Poll shows America heavily favors Bron as a teammate over Bryant

I'm not surprised. Lebron is new and he won't make so pissed you'll demand a trade...

 

This poll doesn't make any sense to me. Why would you ask who would a sportsfan, not a basketball player, but a sportfan who they would rather have as a teammate Kobe or Lebron?(though players would choose Lebron too) It's obvious that sportfans are going to choose Lebron. Especially considering all the negativity in the media regarding Kobe. Hell, there is plenty of negativity on the same site that the poll is on. It would make more sense to ask the same question about lets say Kobe or Artest (2 players with bad reps), or Lebron and D-Wade (2 players with good reps). But they chose someone with a good rep vs. someone with a bad rep. I doesn't make any sense.

 

I have LeBron as my teamate. Lebron is younger and has less off-court issues. Also, some people have said that Kobe Bryant is a very bad teamate (GP, Mailman, Shaq). I would choose Bron.

 

Just a little something to think about...

Let's talk about who claims Kobe is a bad teammate.

Gary Payton - only played with Kobe for one year. Also, isn't Payton the one crying out loud to the media that he should be the team leader for the Lakers? Ha. Next, please.

Karl Malone - only played with Kobe for...well...half a year. Never complained before, but I suppose he would NOW, considering he wants a way out of Los Angeles. Next.

Shaquille O'Neal - played alongside Kobe for 8 years. He and Kobe were probably the greatest duo, ranked high with the likes of Jordan/Pippen, Magic/Kareem, etc. Kobe and Shaq won three straight titles together...and were fearless, as well as feared. Kobe a bad teammate? If so, all of that would've been impossible.

Again...it's proven...it's about Kobe's reputation.

 

I'd have LeBron as my teammate.

Yes, Kobe and LeBron average the same amount of assists, but LeBron shoots at a 10% better clip. I want my teammates taking good shots.

That, and Cleveland isn't a sports soap opera due to LeBron.

Easy.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting MR_SAC_KING:</div><div class="quote_post">That's actually amazing,since a lot of people still recognize Kobe as the NBA's #1 Player(at least as far as i know).Is this poll's standings showing us that Lebron has replaced Kobe as the NBA's sweetheart??

Kinda intriguing </div>
Your hanging around with the wrong crowd. Top 10 but not #1.

Anyways this poll is half a popularity contest and half truth. Everyone can see LeBron making his team better and the Cavs winning games. He draws a crowd of defenders and makes a great pass for his teammate that's right under the basket ready to put it in.

Same with Kobe (at times) but it all comes down to that Kobe is percieved as selfish and getting his coach and teammates kicked out so he can have the team to himself. Not many people would want to play with a teammate like that.

 

Well most of us here wouldn't pick on reputation for the most part, but even with that I'd take Lebron, I prefer how he plays than how Kobe plays, and from watching he get's his teammates involved more, and trusts them.

Kobe is one that would drive pump fake and get stuck, and 8/10 times instead of passing to you will take the fadeaway, it could be a confidence thing that he just feels he'll make it, but that in turn is still a bad decision. Lebron on the other hand will take it 4/10 times, that's the difference, and I don't think it's a lack of confidence issue with him...

It's like if you're playing streetball, theirs a guy who's real good, and you'll win if you play with him, but he'll take almost all the shots and not look to you. You'll be happy you won but after a while you want to switch teams, so you're actually part of the winning not a spectator.

The worst thing for me is people who don't pass the ball then tell you to move on offense who wants to move when I've been running around for 5 minutes and you didn't pass all that time and now you're telling me garbage...okay I got a little off topic there.

Real Deal, I know the Lakers aren't doing bad and all, but you keep speaking of the record everytime something involves Kobe, and you guys wins really haven't been that good, not trying to hate, but the only good wins were the Magic and the first Clipper game because Brand didn't play in the second one.

 

How many of you are watching this game against Seattle right now? If so, this is the perfect example of why Kobe isn't considered a teammate. Nobody else is showing up to play in this game, and Kobe is seriously all alone right now. He's throwing passes left and right, but nobody is hitting shots.

