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Updated: May 26, 2009, 4:09 PM ET

Kobe, LeBron lacking support

Kobe, LeBron have performed as expected. But their help hasn't provided much

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By John Hollinger
ESPN.com
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Elsa/Getty ImagesThe Cavs are a tight-knit crew. But lately, their play has left LeBron asking, "Where's the love?"

DENVER -- Kobe. LeBron. Kobe. LeBron.

They're such big stars that you don't even need to mention their last names. The game's two marquee players also have been the postseason's two most productive players, and Kobe Bryant and LeBron James own the top two regular-season player efficiency ratings among players remaining in the postseason.

And in the conference finals, they've stepped up their games to another level. Bryant is averaging 36.8 points and has taken 53 free throws in four games. James is netting 41.6 points and 7.3 assists while shooting 53.1 percent. At times, they have seemed to be waging a cross-country, mano a mano clash. When James hit a series-saving, game-winning 3 to steal Game 2 for the Cavaliers, Bryant responded the next night with a clutch 3 of his own to help the Lakers grab a crucial Game 3 win in Denver.

Because their teams own the league's two best regular-season records, and James and Bryant finished first and second, respectively, in this year's MVP voting, everyone even remotely connected to the television and advertising industries has been hoping and praying for an epic Kobe versus LeBron battle in the NBA Finals. The fact that conference finals TV ratings are through the roof is the latest sign of the drawing power of these two icons.

It would be perfect, sure. But this is a team game. And despite their exploits, there might be room for only one "one-name star" in this year's Finals: Nene.

Cleveland finds itself trailing Orlando two games to one heading into Tuesday night's Game 4, while the Lakers are tied with Denver at two games apiece after Monday night's 120-101 rout at the hands of the Nuggets. Both teams have been outscored in the series, and neither has provided much encouragement to think that will change in the near future.

The fact that Kobe and LeBron have played so brilliantly while their teams have struggled so much underscores the main story of conference finals: the failure of either player's supporting cast to deliver.

Denver and Orlando don't have the star power of the Cavs and Lakers, but they are much more complete teams. Each has set up its defensive strategy to let Kobe and LeBron get theirs but take away most of the easy looks they provide for teammates. With both the Nuggets and Magic able to guard them somewhat competently with a single defender, we aren't seeing the type of scrambling double-teams that lead to wide-open looks for secondary players.

This is a familiar story to fans of both teams who saw the Boston Celtics employ a similar strategy during last season's playoffs. LeBron blew up for 112 points in the final three games of last year's conference semifinals against Boston, but his teammates produced only 143 as the Cavs dropped two of the final three games. Bryant's club had similar struggles against the Celtics, as his 25.7 points weren't enough to get the Lakers over the century mark in five of the six Finals games.

If Kobe and LeBron don't make it to the Finals, the blame won't be on them. It'll be on the other guys, in particular, one big guy and one guard for each side who haven't delivered.

L.A. came into the conference finals expecting to dominate thanks to size advantages held by Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. Although Gasol has held up his end of the bargain -- he posted his seventh straight double-double Monday -- Bynum once again has proven to be a head-scratcher. Even in a somewhat encouraging offensive performance Monday, with 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting, his defense and energy were spotty enough to earn him a hook just 3 minutes, 26 seconds into the third quarter.

For the series, Bynum is averaging only 9 points and 4.3 rebounds despite starting every game, and he has picked up 14 fouls in 78 minutes. His lack of production is starting to impact Gasol, too. With Bynum ineffective, Lamar Odom hurting and no other Lakers big man earning Phil Jackson's confidence, Gasol has been forced to take on a huge burden. Before Game 4, he had played at least 40 minutes in five straight playoff games and had played at least 42 minutes in four of them. Go ahead, try to find another big man you can say that about.

Without any break for the Lakers between the conference semifinals and this series, the cumulative impact of those minutes is starting to show. Gasol seemed noticeably less zippy Monday, with the signature play being a tired shove of a cutting Chris Andersen after Denver's high-flying center beat L.A. to yet another offensive rebound. The push earned him his fourth foul late in the third quarter, and it was all downhill from there for the Lakers.

A productive Bynum would change that whole equation. He not only would let Gasol rest but also could wear down the Nuggets with his impressive size and reverse the fatigue equation that so greatly favors Denver. But he can't accomplish that if he's on the bench with two fouls faster than you can say "untradable base-year compensation player." So confident is Denver in its ability to match up with L.A.'s frontcourt that it is even trotting out small lineups with Linas Kleiza at the 4, something that seemed unthinkable when this series began.

For Cleveland, the man under the microscope is Zydrunas Ilgauskas, the 7-foot-3 center who inexplicably has spent much of the series launching 3s from the right corner. In fact, he has as many 3-point attempts (six) as free-throw attempts in this series despite missing all of his triples. Orlando often guards him with 6-10 Rashard Lewis and forces Cleveland to cross-match at the other end, creating mayhem in transition for the Cavs' defense and repeated early open looks for Orlando.

Ilgauskas has to punish Orlando's bold defensive strategy by posting up and scoring. Lewis is 5 inches shorter and not exactly renowned for his leaping ability. If the Cavs don't think he can score that way, he needs to come off the court so they can play small. But what's happening is that their third-best offensive player is spending the entire series doing something he has never done successfully. Although he has made a few more 3s this season than in the past, the fact that he has 20 for his entire 11-year career indicates this shouldn't be his go-to move.

In the backcourt, it's a similar tale. Mo Williams against Rafer Alston loomed as a huge edge for Cleveland entering the series, but that advantage has yet to materialize through four games. Williams guaranteed a Cleveland victory in Game 4, but the Cavs probably would have been happier if he had guaranteed he'll shoot 40 percent -- something he hasn't done in any of the first three games of the series.

Orlando's defense has taken away the clean looks that he and the other Cleveland role players have had for much of the season thanks to James' dominance, but in the case of Williams, there was supposed to be one key difference: his ability to create his own shot rather than having LeBron create for him. That ability has been weirdly absent in this series. Williams is averaging 17 points but shooting only 32.1 percent from the field and hasn't exactly stuffed the stat sheet. With Alston and Anthony Johnson combining for 14.3 points a game and supplying sturdier game management, the shocking result is that the Cavs are getting outplayed at the point despite a 1-0 advantage in healthy All-Stars at the position.

Of course, Williams looks like Magic Johnson compared to the production the Lakers are getting from the tandem of Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown and Jordan Farmar. (The joke du jour is that when Denver fans were told to thank a veteran for Memorial Day, they immediately started thanking Fisher.) This now qualifies as dead-horse territory, but with every day, it gets more amazing. Since decking Luis Scola in Game 2 of the Houston series, Fisher has scored 35 points in eight games (4.4 per). He's 15-of-57 (26.3 percent), has averaged less than two assists from the point guard spot and has made two free throws. Two.

That Brown and Farmar haven't been able to unseat Fisher underscores how poorly they've played. Brown has cooled after a strong start to the postseason, shooting 6-of-19 from the field and struggling in his minutes against Chauncey Billups. Farmar has been the most active of the three offensively, but that's about as backhanded as a compliment can get. Plus, he continues to struggle mightily on D, and the Lakers don't dare put him anywhere near Billups because of the size mismatch.

So for these next two games, try to move your thinking to four other names. No, these conference finals aren't about Kobe and LeBron. In the West, they're about Fisher and Bynum, and in the East, they're about Williams and Ilgauskas. Kobe and LeBron won't reach the Finals without them, and so far, they haven't delivered.

John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.