Kobe Caught in Hoops Purgatory

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Wednesday night Kobe Bryant addressed the issue at hand -- the issue of his Game 7 performance against the Suns, and the issue between him and Charles Barkley that had developed over the last week. Barkley called Bryant "selfish" on national television after the Lakers lost huge in a Game 7, a game in which Kobe took only three shots and scored one point in the second half.

It might have been the most confusing performance of his career. It was also the moment when it became overtly evident that no matter what he does for the rest of his career, Kobe Bryant can't win.

"The important part is that we play the game and play the game to win ? to label me as selfish is something that I took up with Charles ? it's one thing to criticize an individual's game but it's another thing to ? "

On the TNT set Kobe spoke his peace. Said what he felt needed to be said, explained the issue and not necessarily why he did what he did, but where his mind was and why he didn't do what he'd normally do. Or more directly, what we all know someone else would have done if he'd been in the same situation.

Bryant said, "we stuck to the script ? " and "it depends on who we're playing ? " and "to demoralize them you have to stop them ? " when answering questions about his performance. About Barkley, he then said, "I'm not going to jump over the table and lump him in the head."

As the words left his mouth he seemed comfortable in his belief, comfortable in why he went out like he did and "allowed" Game 7 to end the way it did. And regardless of what he said, there seemed to be something left unsaid. Something deeper than a strategy and plan that he and the Lakers wanted to execute.

And the problem is: Even if he did go deeper and tell all of us what we wanted to hear, half of us would still hate him and not believe him while the other half would hold on to his every word as gospel.

He can't win.

And probably never will.

The reason he won't is because of the ghost that has followed him ever since he entered the NBA. The ghost of Jordan. Outside of never winning with the fans, teammates, Madison Avenue or the media, Kobe Bryant's mythical but amazingly eerie connection to Michael Jordan is the single reason why this paradox of life follows him the way that it does.

Kenny Smith even alluded to it when KB was on the set. "The barbershop question" is what he called it, to which Kobe responded, "I handle the ball more [than Jordan] ? the only similarities I see are our competitiveness ? we're different, we're just different."

But no one sees that but him. Just as no one sees his three-shot second half to end his unbelievable 2005-06 season as something that is a part of his basketball character.

And the Jordan "thing" is why we think that. Essentially, the rationale everyone used after Kobe's Game 7 performance -- making the judgments much more severe than they should have been -- is the mental attachment that, "Well, Jordan wouldn't have gone out like that."

And anyone who says they haven't said that out loud or to themselves since May 7 is lying.

Theories give reason. If this is true, here's two to grow on.

Theory 23/45/23: Had Michael Jordan never existed, Kobe Bryant probably would be the most celebrated basketball player in the world.

Why? Because we would have never seen anyone do what he does on the basketball court; we'd be amazed ? the same way we were when He blessed us in 1984. But the problem is, he did bless us and he did exist. Which is good for us, but over the years has made Kobe Bryant's life a living hell.

Theory 8/24: Had Kobe Bryant come into the league in 2002 with Amare or 2003 with LeBron, D-Wade, C-Bosh and Melo, or in 2004 with Dwight, or any year after Michael Jordan left the NBA, the comparisons would not haunt him the way they do.

And without haunting him, we -- the fans and the media -- would not draw the immediate comparisons forever between the intimacy of MJ's exit and KB's entrance. Had LeBron James come into the NBA in 1990, while Magic was still playing, and LB played against Magic, his life would be haunted the same way Kobe's is.

But LeBron didn't; he lucked out. So all we do is make general analogies, suggested resemblances. It's the difference between "LeBron James is the next Magic," as opposed to "Kobe Bryant is trying to be like Jordan."

There's an extremely big dissimilarity in the two statements. One that probably only Kobe recognizes because he's the one that has to live and live with it.

But the fact that Kobe came into the L on the heels of Jordan's second exodus -- and being so Jordanesque at the time -- human nature alone makes us connect him to Jordan like Bapes to Air Force Ones, Ask.com to Google, Chris Brown to Usher, Dime to Slam.

