article on why the name kobe bryant is in everybodys mouth
nikobe
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You can't watch a basketball game without hearing it once. The name "Kobe Bryant" triggers an emotion of some sort. To his detractors words such as coc-kiness, selfish, garbage without Shaq, spoiled, MJ copycat, and lucky come to mind. To his supporters, determination, dedication, incredible talent seem to be adjective mainstays of the young phenom. Let's consider for a moment why he is the most talked about player.
There was once a young man by the name of Michael Jordan whom was criticized and scrutinized all the time because "he tried to copy the moves of Julius Erving". Until the breakout performances against the Boston Celtics in the playoffs, the negative comments had to be endured. But did you noticed the criticism never ended? When he won the slam dunk contest, he was criticized for doing the same dunk twice. After winning 3 championships and coming back later, he was criticized because Orlando beat the Bulls and he couldn't deliver in the crunch. When he won another three, they had no fuel on the court to barrage him, so the writers focused on gambling or other off-court issues. Not to further the comparison debate between the two players, but we've seen this thing before.
This game- this world even is a "What have you done for me lately" affair. Kobe has done so much, so fast that his non-fans would say, "It can't be him- it must just be Shaq!" If he shoots a lot and they lose, Idiot Rosen articles surface. If he post back to back triple-doubles and makes people jump back on his ship, the haters will claim, "Well McGrady had 47 points, Kobe only had 33" Never mind the 14 and 12 with those points.
The fact that Tracy McGrady, Ray Allen, Darrell Armstrong and others haven't given him what Laker fans will claim is due respect is because they haven't had him rip their hearts out in a game that really counts (i.e. a playoff series). Notice how you'll never hear San Antonio, Portland, or Sacramento say that such and such is better than Kobe. In fact those previously mentioned teams got players with the sole purpose of stopping Kobe (Bruce Bowen, Ruben Patterson, and Doug Christie). Even the self-proclaimed Kobe stopper now gives compliments (perhaps it was that last play of game 3 that made him see the light). Tracy McGrady had little respect for Baron Davis before their series, but he had a change of heart having it handed to him and his team.
The point is Kobe is really that good or else he wouldn't be the barometer for other players to measure their skills. He is scrutinized, because people probe for weaknesses. The comparisons will not stop, rather they will become academic once his skills erode ala Jordan. But nothing can take away from what he has already done, and the future looks even better. But if he steals anything from Jordan, it needs to be the poise to handle scrutiny and comparisons for the duration of his career.
There was once a young man by the name of Michael Jordan whom was criticized and scrutinized all the time because "he tried to copy the moves of Julius Erving". Until the breakout performances against the Boston Celtics in the playoffs, the negative comments had to be endured. But did you noticed the criticism never ended? When he won the slam dunk contest, he was criticized for doing the same dunk twice. After winning 3 championships and coming back later, he was criticized because Orlando beat the Bulls and he couldn't deliver in the crunch. When he won another three, they had no fuel on the court to barrage him, so the writers focused on gambling or other off-court issues. Not to further the comparison debate between the two players, but we've seen this thing before.
This game- this world even is a "What have you done for me lately" affair. Kobe has done so much, so fast that his non-fans would say, "It can't be him- it must just be Shaq!" If he shoots a lot and they lose, Idiot Rosen articles surface. If he post back to back triple-doubles and makes people jump back on his ship, the haters will claim, "Well McGrady had 47 points, Kobe only had 33" Never mind the 14 and 12 with those points.
The fact that Tracy McGrady, Ray Allen, Darrell Armstrong and others haven't given him what Laker fans will claim is due respect is because they haven't had him rip their hearts out in a game that really counts (i.e. a playoff series). Notice how you'll never hear San Antonio, Portland, or Sacramento say that such and such is better than Kobe. In fact those previously mentioned teams got players with the sole purpose of stopping Kobe (Bruce Bowen, Ruben Patterson, and Doug Christie). Even the self-proclaimed Kobe stopper now gives compliments (perhaps it was that last play of game 3 that made him see the light). Tracy McGrady had little respect for Baron Davis before their series, but he had a change of heart having it handed to him and his team.
The point is Kobe is really that good or else he wouldn't be the barometer for other players to measure their skills. He is scrutinized, because people probe for weaknesses. The comparisons will not stop, rather they will become academic once his skills erode ala Jordan. But nothing can take away from what he has already done, and the future looks even better. But if he steals anything from Jordan, it needs to be the poise to handle scrutiny and comparisons for the duration of his career.
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