MVP! MVP! MVP!

I have been a Lakers fan for a long time, my friends. I’m not a fair-weather fan, and I didn’t jump on any bandwagons. I’ve been a fan from before there was a Staples Center, from before there was Great Western Forum, even. I am a veteran of the venerable Fabulous Forum of the Showtime Lakers from back in the day. Magic, Kareem, Rambis, Coop, and Worthy were all over my walls.

Having said that, nothing was like tonight’s game. Kobe Bryant scores 81 points, becoming the number two guy in history for most points in a game…surpassed only by Wilt Chamberlain who scored 100 points in a game some 40-odd years ago. A feat, by the way, that many attribute to the fact that he was a dominating 7’1″ in a league without any other seven footers. He could literally collect an incoming pass out of the reach of the oppossing players, and then just drop it in.

Last night Kobe was unstoppable. He was single covered, double-teamed, triple-teamed… it didn’t matter. And, the funny thing is, he wasn’t a ball-hog, a complaint I’ve made several times when he was obviously trying too hard to be the hero. Last night, though, it was just happenning for him, and it was beautiful.

Imagine, 18,000+ fans chanting “MVP! MVP MVP!” every time you touch the ball. 18,000+ people cheering for you… it must have been incredible.

And I was there.

[Editor's Note] Is it funny to me that the image above is blocked as "general pornography" by my work's server filters? Yes it is. For those of you that also can't see it, it's the view of the court from my amazing seats (thank you networking hook-ups)