And this season might have been the worst for Kobe. By averaging 35.4 ppg, it took everyone back to 1986-87, when Jordan went ballistic, averaging over 37 a clip.

It's funny when they reminisce over you inside of a paradox like this, because no one mentioned how that season the Bulls played under-.500 basketball (40-42, fifth in their division, 17 games out of first place) and how they got swept in the first round by Boston, yet Kobe got the Lakers to play over-.500 ball (45-37, third in their division, nine games from first) and push the Suns to a "win or go home" game in the first round ? and he gets dogged. Or how Michael came in second in MVP voting that year to Magic, yet Kobe came in fourth this year, fifth in the general managers voting poll.

Yet, they basically had the exact same statistical season.

MJ, '86-87: 37.1 ppg/5.2 rpg/4.6 apg
KB, '05-06: 35.4 ppg/5.3 rpg/4.5 apg

Yet, Kobe's season is being held against him.

Which leaves the question open: Is the MJ lineage Kobe inherited unfair?

The answer is yes.

It's yes because without Jordan, direct analogies would not be made about everything he does on the basketball court; it's yes because we would not have a barometer to judge his every success and failure; it's yes because we wouldn't automatically say things like, "Damn he sounds just like MJ when he talks and damn he walks like MJ when he walks" to "his shoes don't sell like MJ's and he didn't sign with Brand Jordan because he wanted to be Nike's Jordan" to "the only reason he cut his Afro was to be more like MJ and the reason he's switching his number to 24 is because it's one number higher than MJ's."

He can never run from it.

His career is Jordan's in reverse. Win early, struggle late. But Jordan never had to go through this. Never had to deal with this type of scrutiny, never had to deal with this type of hate, never had to come on national television to discuss why he did what he did in the second half of a ball game that was lost at halftime.

In a season that was lost the minute the ref tossed up the ball in the very first game.</div>

Source

"Well, Jordan wouldn't have gone out like that."

Jordan did go out like that in 1989 in Game 4 against the Pistons. He got into an argument with Doug Collins, and only took 8 shots in the game. Over the summer Doug Collins was fired and Phil Jackson became the Bulls head coach.

Nice article by Scoop Jackson. I think there's a lot of truth to it. Every generation will defend the superstars they grew up watching against the current or past superstars. For my generation we grew up watching Magic, Jordan, Bird etc. but my dad's generation always says they weren't as good as Wilt, Russell, Dr J. etc.

Michael Jordan wasn't recognized for how great he was until his career started winding down and you have a chance to reflect on what he accomplished. During the time he was winning and dominating the league, he had a lot of criticism following him and was hated by a lot of basketball fans because he'd beat their teams. Now with Jordan retired the hate has turned into respect.

 

That is an excellent article. It brings a lot of light to the situation Kobe's in. His season was very identical to Jordan's 87-88 and he's being somewhat knocked for it.

I think once Kobe's career is winding down, like Shape said, people will look back on his individual acheivements, his rings, and possibly his more rings to come, and respect him.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AIRTIGHT:</div><div class="quote_post">Are yall serious?? ? Ask this: What does Kobe Bryant have to do with Jordan-- how does/did he influence Jordan? -- not in the least / Now what does Jordan have to do with Kobe Bryant?--- everything / Jordan aint trying to be like Kobe! People keep talking about how similar they are in their mannerisms on and off the court- why do you think that is? No, if Jordan had came after Kobe they would not be similar at all because Kobe would be a totally different player and person. He wouldnt be doing fadaways, he wouldnt talk like that, he wouldnt do the fist pump, and he wouldnt have nearly the same game. Who did Jordan "mirror" or a better word would be "steal" his image and game from? We didnt watch Jordan in his early days and say-- wow he talks just like .... wow his jumpshot looks like he took if from..... wow he acts like he's trying to be ..... And you Kobe sympathizers wanna come on here and blame it on Jordan that Kobe falls short in their comparisons--- when yall are the one's who compared the two in the first place, and he's the one who mirrored himself after Mike. That aint noones fault but your's and his-- damn sure not Michael Jordan or Jordan fans


