<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NO QUESTION, Kobe Bryant is fun to watch, but listening to him talk, it's a reminder of what happens when you mix together a dash of immaturity, an unchecked ego and a politically correct desire to orchestrate one's own image. "Do you like Kobe Bryant?" the ESPN.com quiz began Wednesday morning, and based on the results, 46.1% voted "no," 45% "yes," and another 8.9% had no opinion, which all together is unbelievable given his talent to excite sports fans. The survey asked the question, "What do you feel was Bryant's primary motivation for joining the World Championship and Olympic teams?" Interest in representing the U.S. and reclaiming titles drew 41% of the vote, while an astounding 59% suggested his interest was "in doing what he thinks will help his public image." That tells me people are listening to Bryant when he talks, and shaking their head in disbelief when he says he's only going after the "W," when he says he's all about championships, and when he says he's looking forward to a time again when he won't have to score a lot. The survey results suggest people love to see his athletic arrogance at work on the court, but when it continues to be displayed off the court, it becomes a turn-off. It'd be nice, as some have suggested, if we could sit back and just enjoy the gift that allows someone to score 81 points, but then he has to open his mouth and tell us what he thinks we want to hear. "I just try to be an inspiration to our youth," he told Roggin. "Not to be perfect or to do everything by the book or try to please everybody, just to be yourself. You go through life's trials and tribulations and just try to grow as a person and you just try to learn from them. You just try to be who you are and try to be better than the person that you were yesterday. "That's what I stand for and that's what I try to do and that's how I try to inspire youth." Kobe Bryant, the role model? No thanks. Just play basketball. Score a ton of points, aggravate Phil Jackson, score some more, and give the granddaughter a break, and just shut up.</div> Source
I don't know if there's a player in the league who's more conscious about his image than Kobe. Understandable, given the heat he's taken the last few years.
He can be unsympathetic but still I think he doesn't deserve all the bad publicity. Like Fortson, people just won't love him. Too bad.
I found it funny that an article like that came from the LATimes. It just goes to show how much local support Kobe has from the media, doesn't it? You would think local media would be a little more supportive given that he is the star of our local team, but that isn't the case. The guy can never win, no matter what he says. Funny thing is though, without Kobe talking to them and making these comments they can't write these articles in the first place. I really think Kobe should just ignore the media for a while and just let his game do the talking.
It's sad but true. I've personally grown to like Kobe, but whenever he's near the media, he's always being PC. But like Durvasa said, you can't blame him after the heat he's taken for the past few years.
Damn! The L.A. Times is always hating on Kobe maybe because they are linked with ESPN who suprisingly is always hating on Kobe too. This is what I learned on my Philosophy class this week. This argument: Conclusion:Kobe bryant is not a role mode and the public does not like him. Premises: A bunch of misleading polls. I consider this argument Weak.
I don't know why L.A. media hates on him, they see the lack of talent around him. I guess hating sells papers.
