakers play in early December. Fortunately, Bryant's probable farewell to Philadelphia off the court should overshadow the (punch yourself in the face) brand of basketball on display on Dec. 1 in Pennsylvania.
Prior to Saturday's game in Oregon, the Lakers and Blazers played six days earlier in California. The Blazers won 107-93 with Damian Lillard scoring 30 points and passing off 13 assists at Staples Center. On that day, Bryant shot 6-22 from the field and 0-5 from three-point land.
Lou Williams not with the Lakers in Portland. His grandfather passed away. My condolences. — Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) November 28, 2015
Trying to see the forest from the blindingly dark trees, Julius Randle appears ready to break into his second stride in what is effectively his rookie season, though not officially. Meanwhile, rookie D'Angelo Russell is beginning to settle into finding his scoring spots. Jordan Clarkson should continue to get minutes, and the 23-year-old has been the Lakers' most consistent player thus far.
With Williams out, Clarkson and Russell should get more minutes with the second unit, but Marcelo Huertas could also be utilized to fill the minutes.
Lakers and Blazers tip-off at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