Traylor, Gooden, McInnis, Ilgauskas, and even Snow have better performances than the Lakers (minus Kobe).

I think that Kobe would do exceptionally well with the Cavs, actually.

 

It is like the sprite endorsement, Lebron has the cleaner record, has more appeal as a player because he is the recent sensation to the league, I think it is a combo of thing being Kobe rep as Brandon said and also the fact Lebron could be to the simpletons who watch basketball "The Next Jordan" and is a promising player to do very good in the future, I mean Kobe does to, just his rep kills him.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Real Deal:</div><div class="quote_post">How many of you are watching this game against Seattle right now? If so, this is the perfect example of why Kobe isn't considered a teammate. Nobody else is showing up to play in this game, and Kobe is seriously all alone right now. He's throwing passes left and right, but nobody is hitting shots.

Traylor, Gooden, McInnis, Ilgauskas, and even Snow have better performances than the Lakers (minus Kobe).

I think that Kobe would do exceptionally well with the Cavs, actually.</div>
I don't think this happens every game, every team has games where only some people will show up, and Butler isn't doing too bad himself even though he started off 3-8 of whatever it was.

Also why would you include Tractor Traylor and Eric Snow lol, they aren't doing anything good and are the Cavs only 3 bench players that really get PT Snow and Tractor along with Harris who isn't doing much either.

The Cavs actually play bad when their bench get's extended minutes they play their starters a lot because their bench really isn't that good. Ira Newble isn't an offensive factor in the starting lineup either. I'd say the Lakers actually have a better team with just some coaching decision problems, team problems, and also not having experience at the point. Outside of Lebron, Z, Gooden and McInnis the Cavs team is pretty weak actually.

McInnis is a much better PG than Atkins, not a better shooter, but defender and passer. Odom can take the same scoring load that Ilguaskas has, and Caron can also take the same scoring load that Gooden has. Mihm can match the scoring output of McInnis, but needs to be setup and can't create like him, but then their's Newble who doesn't score really.

The Lakers off the bench have Cook as spot up shooter who can also score a little himself, and Jumaine Jones who defends, rebounds, and can hit the outside shot and do more, but no one expects that. The Cavs have Snow as the backup PG to play defense and take care of the ball, and Tractor as the backup big man, but Tractor isn't doing that great right now shooting about 44% and committing one too many turnovers and Snow provides no offense because he's not a spot up shooter, and not really much of a scorer. You guys are actually getting much more production off you bench offensively, but the Cavs slightly better defensively.

 

Don't let Butler's offensive numbers confuse you...if it wasn't for his terrible defense, Rashard wouldn't have 37 points.

Plus, in the previous two games, Butler scored a total of 2 points...and, oh ya, terrible defense, also.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Real Deal:</div><div class="quote_post">Don't let Butler's offensive numbers confuse you...if it wasn't for his terrible defense, Rashard wouldn't have 37 points.

Plus, in the previous two games, Butler scored a total of 2 points...and, oh ya, terrible defense, also.</div>

I thought Butler played good individual defense overall....Lewis was on fire, and the lakers didn't help with horrible team defense. They just didn't make the proper switches on the screens. Wasn't Butler's fault IMO

As far as the topic, I'd honestly take LeBron over Kobe. He's a marketing department's dream, and his game ain't too shabby either. Nonetheless, as a Los Angeles fan, I have no complaints with having Kobe on our side...

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Real Deal:</div><div class="quote_post">Don't let Butler's offensive numbers confuse you...if it wasn't for his terrible defense, Rashard wouldn't have 37 points.

