Putting Kobe in perspective

[hbryant (期待晴天)]

Putting Kobe in perspective
http://0rz.tw/9a2yg         By Jemele Hill

Kobe Bryant is better than Michael Jordan.

Not more successful.

Hasn't had a bigger economic impact.

Hasn't won more MVPs.

Hasn't won more titles.

But he's a better player.

Kobe can do everything Michael did, and even
a few things Michael couldn't do.

Kobe is just as good a defender. His killer
instinct is just as pronounced. He can shoot,
finish and explode. And just like Jordan, the
more he's pissed off, the more unstoppable he is.

At the very least, Kobe's scoring spree over
the last week should put to rest any lingering
doubts that he's the best player in the NBA.
Yes, better than Steve Nash, who is the best
point guard, but not the lethal force that Kobe
is. Yes, better than Dwyane Wade, who is certainly
closer to the Kobe-Jordan level than LeBron James,
but D-Wade's game is not as polished as Kobe's.

Kobe's streak of four straight 50-points-plus
games is something none of those players can do,
and it's something that hasn't been done since
Wilt Chamberlain, who had an NBA-record seven
straight 50-point games. Truthfully, Kobe should
have tacked another 50 on Golden State on Sunday
night.

Of course, the idea that Kobe is better than
Jordan -- or even the best player in this league
-- is as repugnant to some folks as a rectal exam.
Even though Kobe has proven himself under pressure
countless times, he gets the A-Rod treatment.

Kobe can't please anyone. And it doesn't help
that most people suffer from revisionist history
when it comes to Jordan, forgetting that he was
just as poor a teammate and a ball hog and that
he ran off coach Doug Collins like Kobe ran off
Phil Jackson the first time.

In fact, you could argue that Jordan was even worse.
Far as we know, Kobe hasn't jacked up any of his
teammates the way Jordan punched out Steve Kerr and
Will Perdue at practice.

Kobe will never be forgiven for Shaq's departure,
but you're delusional if you think Jordan wouldn't
have had any ego issues playing alongside a player
with Shaq's star power.

The best-player argument shouldn't be determined by
personal dislike. But if you want to take it there,
fine. Jordan was hardly the ideal husband, but only
the tabloids were brave enough to venture into his
personal life. And what about those gambling issues?
If Jordan's life had been covered like Kobe's, we
would have an entirely different opinion of His Airness.

Besides a different level of media scrutiny, there
was definitely a difference in the level of competition
during Jordan's heyday compared to now.

Yesterday's NBA player certainly was more fundamentally
sound, but there's no question that today's player is
bigger, stronger and faster. When Jordan played, he was
a singular force that could not be equaled. Jordan was
guarded by the likes of John Starks and Joe Dumars, who
were fine players but weren't nearly as skilled or
physically imposing as LeBron, D-Wade, Tracy McGrady
or even Vince Carter.

The NBA is tougher now.

Kobe, like Michael, is surrounded with mediocre to
below-average talent, and Phoenix, Dallas and San Antonio
are all better than the Utah, Portland and the Charles
Barkley-led Phoenix team that Michael met in the NBA Finals.

Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson and Patrick Ewing
will be among the best centers ever, but none of
them affected the league the way Shaq and Tim Duncan
have. There are two two-time MVPs in Kobe's own
conference (Duncan, Nash), which is a problem Jordan
never faced during his championship runs. Seven-footers
weren't launching 3s back then. Magic Johnson and
the Lakers were on a downward spiral, and the Pistons
were on their last legs. It was Michael and everyone
else. That's not the case for Kobe.

The shame of it is that Kobe might finish his career
without a MVP, even though his ability can be compared
only to that of Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. All this
time we've been looking for a player who is better than
Jordan, but most of us can't get beyond whether we like
or dislike Kobe as a person to recognize his contributions
to the game.

Ultimately the MVP award will go to either Nash or Dirk
Nowitzki, who are deserving this season, but neither are
as good as Kobe. Dallas and Phoenix are strong enough to
make the playoffs without their stars. The Lakers, however,
are a lottery team without Kobe.

Now that's a valuable player.

Jemele Hill, a Page 2 columnist and writer for ESPN
The Magazine, can be reached at [e-mail].


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※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) 
◆ From: 163.15.163.64
→ tco:這一篇我相信有很多人又會出來反駁...
→ tco:之前ESPN的作家就把KB放入歷史的TOP 10，一大堆人就開始酸了
→ tco:不過說實在，MJ的個人數據實在是無懈可擊...以一個後衛的身分
→ tco:各種得分  效率  季後賽得分 個人獎項...真要評價KB，我想等他
→ tco:退休再做個總結會較好...
→ tco:不過身為KB迷，當然會希望KB能夠創造出更勝MJ的成就...
→ tco:這是我衷心希望的...也希望KB 能有那樣的企圖---永不自滿
→ tco:事實上，各界的批評與不認同，反而是KB能夠永保企圖心的絕對因
→ tco:素...球迷越討厭他  越酸，他就能夠不斷進步
推 zehow:KOBE能不能比MJ更有成就 就看隊友能成長到哪了......KOBE現
→ zehow:在的能力在我心裡已經超越那個人了....但很多事是需要其他因
→ zehow:素才能達到  這不是kobe所能掌握的
推 ButI:即使KOBE成就高於MJ,我相信MJ迷也是認定MJ是TOP1,不過KOBE的
→ ButI:確是現今聯盟中最令人振奮的球員...KOBE加油~
推 u2gogowin:Kobe加油,努力打到退休就對了
推 DariusKid:事實是M.J能提升隊友, 但K.B目前似乎還沒有看到這效果
推 Maxslack:MJ能提升隊友 那我們的狀元是...?
→ Maxslack:有時候不要太武斷...
推 violing613:我會想到MJ早期評價Magic幫助隊友的說法
→ violing613:要讓賈霸 渥錫變強  是很簡單的 而我現在的隊友是...
推 ted0217:"提升隊友"根本就只是個印象而已
→ Drexler:真要照那種印象思維的話 提升Walton不就是了嗎(笑)
推 dpogcnn:敢問MJ是如何提升 且提升了哪位隊友???
推 Linus19:提升Pippen,Kukoc