BOSTON, Massachusetts (AFP) — We need to talk. Those words, quite scary when it comes to romantic relationships, sum up the guiding principle behind the Boston Celtics' defense, the most successful in the National Basketball Association, when it comes to silencing Kobe Bryant.
The Celtics have contained the NBA's Most Valuable Player three times this season, forcing perimeter shots from the Los Angeles Lakers' star guard in a 9-for-26 effort in Boston's 98-88 victory in game one of the NBA Finals.
"Our communication was pretty solid. We've got a system with that," Celtics scoring leader and NBA Defensive Player of the Year Kevin Garnett said. "Defense has to be a consistent thing. We can't fall back on that."
Boston shifts various defenders into Bryant's path every time the Lakers move down the floor, helping each other on double-team situations and trying to confuse Bryant with different challenges every time he touches the ball.
That requires constant conversation so players can fight through cutback moves and screens to keep the pressure upon the fleet-footed playmaker who powers the Lakers' attack entering game two here Sunday.
"It's not a sense of over-helping. It's very important to be in dialogue and talk about guys cutting," Garnett said. "This is a very good passing team."
Bryant was 6-for-21 and 9-for-25 shooting against the Celtics in two regular-season losses against the Boston unit that allowed the lowest shooting accuracy rate by opponents of any NBA team.
"I just had to tweak a couple things and see if I can't put the ball in the hole a little better, a couple mechanical things on the shot, release and arc and things like that," Bryant said.
With Bryant averaging 31 points a game in the playoffs, there is confidence from the Lakers that he will bounce back after struggling in the opener.
"He has been an unstoppable force," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "He usually doesn't have two games in a row that are bad. He comes back and plays better so we anticipate that's going to be a pattern."
Bryant is prepared to handle that pressure. Hey, it beats being already eliminated and on vacation.
"I would much rather have the pressure of this moment as opposed to having the pressure of deciding which swim trunks I'm going to wear in Bora Bora, the Gucci ones or the Yves Saint Laurent ones."
But Bryant admits a bit of discomfort at being called unstoppable, a veritable waving of a red flag in front the NBA's most bullish defenders.
"It's awkward, weird, uncomfortable even," Bryant said. "To me it has always been about what the defense does. The defense can take a player out of the game any time they want. All they have to do is focus on one guy.
"What I have been trying to do is make my teammates threats. It makes it a little harder for teams to key in on me just by moving the ball and making them targets."
That will just give the Celtics something new to talk about.
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