Scott: Kobe all about titles; Dwight not so much

These two were teammates, remember? (USATSI)

The Los Angeles Lakers host the Houston Rockets on Tuesday to open their season, and that means Dwight Howard will be in town to face his former team. Lakers coach Byron Scott was asked about the center's failed partnership with Kobe Bryant and, to his credit, he didn't dodge the question. He wasn't exactly very diplomatic with his answer, either, via the Los Angeles Daily News' Mark Medina:

“My outside perspective is Kobe is a real serious guy and wants to win championships,” Scott said. “I don't know if Dwight is that serious about it. I know No. 24 is and that probably was the clash.”

Ooooooh. That's direct. No room for misinterpretation there. This is the Internet, so I'm supposed to say, "SHOTS FIRED," right? OK.

SHOTS FIRED!

Oh, I get it, that was fun to type. Anyway, it's fun that Scott isn't downplaying this rematch. This will be the first time Bryant and Howard have faced each other since Howard left Los Angeles for Houston, and that will be the main storyline. Especially since a recently published ESPN story about Bryant brought their relationship back into the news cycle. Bryant reportedly lectured Howard about how to win in the NBA during the Lakers' pitch meeting to the big man in free agency, so this particular criticism from Scott is biting.

Scott also added that, though he doesn't know Howard's motivation heading into the game, he is "sure he would love to play and beat the crap out of us."

Topics: Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA

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67RIEFNS: Jonas Valanciunas on verge of a breakthrough

The NBA is full of talent, personality and suspense. During the offseason, It’s easy to forget how wonderful the league can be. So, I’ve assembled 67 Reasons I’m Excited For Next Season (67RIEFNS). They’ll be presented in no particular order.

Last year, a 21-year-old Jonas Valanciunas posted 11.3 points on 53.1 percent shooting with 8.8 rebounds per game. Just seven other players have posted those numbers at such a young age:

• Buck Williams


• Shaquille O’Neal


• Chris Webber


• Tim Duncan


• Dwight Howard


• Andrew Bynum


• Andre Drummond

All of them – with the exception of Drummond, who seems like a lock – became All-Stars. There’s good reason to believe the Raptors’ center will follow suit.

Valanciunas is a skilled interior scorer. He has excellent hands and good footwork, seemingly making it easy for him to create opportunities in the post.

Toronto just didn’t get him the ball enough last year. It’s on Kyle Lowry to feed Valanciunas more often this year.

If that happens, that All-Star berth could happen sooner than later – for both.

The Raptors exceeded expectations last year. Now imagine what happens if they take full advantage of, arguably, their highest-upside player.