[SmootSmack]

Just shortly before the play (which I did see) Kobe was complaining to the refs about a foul (or fouls) that he felt should have been called against him. When the foul wasn't called, Kobe essentially decided to take matters into his own hands. I'm sure he apologized afterward because he likely didn't mean to hurt Jaric per se, just that he was frustrated and wanted to "send a message"

Thing with Kobe is he's a phenomenally gifted athlete, and his body control makes it a bit harder to believe him when he says that was an accident...twice. It's almost akin to when Pedro Martinez hits a batter and says he lost control of the ball. Perhaps, but Martinez has some of the best control of any pitcher in history so it's hard to believe him when he says it was an "accident."