Kobe Vs. LBJ (Part 1 Of 2)
Last June, the Lakers were utterly and totally obliterated in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. Kobe was or may as well have been stripped down to his birthday suit, with a dildo shoved in his mouth of the green variety. The Lakers were punked by the Celtics and Game 6 was the coup de grace. Kobe's credibility, took a huge hit as a potential successor to the throne that to this day, is still occupied by Jordan as the Game's Greatest Ever.
Allow me to be clear on something, I don't factor in Kobe's "Colorado Incident" as being a determining factor on how great Kobe is. One had absolutely nothing to do with the other. As stated in the "Great Debate" on ESPN.com which sparked my sudden urge to blog about this, if I ask how great a dentist is and you tell me he beats his wife, that's not telling me if he can pull a tooth or not. Kobe Bryant is the all around package when it comes to players. He is, when he chooses to be, an assassin that will take your team out just because he can. (Something Houston needs to be VERY mindful of today.) However, there are times when he lets up, such as Game 6 of this series and on many degrees...Game 4 of last year's Finals which could've very well sunk Boston had Los Angeles won. He has been the most popular man to compare to Jordan, up until last year when I think people finally got the hint to stop. With Jordan once he became known by his last name exclusively, Jordan knew he was The Man. Jordan knew anytime he got good and damn well ready, your team was going home for the summer. No ifs, no ands, no buts about it. Ask Cleveland in 1989 or 1992. Ask the Knicks from 1993 on. Ask the Pacers in 1998. Ask every Western Conference Champion from 1991 to 1993, then ask the Jazz and Sonics from 96-98. Jordan was a Stone Cold Killer. He wasn't colorful or flashy, he was simple. He was precise and most important of all, he was effective. Ask any Jazz fan about 1998 and that jumpshot he hit over Russell who "fell". (Yeah, I know he got pushed but guess what? Find me a ref who calls that push off foul on Jordan annd I'll "find you" a crisp $100.) Jordan would tear your heart out of your chest and crush it in his hand, while walking away from your limp body BEFORE it hits the ground.
With Kobe, that has come into question over the last few years. Now there are those who make the argument that "he hasn't won anything without Shaq" and here's what I say to these people...
SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! Seriously, you're only showing how much of a sheep you are sounding like every talking head who knows fuck all about how the game works. Shaq didn't become a "title magnet" until he got to Los Angeles and Jordan called it quits in 1998, while Phil Jackson brought the Triangle to Los Angeles. And guess what? If it was such a "lock" that Shaq got them rings, why didn't they win one in 2004? Why couldn't they beat the Pistons for their fourth straight title? (Rhetorical) Fact is, you can put a great player next to a great post threat, but there's no guarantee they'll win a title together. Hence why Barkley didn't get a ring when he was shipped to Houston...or get another shot at one (thanks Matt Maloney, your inability to get out on Stockton for a game winning three in the 1997 West Finals is greatly appreciated). Kobe was great enough to prevent defenses from totally collapsing on Shaq, which probably wouldn't have mattered anyhow, because ya weren't stopping Shaq from 10 feet in and beyond. And hell, how come Penny Hardaway didn't get one with Shaq when they played together in Orlando? (Yet again, another rhetorical question...well, let me answer this anyhow.)
Penny didn't get one because as good as he was, the competition back then was much stiffer and Shaq wasn't as refined as he became during his Lake Show run. In 1995 when the Magic won the East (and along the way, knocked Jordan and his Bulls out of the playoffs in short order), Orlando ran into the defending champion Houston Rockets. The Magic were young and inexperienced, the Rockets were grizzled vets and more than battle tested. At the end of Game 1, Nick Anderson had something like 9 free throws to ice the game and missed ALL OF THEM. Houston went on to win it and put the series on ice from there, as Orlando didn't know how to bounce back from the adversity thrown their way in Game 1. Shaq bounced that Summer to Los Angeles and the rest as they say, is history. So please, stop with the "Kobe hasn't won shit since Shaq left' smiels.
But as far as Kobe now, he has to win today. His legacy as one of the all time greats will take a SERIOUS hit should his Lakers lose to an undermanned Rockets squad. No Yao, No McGrady and you can't knock them out with two tries including the final one at home?! Wow. Make no mistake, Kobe's skill set makes him the best player in the league. His resume boasts of one MVP trophy, three NBA titles and a gold medal to boot, courtesy of the Redeem Team. There's no real way to stop him on offense, because taking away one facet of his game means he's killing you with the other. Stop his dribble penetration, he'll stop and pop on you. Stick with him and at some point, he will leave you sucking fumes as he blows by you. Do any of the two and he'll just pop it over you. Yet and still, Kobe's the best in the NBA with LBJ as 1B to his 1A. Make no mistake though, LBJ's getting closer. The time they spent together with the Redeem Team has inspired LBJ to step his game (which was nearing unspeakable levels to begin with) to whole new heights. In Part 2 of my piece, I'll cover this and why...he actually deserved MVP more than he did ROTY.
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