Dr J, George Gervin, Elgin Baylor ???? The reason these players didnt "haunt" Jordan's legacy in the league is because--- he was BETTER than them. We would have never seen anybody do what Kobe does on the court???--- Mcgrady, Lebron, Wade--- we havent seen these guys mirror what Kobe's done on the court?? Really now? eventhough Wade and Bron are only in their 3rd year- we can see that they'll likely equal than outshine Kobe in the very near future in most aspects of NBA basketball. + what you didnt mention is if Jordan hadnt done what he had done, neither would have Kobe; You saying its coincidence he shoots the way he does, he plays the way he does? -- sure he'd still be fantastic, but you're talking more about Clyde Drexler in aesthetic ball skill than Michael Jordan-- where you have to admit that Mcrgrady, Arenas, Wilkins, J, Gervin, Wade, Iverson, Carter etc.. are all much more original in how their game visually plays than Kobe -- Kobe without Jordan---->> What comparsion? Kobe would not be nearly as popular--(considering that he is popular) without Jordan tapes for him to form his game around ... obviously he saw it was a proven form to success</div>

Excuse me, Michael Jordan was compared to a lot of players coming into the league. He was also criticized by the older generation because he challenged the superstars they grew up watching. Michael Jordan didn't appeal to the majority of fans who watched Dr J and George Gervin. When Jordan came to the league he brought the rising hip hop image with him. The gold chains, black socks, long shorts, and didn't conform at all to league standards. He was fined every game by the league for wearing Nike shoes, because Nike wasn't an official sponsor of the league back then.

Jordan was called cocky, selfish, and a ball-hog when he came to the league. Purists hated his game, and critics said he'd never win a title.

Only after Jordan's career came to an end, he started receiving praise as the greatest of all time. It took him leaving the game before people realized how dominating he was.

Kobe grew up studying his dad’s moves, then tried to mimic the way he played. His dad was a 6-9 forward who played like a PG. He actually grew up idolizing Magic Johnson and the showtime Lakers.

Of course Kobe imitates a lot of Michael Jordan's moves, he saw how effective Jordan was winning titles in the Triangle offense. Kobe's role in the Triangle is the same as Jordan's, and I'm sure the coaching staff gave him plenty of Jordan tape to watch and learn from the master. The same techniques are being done with Lamar Odom. The Lakers hired Scottie Pippen this past summer to come in and show Odom how to play the same role he played in the offense.

Why would Wade, McGrady or anyone else copy Kobe Bryant? They are all from the same generation so your point makes no sense. You better believe the future players coming into the league will definitely imitate a lot of what Kobe does. In fact Dwyane Wade wants to spend the summer learning from Kobe Bryant and how to approach the game. Kobe and TMac have trained together in the past, and I'm sure TMac picked up a lot of tricks of the trade from Kobe.

It's amazing how you hold Kobe's persona and impersonation of Jordan against him. If anything you should respect how close he's followed Jordan and can do everything Jordan does on offense, plus has more range. Kobe's a student of the game and has added new elements to his game every season he's been in the league.

Here's an excerpt from Kobe's Biography ...

Kobe has improved every year he’s been in the NBA. Part of that is due to his devotion to the game. When Kobe joined the Lakers as a rookie, he asked the coaching staff for tapes of all the league’s two guards and went to school on their strengths and weaknesses. He still studies all-time greats like Pete Maravich and personally seeks out current players to solicit advice on how to hone his skills.


http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Bryant/Bryant_new_bio2.html

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">Excuse me, Michael Jordan was compared to a lot of players coming into the league. He was also criticized by the older generation because he challenged the superstars they grew up watching. Michael Jordan didn't appeal to the majority of fans who watched Dr J and George Gervin. When Jordan came to the league he brought the rising hip hop image with him. The gold chains, black socks, long shorts, and didn't conform at all to league standards. He was fined every game by the league for wearing Nike shoes, because Nike wasn't an official sponsor of the league back then.

Jordan was called cocky, selfish, and a ball-hog when he came to the league. Purists hated his game, and critics said he'd never win a title.

