Kobe Bryant 31 pts 6 asts vs Suns (2007)

March 4 2007

Early in his time in the number 24 uniform, Kobe Bryant attempts to will his re-tooling Los Angeles Lakers squad to a victory against the mighty Suns in Phoenix. Bryant would get his, 31 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists, versus one of his nemeses in Raja Bell, but it wouldn't be enough to secure the victory. Bryant's scoring ability was undeniable, but his supporting cast was still coming into the works, as the Lakers were in a gray area, after the trade of Shaq to Miami, acquiring Caron Butler, but then trading him for Kwame Brown. This game was prior to the trade that brought Pau Gasol to LA, leaving Kobe to lead the Lakers by himself to low seeds in the playoffs.

LA's starting lineup this game:

Smush Parker (1 of 5 shooting, 3 points, 2 rebounds, zero assists at PG)
Kobe Bryant
Maurice Evans (6 points, 3 of 7 shooting, 2 rebounds, 2 assists)
Brian Cook (answered the bell tonight with 22 points and 14 rebounds)
19 year old Andrew Bynum (20 mins, 6 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 100% FG)
Contributors off the bench:
Ronny Turiaf (8 points, 4 rebounds, 2 of 7 shooting but 4 of 6 from FT line)
Kwame Brown (6 points, 8 rebounds, missed wide open dunk)
Shammond Williams (6 points, 2 assists)
Rookie Sasha Vujacic (6 points 2 threes, 2 of 7 shooting)
Washed 34 year old Aaron McKie got 3 minutes and didn't record a single stat, no field goal attempts.

Needless to say, Kobe was playing with scrap heap level of players and lost by five to one of the best teams in the NBA.