Storyline: The record is clear: Kobe Bryant is one of the NBA’s all-time best…despite what some experts and fans say. The numbers tell the story.
When describing the affluent basketball personality that is Kobe Bryant a litany of adjectives come to mind: selfish, ball hog, overpaid, old, bad teammate. “Underrated” seems like it doesn’t belong in the same sentence as Kobe Bryant. Unfortunately, as age and attrition have caught up with Kobe, his reputation as an all-time great has taken quite the hit.
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In light of recent contract signings by other veterans, such as Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki in which they’ve decided to sacrifice millions of dollars in order to build a contender for their franchise, Kobe Bryant has been the scapegoat of the Lakers’ recent shortcomings. Next year Kobe Bryant will make roughly $25 million in NBA salary alone, much more than Duncan’s $5.2 million and Nowitzki’s $8.3 million.
After two seasons in which he has missed a combined 120 games, and has shot below 40% from the field, Kobe’s enormous salary seems unwarranted and has also contributed to the Lakers’ fall from grace. On the surface Kobe’s inability to do what’s right for his team has led to his diminished status as an all-time great. Most have already placed Duncan ahead of Kobe as the best of the generation–and undeservedly so.
First and foremost, Kobe Bryant’s salary gets blown out of proportion in terms of how much negative impact it has had on his team. The Lakers have never been unwilling to empty their pockets. And they failed to get a star player this off- season–despite having more than enough cap space for a max contract. So money shouldn’t be an issue.
Kobe’s personality as an egocentric curmudgeon also shouldn’t impair his status as an all-time great. That’s because Michael Jordan, universally recognized as the G.O.A.T, received little to no backlash from the public for his somewhat disrespectful persona. Kobe Bryant should be held to that same standard and his on-court excellence should be taken into account much more that it is. Bryant’s hefty salary and undesirable persona shouldn’t penalize his status as an all-time great.
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After the devastating Achilles injury suffered at the end of the 2012-2013 season, Kobe Bryant’s stats have been rather mediocre. He registered a measly 17.6 PER this past season which, according to ESPN, was surpassed by 74 other NBA players. This recent decrease in stats has damaged Kobe’s prestige as a top 10 player of all-time. However, the numbers he has put up in the last 44 games shouldn’t tarnish the legacy he established through the first 17 seasons and 1236 games of his career.
It was only 2 years ago, at age 34 and in his 17th season, that Bryant was putting up MVP-like numbers by averaging over 27, 6, and 5. According to Basketball Reference, Kobe is the only player, age 32 or older, to average such numbers over a single season. People easily forget about Bryant’s remarkable durability and unprecedented consistency.
Very few NBA players have put up a consistent stretch of efficient, high-quality numbers late into their careers–even the all-time greats. Larry Bird suffered injuries, Magic had his HIV setback, Shaq regressed and became a journeyman late in his career, while the G.O.A.T., Michael Jordan, had only 13 seasons of high-level basketball. Even the great Tim Duncan, who has been the cornerstone for durability and consistency, hasn’t had his career averages of 19 points and 11 rebounds for 7 seasons. So Bryant’s ability to play at a prime level for such a long time should not be taken for granted.
Something else that has been overlooked about Bryant is the adversity he has faced. This probably sounds absurd to people. After all, Kobe came into the league with no pressure and had a resident superstar by his side in form of Shaq. In truth, the situation in which found himself made it more difficult for Kobe to showcase his undeniable greatness. By being picked 13th overall in the draft Kobe wasn’t given a chance to start right away. He was on the bench for the first few seasons of his career.
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If he had been given the immediate minutes that most high-caliber players receive upon entering the league, Kobe’s career numbers would have been bolstered significantly. With Shaq, he was a sidekick even though he was much more than that. Unfortunately, the perception will always be that Shaq carried Kobe. Incredible seasons often get overlooked, such as 2002-2003, when Kobe averaged 30, 6, and 7.
When Shaq left following his feud with Kobe, the Lakers were finally Kobe’s teams. Unfortunately, although he put up historic numbers and won scoring titles in the succeeding seasons, Kobe had little-to-no talent around him — but the team still made the playoffs on a consistent basis. For example, Kobe took a team with Smush Parker, Luke Walton, and Kwame Brown to 45 wins and a near 1st round upset over Steve Nash’s Suns.