Only after Jordan's career came to an end, he started receiving praise as the greatest of all time. It took him leaving the game before people realized how dominating he was.

Kobe grew up studying his dad?s moves, then tried to mimic the way he played. His dad was a 6-9 forward who played like a PG. He actually grew up idolizing Magic Johnson and the showtime Lakers.

Of course Kobe imitates a lot of Michael Jordan's moves, he saw how effective Jordan was winning titles in the Triangle offense. Kobe's role in the Triangle is the same as Jordan's, and I'm sure the coaching staff gave him plenty of Jordan tape to watch and learn from the master. The same techniques are being done with Lamar Odom. The Lakers hired Scottie Pippen this past summer to come in and show Odom how to play the same role he played in the offense.

Why would Wade, McGrady or anyone else copy Kobe Bryant? They are all from the same generation so your point makes no sense. You better believe the future players coming into the league will definitely imitate a lot of what Kobe does. In fact Dwyane Wade wants to spend the summer learning from Kobe Bryant and how to approach the game. Kobe and TMac have trained together in the past, and I'm sure TMac picked up a lot of tricks of the trade from Kobe.

It's amazing how you hold Kobe's persona and impersonation of Jordan against him. If anything you should respect how close he's followed Jordan and can do everything Jordan does on offense, plus has more range. Kobe's a student of the game and has added new elements to his game every season he's been in the league.

Here's an excerpt from Kobe's Biography ...

Kobe has improved every year he?s been in the NBA. Part of that is due to his devotion to the game. When Kobe joined the Lakers as a rookie, he asked the coaching staff for tapes of all the league?s two guards and went to school on their strengths and weaknesses. He still studies all-time greats like Pete Maravich and personally seeks out current players to solicit advice on how to hone his skills.


http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Bryant/Bryant_new_bio2.html</div>

Preach on, brotha man!

Great post. I agree 100% fully, not because I'm a Laker fan, but because you tought me some stuff there.

I don't get why the cat's bringing up Kobe, Wade, and Tmac, either. They're all in the same generation. They learn from Magic, Bird, MJ, and Pippen. That is why everyone of this era is being compared to those players. In MJ's era, players were being compared to Wilt, KAJ, Pistol Pete, Big O, James Worthy, and the stars of the era before them.

Comparing present players with their immediate forefathers, for lack of a better term, is what the media does. Why do you think Kobe gets compared to MJ? Because he watched tapes, he studied his game, he expanded on MJ's game. Did MJ have Kobe's range? Hell no. To be frank with you, MJ was horrible beyond the 3 line. Kobe studied MJ's game, took parts of it, mixed it with other players and he has his style, the most successful in the league today.

Wade wants to learn from Kobe, especially defensively. It comes with the game. It's called respect for one another. Wade respects Kobe and knows that if anyone can teach him something, it's Bryant. That's what Bryant did with MJ. He watched his tapes and learned from them.

When Kobe retires, he'll get the respect that MJ gets. It's like Reggie Miller, you hate him when he's against you, but when he's not, you respect him. Why? Because those players (MJ, Magic, Bird, Reggie) and the players of today, when they retire (Kobe, Wade, Tmac, LeBron) brought so much to the game of basketball. They brought greatness. They brought fans. They brought their individual styles. They brough uniqueness. They all have and will earn their respect. I guarantee when Kobe's done, you'll see 90% love and only 10% hate towards him. It's just how things work. He's so damn good that you don't like him when he's on the court, but when he's off the court, you miss him.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AIRTIGHT:</div><div class="quote_post">I dunno if id be going out on a limb here, but I think it's safe to say that if Jordan came to a team with Eddie Jones and Nick Van Exel, they'd go ahead and start him anyway.
Reason I brought up the contemporarys like Wade, Mcgrady, Arenas, James etc... is because those guys found success without emulating or "immitating" anyone else-- let alone the one guy they we're gonna naturally be compared to. I think the biggest blow is that Kobe would have the nerve to call Magic his favorite player after copying everything Michael ever did in his professional and off court mannerisms.
The Scoop article was insinuating that if there had never been a Jordan, likely everyone would appreciate and love Kobe a whole lot more. Fact is people gave him that, he was the most popular player when he came into the leauge, noone had anything against him-- any criticism he's gotten since then he's brought on himself. Not having Jordan wouldn't change anything, Kobe would be an as$hole regardless of context or surroundings- don't try to blame that on anyone, nobody else had anything to do with who he is.</div>

