Kobe Bryant Will Go Down As One of the Greats

Did you see the pound and embrace before last night's game? A nice little moment, and as Kobe pointed out, especially so given the day. And while I'm not a huge fan of the athletes as role models business, the sad truth is that a lot of kids are taking their cue from these guys rather than their parents, so I totally agreed with Kobe's point that is was especially nice for the children.

A few quick thoughts (after the jump):

1) Does anyone still think Jerry Buss made the wrong move keeping Kobe over that lard ass Shaq? Shaq's been pretty much abysmal this year, is pushing Orca status (the man makes Virtual Jackie and Virtual Cozmo look svelte) and is clearly on his very last legs. Anyone?

2) Other than Lebron, if I could have any player in the League for the next five years, I take Kobe. No Duncan, no Garnett, no Wade (close, but too injury prone). He's finally breaking out like I always thought he would once he was the star of the Laker's show. And here's the thing, if you think about it, his amazing play this year (and poor play last year) shouldn't really come as much of a surprise. Last year he still wasn't close to in the same physical (or mental) condition he was the previous few years. In the summer of 2003 (when all the alleged rape occurred) he had surgery on his knee and didn't hit the weights or apparently train at all. Between the not working out, and the stress of the drama, he looked sickly out there. Just completely unhealthy on a whole lot of levels. And it was clear last year that he still had not caught up either physically or mentally, not to mention that he was adjusting to his first year as the Lakers leader. This year, however, he's without question in optimal physical condition, he's "bulked back up" and it's crystal clear from his interviews that his confidence has been pretty much fully restored as a person and player. Matter of fact, dude is looking MJ-like unstoppable out there.

3) And speaking of MJ, here's the next thing: everybody says that by this time in his career Jordan had learned to be a better teammate and therefore it's too late for Kobe. What people fail to recognize though, is that Jordan was basically on his own from Day One. Yeah, this is Kobe's tenth year in the leauge (but it would only be year six if he did the four-year college routine), but it's only year two for Kobe as the star of the Lakers show and that changes the analysis. And because he's been in the league so long, it won't take him near as long to adjust.

4) And that leads me to my next point: it says here that (provided Lamar Odom doesn't pull a Spreewell and take a 2x4 to his head) either next year, or more likely the year after, Kobe has the Lakers in the thick of the race for the NBA crown. It also says here that Kobe will keep them right there for a minute and will have a few more rings before all is said and done. He will not be remembered as a Tracy McGrady or Allen Iverson, amazing scorers on largely lousy teams. He will be remembered as one of the greatest players ever to play the game. Count on it.

(And just so the record is clear, I pretty much can't stand Kobe Bryant. The man strikes me as a self-absorbed egomaniac. Plus, the whole MJ-Lite speech cadence and body language stuff I could definitely do without. (Dude musta spent more of his high school years watching Jordan tapes than a budding nymphomaniac does watching Jenna and, well, Kobe.) Further, from where I sit, he's shown some pretty legit signs of simply being a bad person (and I'm not even killing him on the adultery, that happens all the time in the League, he just got caught.) What I will kill him on is tossing Shaq under the bus. I mean really, who does that? But the bottom line is that for all his flaws, the man is a fierce competitor, the man clearly has a burning desire to be the best, clearly loves the game of basketball, and the man is Supremely Gifted. When all is said in done, folks will look at Kobe Bryant and say, "There goes one of the greatest players ever to play the game of basketball." Count on it.)

Comments

[Cozmo]

MJ? Even MJ like? Get a grip, chiles.

The Lake Show is still only 4 games over .500.

[Slick Willy]

Good stuff, Jackie. Well written, interesting and you take a stand.

I'd do think the odds are stacked against Kobe picking up another ring. He needs more players, and it's not clear that folks are lining up to be part of Kobe's "supporting cast".

However even if that doesn't happen, he'll have accomplished more than Simmons is currently giving him credit for (I caught those McGrady/Iverson comparisons you referenced) . The man won three rings - yeah he needed Shaq to do it, yeah they should have won at least two more, but he won three rings!

[lattalayne]

Glad you added the last part about not being able to stand Kobe. I was getting scared.

Slightly but not entirely off-topic, can anyone here explain to me what the Hell was going on last year (or year before) when Kobe was pushing the Lakers to hire Coach K as a head coach?? A great college coach who could never, ever make it in the NBA.

[membengal]

Great, no, phenomenal read jackie. Interesting points, and out of step with mainstream impressions.

And, I think you may very well be right.

[Maine]

No fucking way. Kobe is very talented, but he can't be considered any more of an all time great than Rick Barry. Think of it this way...

If Kobe gets hit in the face with that beer cup like Artest did, and he goes into the stands... do any of his teammates go with him? Can you see a single Laker stand up and take his suspension because he had to have his guy's back? Of course not. They hate him.

And you're not going to win a championship with a guy that you hate, unless you're 7 feet tall and 300 pounds. When they're six games into a series, and every game feels like hell, there isn't a guy on the Laker's roster who's going to be willing to go into hell with Kobe. Anybody who's even played ball on the playgrounds knows that much. Teams are always better when they're ready to go to war with each other.

If Larry Bird got hit with that cup, do you think any person would still be on the Celtic's bench instead of in the crowd with him? Really?

[Todd Gack]

You don’t think the Lakers would be better off with Shaq and Dwayne Wade? I guess you are right seeing that the Lakers have a much better record than the Heat.

[Maine]

Plus? We're talking about Lamar Odom here. Lamar Assed Odom. This is the guy who cried when the Clippers wanted to re-sign him. This is the guy who whined when Riley stepped down as coach. This is the man who cried when he was traded back to LA. This is the man who, as recently as a few weeks ago, cried when Gary Payton trash talked him during a basketball game.