Contrary to popular belief, Kobe Bryant does make his team better. What might be the greatest knock on Kobe’s legacy is that he supposedly does not pass the ball. But that contention is utterly false. His all-around game is severely underrated as people forget that Kobe Bryant is in the 30k points, 6k assists, and 6k rebounds club. His career average is around 5 assists a game, perfectly respectable for a shooting guard. After all, Michael Jordan only averaged 5.3 assists a game for his career.
Finally, Kobe Bryant has repeatedly had to deal with management issues–from the tumultuous coaching change of Mike Brown and Mike D’Antoni, to Jim Buss’ inability to draw talent.
It’s reasonable to surmise that had Kobe Bryant’s situation been a different–if it had been part of a model franchise, such as the Spurs–then the comparisons to Michael Jordan wouldn’t sound as crazy as they do to some fans and experts.
I can’t really agree on some of your arguments. I am not the biggest Kobe Bryant fan simply because I don’t consider him to be that much of a team player for most of his career. I still do consider him a top 15 player all time mostly because of longevity, but to start with me not agreeing with some of your arguments.
1.)”Kobe came into the league with no pressure and had a resident superstar by his side in form of Shaq. In truth, the situation in which found himself made it more difficult for Kobe to showcase his undeniable greatness.” – most Kobe fans like to think that Kobe is the G.O.A.T. or 2nd in that race and they mostly use 2 facts to support their claim – he scored 81 points and he has 5 titles. In comparison to Lebron James they say 5>2. You’re pointing out that Kobe had it difficult by playing with Shaq, but we will never know what Kobe would achieve had he not been traded to the Lakers – my opinion is there is no way he would win 5 titles because he wouldn’t be playing with Shaq and for Phil Jackson. So I think Kobe had the privilege to be coached by Phil for most of his career, unlike many other greats.
2.) “Unfortunately, although he put up historic numbers and won scoring titles in the succeeding seasons, Kobe had little-to-no talent around him — but the team still made the playoffs on a consistent basis.” – in the first year without Jackson and Shaq the Lakers had 34 wins and Kobe , supposedly on of the best teams in the world, won only 34 games. Next year Jackson returns and takes the Lakers back to the playoffs. To compare Kobe with Lebron, Lebron had 60+ seasons with an equally mediocre Cavs team, and Lebron went to the NBA finals with 3 different coaches, something Kobe could only dream of.
3.)”It’s reasonable to surmise that had Kobe Bryant’s situation been a different–if it had been part of a model franchise, such as the Spurs–then the comparisons to Michael Jordan wouldn’t sound as crazy as they do to some fans and experts.” – it’s equally as reasonable to assume that Kobe Bryant, not being the team player as Tim Duncan is and by being uncoachable (Phil Jacksons words) would never fit in the team play the Spurs like to play. The Spurs are the Spurs mostly because of being built around Tim Duncan, one of the most quiet greats of all time that took pay cut after pay cut after pay cut. Had Kobe been with the Spurs, that means Tim Duncan wouldnt have been there, nor Pau Gasol or Odom or Artest etc because the Spurs cant afford all those salaries. And I must repeat myself, Kobe being traded to the Lakers, coached by Phil, playing next to Shaq for 8 years was a privilege itself that most players of his generation (Iverson, McGrady etc) never had the chance to play for the best coach in history.
Kobe Bryant is a top 3 player of all time hands down. There is NO WAY that you can say hes the 93rd best player in the NBA right now. A healthy kobe bryant could take on everyone except lebron, KD, and some of the big men. Kobe is 8 on my list. EASY
Adambe should change his name to adamfool. You post makes absolutely no sense and wreaks of Kobe hatred. Typical lebron stan.
Adambe is a typical Lebron Stan.
Kobe is a top 3 player EVER. He was unguardable in his prime. Lebron can stuff the stat sheet all he wants but he’s a choker and, more to the point, trades “efficiency” for clutchness: with the game on the line, Lebron is shooting less than 25% from the field and has passed on 17 (17!) game winning shots (with his team shooting a measly 14% in such situations). The guy pads his stats but he is not a closer and can only win rings on STACKED teams.
Kobe went to THREE finals in a row with Pau Gasol (who is not a HOF’er), and Artest (past his prime), and a washed up Odom, winning two rings, in the WESTERN CONFERENCE. Jason Kidd went to back to back Finals on the Nets because the East has been absolute TRASH since MJ left. Kobe is an all-around more SKILLFUL player than Lebron (just as good a passer), and far superior shooter AND perimeter defender (most ALL-NBA awards for defense and most All-NBA awards for a perimeter player in history).
Kyrie saved Lebron’s tail yet again. Kobe is top 3 ever.