How do you know Kobe is an asshole? Do you know him personally? Do you kick it with him? Did he reject your autograph attempt? Did he steal your girl in HS or something? Get over it. He's the best player in the damn league. Everyone else recognizes it, the people with brains recognize it, the experts recognize it, you should too.

And Gilbert Arenas emulates his style right from Allen Iverson. James does Magic Johnson. Why aren't you giving them heat?

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rock4life:</div><div class="quote_post">Ur bitterness towards Kobe shows in every word u right. The truth is, the article is 100% fact. People hate Kobe because he didn't live up to the squeeky clean image that Jordan had. Kobe isn't as social as MJ either. But who cares about Kobe as a person, I don't care who he is off the court. On the court he's lived up to the Jordan comparisons and more. I don't think it's fair for somebody to judge somebody's game off what they think of them personally. I think alot of Kobe's criticism is racist. Alot of angry white ppl still think he's guilty of raping that poor little white girl. The fact that a young black athlete, intelligent and very rich, went before a court of law and was found innocent really bugs a portion of white america. On the other hand, a portion of black america can't accept Kobe because he isn't tough and "from the hood" like say Iverson. Though this isn't the basis for all the criticism of Kobe Bryant, it definatley is a major factor in why he'll never be reconized for incredible talent he is.</div>

To help you out, MJ wasn't squeeky clean, either.

He had a sexual affair with another woman and his wife found out. The media got a hold of it, and it was a pretty big scandal.

*He also had BIG TIME gambling problems, and likely still does. It's hard to stop gambling, it's an addiction.

*He got into a fight and punched Steve Kerr in the club house and knocked him out.

*Slapped Horace Grant during a time out.

When first year draftee Kwame Brown wasn't performing the way MJ wanted him (which was at an all star level), he slapped him around during practice, called him a "flaming fa**ot" and a "pu**y." This broke Kwame into tears because Kwame's never had a father-figure, nor a male figure in his life to help him and guide him. He looked to MJ as that figure, and MJ just did what every other guy has done, broke him down and roughed him up. (Kwame's father used to beat him and his mother)

MJ isn't as clean as people think. He has had his fair share of problems, but his greatness on the court has helped him live it down in the media. Eventually, Kobe will reach that status when his career is winding down and people start realizing his legacy.

*Thanks to Shape for the info.

 

If you look at it in tallies, Jordan has a lot more demons than Kobe. Kobe was never found guilty on rape, therefore all you can say is he cheated. So did Michael.

Score: 1-1

Michael had horrible gambling problems, and still does most likely:

Score: 2-1 Michael

Michael demoralized his teammates. He made them trash. Kobe raises team morale. How many times this year did we see Kobe take Ronnie, Smush, or Sasha under his wing? MJ didn't do that to you if you weren't Scottie Pippen.

Score: 3-1 Michael

Damn, Michael's running away with the demons, maybe Kobe can pull a PHX and come back from 3-1.

When it comes to new draftees, did Kobe call Ronnie a "******?" Nope. Did he call Kwame one? No. Kobe took both of them and built their confidence up. They both raved about Kobe. MJ on the other hand, was horrible at teaching new rookies. He did more harm than good.

Score: 4-1 Michael.

Coaches? Kobe had his spats with Jackson, but MJ had his spats with Doug Collins before Phil came around. He even refused to play for him. They both eventually matured and warmed up to their coaches.

Score: Tally one for both: 5-2

As you can see, Michael has a lot of personal demons that the media doesn't exploit anymore. Why? Because he worked his ass off on the court and when his career was winding down and eventually over, they gave him the respect he earned on the court. His blood, sweat and tears earned him his respect, not who he was off the court.