Can The Redeem Team Win The Gold With Kobe Playing Like Pete Myers?

Judging by jersey sales alone, the Chinese people love Kobe Bryant. But those enthusiastic fans can't be very impressed by what they've seen from him so far. His first two tournament games have been the Olympic basketball equivalent of going to see The Dark Knight but being forced to sit through Batman & Robin (otherwise known as "the one with George Clooney and the Bat-nipples"). In other words: An epic disappointment.In those two games, Kobe has scored 21 total points. He's shooting 37 percent (10-27) from the field. He's 1-for-15 from beyond the arc (including 0-for-8 against the fierce Angola defense that "held" the rest of the Redeem Teamers to a combined 61 percent shooting). Isn't he supposed to be the best player in the world? And the greatest scorer ever? What gives? Kobe's claim to fame in these Olympics has been his defense. He even modestly gave himself a new nickname ("The Doberman") and "opened eyes" by shutting down Sarunas Jasikevicius when Team USA played Lithuania during its pre-Olympic tour. ( For the record, Jasikavicius' NBA career scoring average was 6.8 PPG, his career field goal accuracy was 39 percent, and his career-high in scoring was 20 points. So someone with a greater understanding of basketball will have to explain why shutting him down was so darned impressive.) But it's a fair bet that Mike Krzyzewski would like to see a little more offense out of his defensive stopper. Team USA has already rolled past both China and Angola, but neither win was as overwhelming as the final scores seemed to indicate (they started slow against China, and they became a wee bit complacent in the second half against Angola). Next up: The Grudge Match against Greece. You might remember them as the guys who shocked (and humiliated) the Americans two years ago in the semifinals of the World Championships. The Greeks are physical, aggressive, and have proven that they can put the clamps on NBA players: Against Germany, they held Dirk Nowitzki to 13 points (3-for-8) and limited Chris Kaman to 4 points (1-for-3) and only 2 rebounds (Kaman also committed 5 turnovers and Nowitzki almost fouled out). The Redeem Team needs Kobe to pull out of this slump. By, like, five minutes ago. I'm not saying they can't win the Gold with him playing like Pete Myers. After all, those LeBron James and Dwyane Wade guys are pretty good, as are Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, etc. But their Gold Medal aspirations would look a lot better if Kobe could start playing like, well, Kobe. Team USA's long-distance shooting is suffering (Michael Redd, the team's lone three-point marksman, was only 3-for-7 against China and 0-for-2 against Angola) and their half-court game has looked like a disorganized mess. They've been great in transition, but it's a pretty sure bet that the Greeks are going to want to turn the game into a walk-it-up-and-down-the-court slugfest. So come one Kobe...or Mamba...or Doberman...or whatever you want to be called. If you won't do it for the Chinese people who adore you, do it for your country. ( Especially if you're serious about maybe playing overseas someday.)