Kobe
To my Laker brethrens, remember that Kobe in 2004 opted out of his contract for free agency. Of course it wasn’t nearly the spectacle of the train wreck in that one-hour special on ESPN Lebron had to do. Interestingly, Kobe was also 25 years old at the time. We all know that he elected to stay and even demanded to be traded a couple of years later. No, Kobe is not perfect, far from it. But no one is.
I watched him his entire career, even when he was playing the summer league at Long Beach the year he was drafted. Yes, he’s made mistakes along the way but everyone does. I remember some of the dumb decisions I’ve made in the past and I would hate it if people held it over my head for the entirety of my life. We allow ourselves the room for natural maturation why not give the room for pro athletes?
Kobe is now older and when it was time for another contract to be signed, he did it, quietly determined not to let it become a distraction to the team because he has one goal in mind every year. Win the championship. No he’ll never be as good as Jordan but he’s the closest thing. I’ll take it.
By all accounts, Lebron will finish with a better statistical career than Kobe. He’s always been more gifted and athletic. I didn’t even write this blog during the year because it was no contest. Lebron had an amazing year. But when we start talking about who’s the better player we need to first define what a “better player” truly means. Here’s a question: Would you want the most gifted guy that will only reach 90% of his ceiling because he’s got other invested interests? Or a guy less gifted (but not far off) who maximizes his talent, wants to get better every year, and only cares about winning?
Look at it this way, when Lebron lost to Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2009, he reacted by spending the summer promoting his book and documentary. He hung out with Warren Buffet to receive advice on investments. AND HE JUST LOST!
Kobe on the other hand, WON the championship!! He spent the same summer with game Hakeem Olajuwon working on a post!! He came back the next year with a nasty and wicked post game. Since guards weren’t use to guarding guys in the post, Kobe abused them, badly. I watched opponent after opponent shaking their heads in discouragement as they returned to the bench in foul trouble.
Kobe, after winning his fifth title (second without Shaq), has put himself in the conversation of Bird, Magic, Jordan, and Russell. Kobe haters cling onto his 6 for 24 Game 7 shooting performance like insecure elementary school children. Taking one line out of the box score without considering the context is like looking at a single Bible verse in isolation and interpreting it anyway we want. That’s how cults are formed. This article puts Game 7 in perspective better than I can. Regardless of his terrible shooting, he still contributed to the win by working his tail off on defense, rebounding (15 from the guard position is remarkable), and getting to the line late in the game when points were hard to come by.
In short, I would gladly take my less gifted guy who spent his entire career (14 years and counting) on my team (with all of his flaws – and yes, there’s plenty) who always looks to get better every year and has always cared only about winning (5 titles and counting) over the modern day Oscar Robertson for 7 years, 0 titles, and a big slap in the face one-hour TV special telling me how much I suck and that he’d rather be somewhere else.
Don’t get me wrong. I want Lebron to be great. I hope he matures and becomes the player we all know he could be but since he doesn’t have a strong father figure and a bunch of “yes men” for buddies I’m not sure he’ll ever get it.
By the way, do you think Kobe isn’t seething with all attention Miami is now getting? The “Miami Thrice” introductions were much more ostentatious than the Lakers’ championship parade. How many extra hours do you think he’s going to spend in the gym this year gearing to kick their butts? I know that’s how Jordan would be thinking.
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