"Damn it, we actually have another game tomorrow." After the game, the Lakers boarded the team bus. They needed to head straight to San Antonio to prepare for tomorrow's back-to-back.
"Oh, Shaq, you're a veteran. Why are you still complaining about back-to-backs?" Byron Scott teased. By now, Byron Scott had almost transitioned into the role of locker-room veteran and assistant coach.
"Shaq has too much meat on him, so moving around is especially tiring," Campbell said sarcastically.
The players laughed and joked together. Winning this battle for the top spot in the West had greatly boosted morale. After this game, their relationships had grown even closer. They were gradually changing from coworkers into friends who could trust each other with their backs.
For a moment, even the dark cloud of the impending trade seemed to have dispersed.
"Boss, I checked your stats! You went 14-for-22 tonight! Thirty-five points, five rebounds, eight assists, and two steals. Those eight threes you made tied Kidd's rookie record for three-pointers!" Fisher found Kobe.
"Kidd..." Kobe was speechless. How had he ended up sharing a shooting record with Kidd?
"That game was unbelievable! My God, the Los Angeles media are probably going to go crazy over you! You blew up Houston's Big Three—tomorrow, the entire NBA is probably going to tremble because of you! What the hell is Jordan? Once I follow Boss into the Finals, I, Old Fish, am going to smash his damn head in."
"Little Fish, it was only a regular-season game. Go to sleep. We have another game tomorrow, okay?" Kobe looked at Fisher, whose rambling was getting more and more exaggerated, and felt a headache coming on. Fisher seemed to have sunk into his own fantasies again. Too bad there wasn't a basketball nearby.
"Boss, why are you looking at