If Kobe Bryant is on the floor doing his one man band routine and jacking the ball with ill-regard for any teammate who has the hot hand, is this the guy you expect to be the cool stalwart teammate who steps up and performs every night of the playoffs despite being called out by his coach and the media regularly for not being aggressive enough? Lamar?

Or were you expecting a push from a guy named Smush? No chance!

[Jackie]

You don’t think the Lakers would be better off with Shaq and Dwayne Wade? I guess you are right seeing that the Lakers have a much better record than the Heat.

Did you read the post?

[Jackie]

"This is the man who, as recently as a few weeks ago, cried when Gary Payton trash talked him during a basketball game."

Really, I had not heard about that. Wow.

Anyway, you make some very fair points regarding Kobe's deficiencies as a leader. And to futher support your argument, it'll be very difficult for him overcome that hurdle after, among other things, the way he tossed Shaq under the bus.

Time will tell.

[jbcizool]

Nice post but I couldn't disagree more. Kobe is an asshole and being able to watch him on a regular basis, talk to people who work with the Lakers, and basically see this guy grow up in front of my eyes I can tell you he is all ass. Don't forget that Jordan didn't start the "fall-away" game until after his first retirement. Kobe has been trying to do that instead of drive to the hoop for the last 2 seasons. He is the worst teammate ever. MJ may have been hard on his teammates but they loved him (Bulls, Wizards never happened).

[UC]

Kobe is still an a-hole who will never win another championship.

[Maine]

I'll admit that I can't think of a more talented player than Kobe aside from LeBron, but I really thik he's lacking in the Tom Brady / Tim Duncan / Natural Born Leader arena.

And yeah, Lamar made a big deal in the press about how badly Gary Payton hurt his feelings during the Xmas game saying "some things you just don't say to a man."

[Jackie]

And yeah, Lamar made a big deal in the press about how badly Gary Payton hurt his feelings during the Xmas game saying "some things you just don't say to a man."

Any idea what Payton said? 'Cause unless it was some shit about Odom's dead momma (is she?), that really is rather pathetic.

[renaldo rey]

first off im a kobe bryant fan,with saying that there's alot about kobe that people dont understand. micheal jordan even recongnizes kobe talent for this game and so does phil jackson who coached m.j.the level of kobe's games rises and rises every year.even lebron james who people say he's better than kobe, gives kobe the repect and also a fan of kobe of his game, and said he is the best at this game,and theres so much more, but thats just a tip of greatness that acknowlegde kobe

I'm glad you didn't focus on the rape thing but you did cross over its relevance too quickly. If people still respected Kobe then they would be more likely to accept your theory. I think Kobe is great as a player and maybe not the perfect human but that doesn't mean he can't win again. Age and experience are on his side more then anyone outside of Duncan or Billups (Wade & Lebron don't have rings yet). This isn't boxing so forget the fight crap, this is pro ball and it only takes about 3 players and a coach to win. I think he can find the chemistry again and get one in the future. Will he be remembered as a great, only time will tell. If he can be forgiven then yes. And MJ was the best but he had flaws too. He gambled, players thought he was over-competitive to the point of cruelty and his ego was so huge he thought he could do anything... play baseball, fix the wizards as a GM then as a player and sell everything from hotdogs to bowling ball. It doesn't take a perfect person to win...side note if Larry Bird was hit with a beer the crowd would have killed the fan, in his seat, Larry would just have to point him out.

I'm glad you didn't focus on the rape thing but you did cross over its relevance too quickly. If people still respected Kobe then they would be more likely to accept your theory. I think Kobe is great as a player and maybe not the perfect human but that doesn't mean he can't win again. Age and experience are on his side more then anyone outside of Duncan or Billups (Wade & Lebron don't have rings yet). This isn't boxing so forget the fight crap, this is pro ball and it only takes about 3 players and a coach to win. I think he can find the chemistry again and get one in the future. Will he be remembered as a great, only time will tell. If he can be forgiven then yes. And MJ was the best but he had flaws too. He gambled, players thought he was over-competitive to the point of cruelty and his ego was so huge he thought he could do anything... play baseball, fix the wizards as a GM then as a player and sell everything from hotdogs to bowling ball. It doesn't take a perfect person to win...side note if Larry Bird was hit with a beer the crowd would have killed the fan, in his seat, Larry would just have to point him out. Thats respect!

[Nominal Me]

Nobody can sneak through the backcourt like Kobe Bryant.

[Jackie]

Hey Nominal, for future reference, the game of basketball does include "backdoor" cuts.

[fanatic]

kobe bryant is the worst player in nba history. he doesn't care about his team, or the league, he only cares about himself. he thinks he's better than every nba player today. he is so selfish and too proud. i'd hate to be in his team. imagine running around the court for 4 qrtrs and coming out empty handed every second of that game. kobe a very talented player?pphhhttt!!!! he is a useless shitbag. michael jordan is the greatest ever.

[fanatic]

i will never buy a kobe merchandise ever. and i'd tell my friends to curse kobe bryant forever. yes to teamplay!!!!!!!!

[HoopDream101]

Wow.......Worst ever? You cant be the worst ever and accomplish the feats he has. No MATTER HOW MUCH YOU HATE he dosent fall into the WORST ever catergory. Maybe the WORST EVER EGO but not the WORST EVER. And yes, he does think hes better than every NBA player. Its called CONFIDENCE and thats why he performs so well night in and night out. And has he ever SAID hes the best? NOPE.

Didnt think so, but his game tells all. All the players understand that so the hate him OR respect him. He may not be the best person/teammate ext, but its undeniable as of NOW, he IS the best player in the NBA. And I dont even like him that much but that much is a FACT regardless how much you hate it and him.