Kevin Ding's post on LA Lakers | Latest updates on Sulia

As Kobe took his feet out of ice-water bucket and started toward postgame shower, he said: "Can you imagine ...

what it would've been like in Los Angeles if we'd lost this game?" For his part, Kobe said there was no moment where his feeling changed from trying to win and believing they were going to win. He said he believed the whole time. The Lakers were down 18 a minute into the fourth quarter, still down 15 with 6:23 to play. Here's Kobe's full quote about how the Lakers came together tonight -- which better prepares them for the playoffs: "Games like this really strengthen the bond between us players. And that’s really what the playoffs are about: When you have adversity, it’s about who’s going to stick together and who’s not going to break. Even though we played a team that has not the best record in the world, I think this type of win really strengthens our bond."