That night, at the Staples Center, a wave of purple and gold washed over the stands, and the fans' energy felt strong enough to rip the roof off.
Tonight was the Lakers' home opener for the new season!
Their opponent was the Phoenix Suns, a Western Conference powerhouse from last season, famous throughout the league for their fluid, high-octane run-and-gun offense.
Their core player, MVP Steve Nash, was casually warming up his shots.
At this point, Nash still had his long hair, and his handsome looks combined with his flashy style of play gave him countless fans.
Behind him stood a strong crew, including Boris Diaw, Shawn Marion, and Raja Bell—a serious threat. Stoudemire was sidelined after off-season microfracture knee surgery and wasn't expected back until after the All-Star break, so he was watching from the sidelines.
On the other side, Kobe was stretching, his expression perpetually icy and unreadable.
This game was shaping up to be another script where Kobe had to take on the whole world by himself.
The Zen Master favored the deliberate pace of the Triangle Offense, while Mike D'Antoni loved the Seven Seconds or Less approach. This would be a high-stakes battle of pace, and whoever let the opponent dictate the tempo was likely to lose the game.
"Listen up, guys!" Coach Jackson called out. "Control the pace! Crash the glass and minimize turnovers! We cannot get sucked into their game! Get the ball to Kobe, and everyone else focus on setting solid screens and cutting hard!"
As the DJ introduced each player, streamers rained down from the rafters. With deafening cheers filling the arena, the game tipped off!
The Suns won the jump ball and got the first possession.
The moment Nash touched the ball, he threw a laser pass across mid-court to Raja Bell on the baseline, who caught it and immediately fired a three without a moment's hesitation!
The whole possession took less than three seconds!
Although Bell's first shot was a miss, it clearly demonstrated the Suns' unmatched offensive speed.
On their end, the Lakers rigidly followed the Zen Master's plan. After a couple of fruitless cuts, the ball went to Kobe on the wing for an isolation play.
Facing Shawn Marion, Kobe used a simple jab step, rose up, and sank the mid-range jumper!
The game raged on, a collision of two completely different paces.
The Suns were religious about D'Antoni's run-and-gun philosophy.
Steve Nash was like an elegant orchestra conductor, dribbling up the court like lightning, every pass finding the perfect teammate with precision.
The ball zipped around the court so fast that often, the Lakers' defensive alignment hadn't even set up before the Suns' shot was already in the air.
This relentless, high-speed assault rapidly drained the Lakers' energy, especially the players tasked with guarding Nash, who were already breathing hard just a few minutes in.
The Lakers, in contrast, were desperately trying to drag the game into the half-court sets they knew.
Kobe relied on his individual brilliance, scoring repeatedly from mid-range and the paint, desperately keeping the team's offense afloat.
However, the Suns' defense was highly targeted: Bell glued himself to Kobe, and Marion's long arms were always ready to help, making every point Kobe scored incredibly difficult.
For a few possessions, the Zen Master tried to use Odom as the offensive hub, but it was ineffective; he couldn't get the whole team involved. As a result, Kobe had to play the entire first quarter just to maintain the score.
The first quarter ended 28-34. The Lakers were only down by six, but the Suns clearly owned the rhythm of the game.
Even if Kobe was a warrior, he couldn't sustain that level of output for 48 minutes.
The second quarter began, and the Zen Master adjusted the lineup, trying to give Kobe a breather.
However, without the singular threat of Kobe on the court, the Lakers' bench unit was completely overwhelmed by the Suns' free-flowing offense.
The home crowd's cheers grew muted, and a sense of anxiety hung in the air.
Out of necessity, Kobe was forced to return to the court ahead of schedule.
His return instantly stabilized the team, and two consecutive signature fadeaway jumpers temporarily stopped the bleeding.
But anyone could see Kobe was draining his tank; the Lakers were clearly being led by the nose.
"Lin!"
With 2:12 left in the second quarter, the Zen Master's shout sounded like music to Link's ears.
"You go in for Kobe. Remember, run the floor, find the open spot, and shoot without hesitation!" the Zen Master instructed succinctly.
"Yes, Coach!" Link took a deep breath, forcefully tossed off his warmup, and headed toward the scorer's table.
Dead ball, substitution.
"Lakers sub: Number 2, Link, replaces Number 8, Kobe Bryant." As the announcement played, Link walked onto the court.
As he brushed past Kobe, the superstar gave him a slightly frustrated look. He had already played 20 minutes in the first half, and the team was still losing.
Link took a deep breath and quickly moved to his spot.
However, things didn't go the way Link hoped.
On the first possession, Link executed the play, using a baseline screen to curl out to the left 45-degree corner, creating an open look.
He put his hand up for the ball, but Parker, the point guard, acted as if he didn't see him. He dribbled twice and forced a contested mid-range jumper.
"Clang!" The ball smacked the front of the rim and bounced away.
Link frowned but said nothing, immediately turning to play defense.
The next possession, the Lakers successfully stopped the Suns' attack, and Parker pushed the ball on the fast break.
Link sprinted down the sideline, again finding an open pocket in the right corner. He ran with his hand raised, ready for the pass.
However, Parker made an even more inexplicable choice: he tried an exaggerated behind-the-back dribble while moving at top speed, apparently trying to shake his defender. The move went wrong, and the ball flew directly out of bounds.
A boneheaded turnover!
"Fk!" Brian Shaw on the sideline couldn't help but curse.
Kobe's face instantly darkened, and he stared at Parker, his eyes sharp as daggers.
Parker just spread his hands with a helpless look, signaling that he hadn't seen the open Link.
Link pressed his lips together, a fire starting to burn in his chest.
Over the next few scattered possessions, Link felt like he was just running wind sprints on the court.
Even more infuriating, on one occasion, Parker dribbled the air out of the ball until the shot clock was almost out before dumping a hot potato pass to Link.
Link was forced to shoot, only to be met by a monster block from the long-armed Shawn Marion.
When the buzzer sounded for the end of the second quarter, the score was 48-65. The Lakers' deficit had ballooned to 17 points.
Steve Nash had a brilliant half with 12 points and 9 assists, fully orchestrating his teammates, with three Suns players already in double digits.
For the Lakers, while Kobe had scored a lot of points, he also recorded 11 missed shots, nearly all of them highly contested, difficult jumpers.
Link walked toward the tunnel with his head down.
His stat line was completely blank: 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists. His hard-won playing time had yielded absolutely nothing.