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Tuesday November 13, 2007 3:10 PM


Rockets will try to slow down NBA's leading scorer


L.A. Lakers at Houston, Wednesday, 8 p.m.


Damien Pierce
Rockets.com Staff Writer

HOUSTON -- Rockets forward Shane Battier imagines most players around the NBA wouldn't be relishing an opportunity to guard Kobe Bryant.

Battier, however, is actually looking forward to it.

"It's a great challenge," Battier said. "As a competitor and someone who enjoys the craft of defense, I enjoy the challenge of playing the best. I'm probably getting the best in the world in Kobe. In a sadistic way, it's kind of fun."

On Wednesday night, Battier will have plenty of opportunities to have fun.

The Rockets forward will be asked to keep in check the one star in the NBA who doesn't get stopped – Bryant – when the Rockets host the Los Angeles Lakers Wednesday night at Toyota Center.

Battier has been drawing the defensive assignment against the NBA's leading scorer ever since he joined Houston before the 2006-07 season. In five meetings over that span, Bryant has averaged 38.8 points, posting a pair of 53-point performances.

Bryant's latest scoring binge came against the Rockets in the season opener when he netted 45 points to nearly rally the Lakers from a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter.

The Rockets are hoping Battier can help keep Bryant from posting even greater numbers.

"Kobe is Kobe," Battier said. "He's the best in the game. When you play him, you have to focus on every single possession. He doesn't take a possesion off and he has a killer instinct. I think he's the toughest guy in the league to guard. I don't know what's happening in L.A. (with all the trade rumors), but you know he's going to bring it for 48 minutes."

Battier, of course, doesn't expect to stop Bryant. No one in the NBA can do that. But what the Rockets forward is hoping to do is make life as difficult as possible for the Lakers' star.

Battier would like to reduce Bryant's attempts from the free throw line. The Lakers star pumped up a career-high 27 free throw attempts earlier this season.

He also wants to force Bryant into taking tough shots from different spots and angles on the floor rather than getting comfortable with one spot. Despite giving up 45 points to Bryant in that opening night performance, Battier did help force Bryant to miss 19 of his 32 shots.

"It comes down to how efficient am I as a defender," Battier said. "Does he shoot less than 50 percent? Does he have more assists than turnovers? Those are things that I grade myself on. It doesn't matter if a guy takes five shots or 25 shots. I'm an efficiency defender."

Battier has accepted that Bryant is going to make some tough shots even when he does everything right to slow down Bryant.

That's just how it goes.

But even so, Battier is looking forward to the challenge of it.

"It's always an adventure when you're guarding Kobe because he's the best there is in the NBA," Battier said. "I don't really have a magic formula or a recipe of success against him. I'm just going to try to make him work. I know he's going to hit a few tough shots so I just have to stay within our team defense. It's a great challenge."