http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/stor...&id=2755078Really good article discussing the changes Kobe Bryant has made as a basketball player.
Yeah, read it a few days ago. It's maturity. Happens to a lot of people once you get into your mid to late 20s especially. I bet he regrets how he acted when he was winning titles, but you can't go back and change things. All you can do is carry yourself differently and try to help your team as best you can. When I read about the things he does to help guys like Brown and Bynum that shows me that he's become a good teammate. I'm sure a guy like Shaq is saying "about damn time" but some people get it later than others. Some people may never get it. That's life.
He really changed at the end of the 2001 season. That ankle injury was a blessing in disguise. That's when he changed, the media was just to stupid to notice back then.
He's been this player for a few seasons, since Shaq left. It's just that now everyone is clicking in the offense and he doesn't need to take over the scoring load every night. But he's been content on passing and playing within the system for a few seasons, now.
Yeah, he's always had a keen knowledge of the triangle, just he would always play as if he had something to prove. Now he's a little more laid back. And that happend right before the 2001 playoffs. He's been pretty much the same ever since.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Michael Bryant @ Feb 15 2007, 08:51 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Yeah, he's always had a keen knowledge of the triangle, just he would always play as if he had something to prove. Now he's a little more laid back. And that happend right before the 2001 playoffs. He's been pretty much the same ever since.</div>He hasn't been the same since 2001. In 02-03 and last year he was on a scoring rampage and not really playing within the triangle. In 02-03 it was because of team struggles and Shaq hurt for part of the year, and last year because it was a young team with no knowledge of the triangle. This year his teammates know the triangle and Kobe is playing within the system.
02-03 is hard though, he kinda had to play like that in order to pick up the slack for the missing Shaq (I didn't mean to rhyme there). It was also similar to 2004 when damn near the entire starting 5 were injured.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Michael Bryant @ Feb 15 2007, 08:57 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>02-03 is hard though, he kinda had to play like that in order to pick up the slack for the missing Shaq (I didn't mean to rhyme there). It was also similar to 2004 when damn near the entire starting 5 were injured.</div>Nontheless, whatever year you wanna pick out, he has never been this passive and willing to play inside the offense like he is this year. It's partly maturity, and partly because it gives his team the best chance to win.
Maybe he's a little more trusting. In the past he acted like he was the only one able to win the game.
Yeah, nowadays, in moments were he'd feel the need to take over, he now stays within the offense. But he does that to a fault sometimes. There will be games were they are losing and we'll need Kobe to go on a little tear. Instead he'll keep on passing the ball around.
I love the new Kobe. Kobe used to be a player that cared too much about scoring, and came across as somewhat selfish. Now, he still scores alot, takes smarter shots, shoots a better percentage, and still shows his amazing passing ability, and has really become the leader of that team. You can tell that his teammattes look up to him and respect what he has to say.
This is really working out for him, he is not taking as many shots but is still scoring and also he is getting his teammates involved a lot more.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ballerman2112 @ Feb 15 2007, 10:34 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I love the new Kobe. Kobe used to be a player that cared too much about scoring, and came across as somewhat selfish. Now, he still scores alot, takes smarter shots, shoots a better percentage, and still shows his amazing passing ability, and has really become the leader of that team. You can tell that his teammattes look up to him and respect what he has to say.</div>haha that is cause they don't want Kobe to go ask the gm to trade those who don't listen to him I am sure they respected him in ways before also. LMAOhaha nah jk he really did come into more of a leader now.
