NBA odds: Will Kobe explode in Game 6?

Arguably the story of the NBA Finals thus far has been the Boston defense on Lakers star Kobe Bryant. The NBA's MVP is averaging a quite solid 26.4 points (although on nearly 22 shots) on 42.2 percent shooting in the Finals, but those numbers are all down from his playoff averages of the first three rounds.

So will Kobe need to go off for a 40-point type performance in Tuesday's Game 6 to extend the series to a do-or-die Game 7? He doesn't think so, but his Lakers are 4-point underdogs for Game 6 (over/under: 191.5) on WagerWeb.com.

"[Celtics assistant] Tom Thibodeau was an assistant coach with the Rockets, and I know when we played them, their philosophy was 'anybody but,' “said Bryant, who had 25 points in Game 5. "They're going to throw the whole kitchen sink at me. Could I force myself to get 40? Yeah. But is that better for our ball club? No."

"A lot of people say, 'Kobe, you have to go out for 40 or 50,' but that's not how we play," Bryant said. "That's not what's going to win championships. Obviously it helps Kobe when four other Laker players reach double figures in points, as happened in Game 5."He's going to have spots to take over, but yet it's going to help us take shots at the end of the game just from being aggressive throughout the game," Lamar Odom said.|

Pau Gasol, who was stellar in Game 5, totaled only seven points in the second halves of the Lakers' Games 1 and 2 losses in Boston. The bench was outscored in both games and has been largely outplayed in the series. Outside of Jordan Farmar (11 points), the rest of the Lakers' reserves combined for only six points in Game 5.

The Celtics aren't double-teaming Kobe yet are bringing so much help defense when he drives that he rarely gets a clear lane to the basket. Bryant has been stuck on the perimeter and winds up holding the
ball.

"We've got guys open, I'm going to move the ball and do what I need to do," he says.

But will his supporting cast follow suit?

No team has come back from a 3-1 Finals deficit, and no team has won Games 6 and 7 on the road under the 2-3-2 format.

Bet on the Finals at WagerWeb.com