Bryant Doing It With Defense

By TIM KAWAKAMI

March 25, 2000 12 AM PT

Kobe Bryant didn’t have much of a reaction to Michael Jordan’s recent comments that Bryant was a better overall player than new U.S. Olympian Vince Carter, but said he realized that his increased focus on defense is attracting attention.

“It tells me that I’m improving, that’s all,” Bryant said before Friday’s game when asked about Jordan pointing out that, unlike Carter, Bryant plays both ends of the floor with passion.

“He’s observing the game, he’s watching the game like everybody else is. He just kind of pointed it out. I mean, it’s cool, I guess, the recognition of that. It just shows me I’m headed toward the right direction.”

With signature shutdowns of Allen Iverson, Latrell Sprewell and others on his recent resume, is making the NBA all-defensive team a goal of his?

“Hell, yes,” Bryant said.

And when would he like to accomplish that? “Like now.”

Coach Phil Jackson said it was too early in both players’ careers to pick Bryant over Carter, or vice versa.

“They’re different players, for sure,” Jackson said. “Kobe’s a little more of a playmaker right now probably than Vince is, and he’s called upon to do that role.

“I think it’s too early to tell. . . . Vince has been dramatic in this last season, he’s come up with some great games. It’s really hard for us to tell right now in a career in which they’re young men starting off in their career.”

But Jackson said that Bryant’s defense is something that deserves to be a topic of league-wide discussion.

“I think he’s getting a name for himself,” Jackson said. “I think people are starting to see the potential that he’s got.”

The major difference in Bryant’s defense this season, Jackson said, has been his increased discipline and declining inclination to freelance away from his man.

“I think he was looking for steals and other kind of take-aways--knock down passes, chase the ball,” Jackson said. “That’s not the way we want our guys to play defense.

“We want them to stay in front of guys and get a hand in their face when they shoot and chase through picks and stay with your man and don’t chase the basketball--and guards have to go to the elbows to rebound and under the basket to rebound.

“All these little things, Kobe has had to back off the intensity he plays with. . . . He’s just had to put a governor on the energy system and just kind of play the game that we’ve directed him to do.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Triple Plays / The Big 3

Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Glen Rice have been the driving force behind the Lakers’ success. How they fared:

O’NEAL

*--*

Fri. Season 40 Points 29.1 14 Rebounds 14.0 5 Assists 3.8

*--*

BRYANT

*--*

Fri. Season 28 Points 22.5 6 Rebound 6.0 7 Assists 4.7

*--*

RICE