Pressure

Several years back, Carmelo Anthony was featured in a commercial in which he coined the phrase: “Why wouldn’t I want the last shot, when I know I’ve already made it?”  With Kobe Bryant up to his usual antics last night, such a phrase came to mind in light of yesterday’s heroics:

While Kobe himself dubbed it a lucky shot in a post game interview, it was the reaction to his fortuitous relationship with the backboard that bears any significance.  Furthermore, it bears comparison to THIS game winning reaction:

Notice the obvious discrepancy in reactions to their shots?  The difference is confidence, and knowing you’re great as opposed to merely thinking it.  Granted that James’ reactive demeanor deserves a reevaluation once he’s reached Bryant’s level, a ton more games and a dozen more winning jumpers later, for the time being, we can put this “best in the league” debate to rest.

Oh, and for those throwing Dwyane Wade into the mix, it’s worth noting that it was originally Wade who set the stage for Kobe’s heroics.  Up four with 10 seconds left in the game, the Heat had just force Kobe into a bad shot but with the ball in his hands and sailing out of bounds, Wade tried to save it to Mario Chalmers.  One of the earliest lessons you learn in basketball is to NEVER SAVE THE BALL UNDER YOUR OWN BASKET.  The ball ended up in Pau Gasol’s hands who subsequently made two free throws.

And of course, it was Wade’s missed free throw six seconds later that finally drew the curtain for Bryant.

Yeah, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James are great.  But when you’re talking about who’s the most confident under pressure in the league today, without question, it’s Bryant who has the greatest capacity to remind us that this is where amazing happens.