LOS ANGELES -- With Kobe Bryant in turn-back-the-clock mode and the Staples Center rocking as if the rivalry between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers had been rewound to its most recent glory days, Celtics forward Jae Crowder sought out Bryant with a question.
"I said, ‘Are you sure you’re gonna retire this year?'" Crowder said. Bryant scored a game-high 34 points on 11-of-28 shooting and helped rally the Lakers back from a 17-point first-half deficit before the Celtics emerged with a 107-100 triumph.
You'd have hardly known the Lakers were a 16-win team with the "Boston sucks!