Plus, in the previous two games, Butler scored a total of 2 points...and, oh ya, terrible defense, also.</div>
How can you conclude his defensive effort from the boxscore, also Rashard has been on fire this season basically, he's lit up a lot of other teams and players, just hasn't taken 22 shots yet this season, their's not much you can do when a 6'10 guy who's long shoots over top of you, it's like trying to stop Dirk when he's on fire, if he hits them you accept it.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting og15:</div><div class="quote_post">How can you conclude his defensive effort from the boxscore, also Rashard has been on fire this season basically, he's lit up a lot of other teams and players, just hasn't taken 22 shots yet this season, their's not much you can do when a 6'10 guy who's long shoots over top of you, it's like trying to stop Dirk when he's on fire, if he hits them you accept it.</div>
I'm gonna take an exit from this debate, since for one, I'm already in one over at the Lakers forum and two, this is going off-topic.

All I'm saying is that I do watch the Laker games, just the next day...and for what I've seen so far this year, Caron has been playing mediocre defense against more players than just Shard. He's known for having above-average defense...but I'm not seeing it. That's all I'm saying.

 

I'll pick
based on stats - Lebron
based on reputation - Lebron
If i had to pick last year tho, I would have picked kobe.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting iversonfan3:</div><div class="quote_post">I agree with Real Deal, it's all reputation. Kobe right now, is definitely a better player than Bron. People still know that. But in our minds, including mine, I just have a bad reputation of Kobe after all the junk he's been through this offseason.</div>
I agree with you. Kobe was the posterboy of the NBA until all of this off court stuff. Kobe's name will be tainted for life, but yes, as of now he is definately the better player if we are talking about skill and overall ability right now.

 

A better player doesn't always make for a better teammate.

 

If Kobe is such a bad teammate, it sure didn't show when he and Shaq were sharing alley-oops and winning three championships together. Or now, with Kobe's assist average at a career high (and tops all SG's...Wade has been playing point almost the entire season), even with poor shooting by his teammates (and yes, him, but that has nothing to do with this).

I'm wondering what everyone expects him to do, really.

 

Kobe and Shaq won those championships not so much with teamwork but with pure talent. Surely we all remember the drama that occured over the years between them two. They don't click together.

For one, I'm not buying into the argument that off-court stuff doesn't affect the team at all. When your star player has to go to the courts and miss some of the practices or game time, that's a distraction and that's not being a good teammate.

Now, on to the court stuff, Kobe has done relatively well in terms of distributing the ball, but to be honest, assists stats aside, LeBron is the much better passer than Kobe is. Alot of people have drawn comparison of James with Magic for a good reason. Another thing, I have never seen LeBron scream at teammates the way Kobe does. I remember distinctly one instance where Kobe's driving in from the top of the 3point arc and Brian Cook slides out from the left wing to the corner to set up for a 3 point shot. Kobe passes to Cook cause he got double teamed but threw the pass behind Cook, resulting in a turnover. Rudy T calls a timeout and Kobe was shown screaming and cussing at Brian as they head over to the bench. Kobe looked disguested, and Brian just flat out look depressed. Sure it's fine to get pissed at a teammate, but this is not the first time he's done that and there are many ways that situation could've been handled better if you're supposedly a good leader.

Difference between LeBron and Kobe, from the limited LeBron games that I've seen, is he doesn't look like he depresses his teammates. Sure James might scream at them for a little bit, but he doesn't belittle them. Most of the time he's pissed at himself or keeps it in. I always see him in good spirits with his teammates, hanging out, not alienating himself, not giving off the vibe that "I'm the Superstar, you're the scrub", just playing the game and letting the game come to you not trying to prove anything to anybody, not trying to take over a game by freezing the other teammates out. Lebron shows amazing composure at age 19. In one game this year, forgot which one, the Cavs are up by like 15-20 points or so. James got on a breakaway with the time expiring and the game's almost over. Instead of putting on a show (windmill dunk, 360 dunk, etc etc), he calmly dribbled over to the side and just dribbled the clock down. That is an amazing class act. I'm not saying that if he dunked it, then he's a bad person, but by not dunking, he sends out the message that "Hey, I'm not out there to embarass the other team, to taunt people with dunks or whatever, I'm here to just win games with no BS." That's an amazing composure for a 19 year old Superstar who's known to be able to dunk the ball with the best of them.