Jan 31, 2007 10:58 AM EST
When Kobe Bryant was a free agent in 2004, Isiah Thomas and the Knicks flew to Southern California armed with their mid-level exception. Despite being nearly $100 million short of what the Lakers offered, Bryant listened to their offer.
“The reason why I even was interested in taking that meeting was because of this city,” the 28-year-old Bryant said in an interview Tuesday morning. “Because I always loved this city. Always. Ever since I came here, growing up in Philadelphia, there’s always so much energy and so much buzz in this city. How passionate they are about basketball, how knowledgeable they are about basketball.”
Bryant, a nine-time All-Star, excitedly ticked off the names of the Knicks legends Walt Frazier, Willis Reed, Earl Monroe and Dave DeBusschere and said, “I just wanted to play here so bad.”
“I know what it’s like to have a team here that’s successful and how the city rallies around it,” he said. “So I was very interested. And if they had more cap flexibility, it’d definitely be a place where I would end up. I might have picked the Knicks.”
Via New York Times
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Lakers center Chris Mihm is with the team for its eight-game trip, elated that his ankle rehabilitation has gone better than expected and that he might return later this season.
"My ankle is coming along really well, ahead of the schedule I was given by the doctors," Mihm said. "I've still got quite a ways to go on it, but my sights have been set on coming back and playing this year. It's been pretty exciting to me. It keeps me motivated and working hard every day."
Mihm has undergone two operations since tearing ligaments in his right ankle last March against Seattle. He is listed on the injury report as being out for the season but is making steady progress with a routine that includes swimming and upper-body weightlifting.
"We're just watching him with some kind of amazement that he's back out and doing work," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. "He's not jumping up and down and shooting the ball and running, but he's back out doing things that make him look athletic again."
Via L.A. Times
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Even with Kobe Bryant banned from the arena, the Knicks knew not to expect an easy game.
The Lakers certainly didn't give them one.
The Knicks held off a late rally Tuesday night, handing the Lakers their season-high third straight loss with a 99-94 victory.
Bryant was suspended one game without pay earlier Tuesday for hitting San Antonio's Manu Ginobili in the face late in the Lakers' loss to the Spurs on Sunday.
But the Knicks, who last week lost at Miami in a game both Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal missed, knew not to take Los Angeles lightly.
"You're never going to blow them out," Knicks coach Isiah Thomas said. "They're a team with a great coach who understands how to manipulate a game and keep his team close, and they've got good shooters.
Via Yahoo!
New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers
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Lakers Jan 2007 Archive
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AP | Jan 30, 2007
Kobe Bryant requested an "immediate hearing" with the NBA office to discuss the one-game suspension he was given earlier Tuesday for striking San Antonio's Manu Ginobili in the face.
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Press Release | Jan 30, 2007
Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers has been suspended one game without pay for striking San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili in the face, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
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Chicago Tribune | Jan 29, 2007
Phil Jackson told Andrew Bynum to watch tape of Tyson Chandler in order to learn the nuances of rebounding.
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L.A. Times | Jan 28, 2007
Luke Walton will be sidelined one to two weeks because of a moderately sprained right ankle sustained in the third quarter of the Lakers' 106-97 overtime loss to Charlotte.
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Yahoo! | Jan 27, 2007
Kobe Bryant scored 32 points last night, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to reach 18,000 points
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Forbes.com | Jan 25, 2007
At $592 million, the New York Knicks are the NBA's most valuable franchise according to Forbes.
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AP | Jan 24, 2007
Lamar Odom flew through the air, caught Jordan Farmar's perfect lob pass and stuffed it through the basket.
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ESPN | Jan 23, 2007
A year to the day after his startling 81-point performance, Kobe Bryant scored 42, and the Lakers rallied to beat the Warriors 108-103 on Monday night despite a season-high 24 turnovers.
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Los Angeles Daily News | Jan 17, 2007
According to a police report, Kwame Brown allegedly snatched a man's $190 2-by-2-foot chocolate birthday cake.
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Rocky Mountain News | Jan 15, 2007
With Chris Webber possibly a couple of days away from joining a new team, Lakers coach Phil Jackson said he spoke with the free-agent forward Saturday night.
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ESPN | Jan 14, 2007
There will be no Shaq versus Kobe in Los Angeles this year, with O'Neal saying there was zero chance that he'll be playing
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L.A. Times | Jan 12, 2007
Free-agent forward Chris Webber and the Lakers took another step toward each other Thursday, with Webber's agent saying his client was highly interested in heading west, and the Lakers acknowledging they were more than willing to listen.
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East Valley Tribune | Jan 12, 2007
Teams such as the Lakers, Chicago and New Jersey are possible landing spots for Bobcats forward Melvin Ely, according to the East Valley Tribune, although Chris Webber’s sudden availability will slow the market.
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ESPN | Jan 11, 2007
Now that Chris Webber is a free agent, he has a list of five teams that he is interested in playing for: Detroit, Miami, San Antonio, Dallas and the L.
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L.A. Times | Jan 11, 2007
Chris Webber, who turns 34 in March, was due to make $20.
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Newsday | Jan 10, 2007
According to a league source, Chris Webber is likely to sign with the Pistons. He has four other teams on his wish list.
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Press Release | Jan 10, 2007
Dwyane Wade dropped to No. 2 on the list and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James comes in at No.3.
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nba.com | Jan 8, 2007
Sasha Vujacic had his best game in three NBA seasons Sunday night, scoring a career-high 16 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 28.
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Yahoo! | Jan 8, 2007
Sasha Vujacic scored nine of his career-high 16 points in the fourth quarter including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 28.
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Bergen Record | Jan 6, 2007
Reports indicate that Penny Hardaway wil sign a 10-day contract with the Seattle SuperSonics, but the Lakers are also rumored to be interested and could sign him first.
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Yahoo! | Jan 6, 2007
Smush Parker led five players in double figures with 23 points and the Lakers led virtually all the way in beating the Nuggets 123-104 Friday night.
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Press-Enterprise | Jan 5, 2007
The Lakers attempted to acquire Ron Artest last winter when the Pacers had him on the block, but they are reportedly not interested this time around.
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ESPN | Jan 3, 2007
Steve Kerr will not be able to broadcast Thursday's game between the Lakers and Kings due to back spasms, so Charles Barkley will provide the color commentary in his place.
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Los Angeles Times | Jan 3, 2007
With Kwame Brown sidelined, Andrew Bynum will very likely become the Lakers starting center.
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MSNBC | Jan 2, 2007
Kwame Brown's sprained ankle will be reassessed in 10 days.
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L.A. Times | Jan 2, 2007
The Lakers declined to establish a timetable for how long Kwame Brown would be sidelined because of a severe sprain in his left ankle, saying he would be reevaluated in about two weeks.
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Los Angeles Times | Jan 1, 2007
Lamar Odom missed his 10th straight game on Sunday and there is no definite timetable for his return.
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ESPN | Jan 1, 2007
Kobe Bryant had 35 points, eight rebounds and six assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame another injury to starting center Kwame Brown to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 104-94 on Sunday night.
