The two teams were not on the same level to begin with. The Spurs losing two games had already drawn criticism from most fans in the league. If they lost another one...
Fortunately, in the next two games, the Spurs didn't cause any more trouble, winning both consecutively and eliminating the Kings with a 4-2 series lead.
The second-ranked Suns in the Western Conference faced the Lakers, led solely by Kobe.
The Suns were originally much stronger than the Lakers, but due to Stoudemire's injury and Diogu now being on the Celtics roster, the Suns' overall strength had declined significantly. This gave Kobe, leading the team alone, a considerable opportunity.
Kobe abandoned his isolation-heavy style from the regular season and suddenly focused on organizing and connecting plays, constantly mobilizing his teammates to contend with the Suns.
This approach caught the Suns completely off guard, and they unexpectedly lost their second home game to the Lakers, forfeiting their initial advantage.
In Game 3, returning home, Kobe continued his momentum and won another game, bringing the series score to 2-1.
This put the Suns in a desperate situation. Game 4 became a must-win battle for the Suns to go all out.
And this game became one of the most classic games in Kobe's career!
With 12.6 seconds left in regulation, the Lakers were still trailing the Suns by 5 points.
Phil Jackson drew up a play, using Kobe as a decoy to draw the Suns' defensive attention, with Odom as the facilitator, and finally giving the three-point shooting opportunity to Smush Parker!
At this critical moment, Smush Parker, with great skill and daring, showed remarkable toughness. Under Kobe's screen, he caught the ball and hit a three-pointer!
The Lakers' possession took only 4.7 seconds.
With 7.9 seconds remaining, the deficit was reduced to 2 points.
The Lakers' next strategy was to send Suns players to the free-throw line, hoping they would miss, and then make a final offensive push.
The Suns naturally understood the Lakers' plan and set up an inbounds play, getting the ball into Nash's hands.
In D'Antoni's view, as long as the ball reached Nash, the game was secured.
Smush Parker was guarding Nash. While committing a foul, Smush Parker seized the opportunity and decisively stole the ball!
The referee didn't call a foul. Smush Parker turned and pushed the ball upcourt, passing it quickly to Devin George. Devin George originally had a chance to shoot, but he saw Kobe sprinting over and extending his hand...
Devin George didn't hesitate and passed the ball back to Kobe!
Kobe received the ball near the free-throw line, turned, and shot a fadeaway jumper, hitting a near buzzer-beating two-pointer, successfully forcing the game into overtime.
In the final moments of overtime, Nash hit a three-pointer to give the Suns a 3-point lead.
This time, Kobe took the shot himself, hitting a fadeaway jumper with 11 seconds left to narrow the gap to 1 point.
The Suns regained possession, waiting for the Lakers to foul them.
Nash received the ball again. D'Antoni thought, surely Nash wouldn't fall into the same trap twice in the same game?
However, Nash avoided Smush Parker's steal, only to be stripped by Luke Walton, and the ball was stolen again!
Luke Walton turned and pushed the fast break, passing the ball to Kobe. Kobe took another quick pull-up jumper from mid-range, and again, a near buzzer-beater!
Kobe's near buzzer-beater in regulation left the Suns with 0.7 seconds.
This time, his near buzzer-beater in overtime left the Suns with only 0.2 seconds.
The Suns didn't even have a chance to get off a final shot, regretfully accepting their fate of being overturned and defeated by Kobe!
With a 3-1 lead, the Lakers gained a significant advantage in advancing.
Subsequently, after a double-overtime buzzer-beater against the Suns, Kobe started to relax. He felt invincible.
In Game 5, Kobe's style changed, and he focused more on his own offense. He scored a series-high 29 points in this game, but the Lakers began to lose.
In Game 6, Kobe continued to ramp up his efforts.
The Lakers had a chance to win in regulation, but with 12 seconds left, Nash missed a three-pointer. Marion grabbed the offensive rebound and passed it to Tim Thomas, who made a brilliant play, hitting a crucial three-pointer to tie the score!
With only 6 seconds left, the Lakers had one last chance to attack.
Kobe had already scored 38 points and was confident he could win the game with a mid-range jumper, but the final result was disappointing, as the ball bounced off the rim. The Lakers were forced into overtime by the Suns.
In overtime, Kobe accounted for 12 of the Lakers' 13 points, bringing his individual score to 50 points. However, the Lakers lost in overtime, losing Game 6.
From a 3-1 lead to being pushed into a Game 7, Kobe finally woke up, realizing he couldn't defeat the Suns alone. He decided to adjust his strategy for the final game and return to team basketball, but it was too late.
From the opening tip, the Suns attacked from multiple angles, scoring comprehensively.
The Lakers also attacked from multiple points but frequently missed shots.
With the same 20 field goal attempts, the Suns made 14 shots and scored 32 points; the Lakers only made 6 shots, scoring a mere 15 points.
In the subsequent three quarters, the Suns, with the cheers of their home crowd, played with increasing vigor. As many as seven players scored in double figures, ultimately defeating the Lakers by a large margin and completing a stunning comeback.
After failing to advance, Kobe returned to the locker room without looking back.
Before the start of the season, Kobe harbored a fantasy: with himself as a super-star, the Lakers could still attempt to contend for a championship...
But in the first round of the playoffs, the Suns showed Kobe the harsh reality.
In terms of individual scoring ability, Nash was definitely inferior to Kobe.
However, compared to his teammates and bringing out the team's strengths, Nash was ultimately superior.
With a 1-3 deficit, Nash remained calm, firmly believing in the power of the team, and step by step achieved an incredible reversal.
Kobe's loss in this series was frustrating but not unjust.
Even if this single-core Lakers team had miraculously defeated the Suns, their quest for a championship would still have been a pipe dream.
It was this playoff experience of a bitter defeat that truly made Kobe reflect on the issues of leading a team as a single core.
Kobe was faced with two paths.
First: Urge the Lakers to make trades and strengthen the team quickly! His prime years couldn't be wasted.
Second: Consider He Xi Meng's suggestion and join him on a third team, playing together for a team in which they held behind-the-scenes stakes...