It was Lakers vs. Spurs; the reigning NBA champions vs. the team that owns the best record; five titles since 1999 vs. four; and Kobe Bryant vs. Tim Duncan.
Except that last matchup didn’t exactly live up to its Hall of Fame credentials in San Antonio’s 97-82 win over Los Angeles on Tuesday night. Duncan shot just 1-for-7 (14.2 percent) with two points and four rebounds. Bryant scored 21 points but was 8-for-27 (29.6 percent) from the field.
Not exactly what was expected from two former MVPs in a key Western Conference tilt. But the Spurs’ ability to still win — and by 15 points — shows how San Antonio has been able to adapt to Duncan’s diminishing skills. The power forward is averaging career lows in minutes (28.9), points (13.2) and rebounds (9.4) in his 14th season in the league.
San Antonio no longer slows down the pace, forces the ball inside and grinds out games. Instead, the Spurs are fourth in the league in scoring (105.9), second in assists (23.9) and are shooting an NBA-best 40.2 percent from 3-point range.
Although Bryant is still playing at a high level — averaging 25.3 points a game — the Lakers shooting guard already has played 1,053 games, sixth most among active players.
Duncan has embraced his lesser role, and the Spurs have profited from their star realizing he’s not the player he used to be. When will Bryant be forced to do the same?
