For much of the 2009-10 season, the late Kobe Bryant was banged up.
He suffered an avulsion fracture on the index finger of his shooting hand that affected him the rest of the way, a sprained ankle and a stubborn knee ailment.
The knee ailment, in particular, made it seem near the start of the playoffs that perhaps Bryant’s days of superstardom were quickly waning.
But after a tough first-round matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Black Mamba looked healthy and spry again, and he put together one of his best stretches ever.
In the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers had a shot at revenge versus the Phoenix Suns, the team that had run them out of the gym in the first rounds of the 2006 and 2007 playoffs.
The team looked a little different, but Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire were still there, and Bryant was determined to get back at them.
He went off for 40 points on 13-of-23 shooting in Game 1 as the Purple and Gold pulled away for a 128-107 win.
Pau Gasol added 21 points while Lamar Odom had 19 points and 19 rebounds off the bench.
For Bryant, it was his sixth straight game with at least 30 points. After looking washed several weeks ago, he had definitely returned to his vintage form.
