What bests describes Kobe Bryant

[-kj]

Edit me ,SyPhi; I misspelled "furthermore" in my previous post.

Um, there should be a little "edit" button near the top-right of any post that you've made, so you can click that and edit it yourself.

[See Red]

Explain to me how he has contributed to the destruction of his Franchise? He's gotten 3 quality players (2 of them young) and a first round pick for Shaquille O'Neal -- an aging big man, who's out of shape, and has chronic toe injuries.

If anything, I think it was a bad deal on the part of the Heat because what Shaq does for the players around him is that he gives them open shots and Dwayne Wade is not a shooter. The lane will be too congested for Dwayne Wade to drive, which is the strength of his game.

[pking34@comcast.net]

The Lakers have been an .800 team when Kobe doesn't play, but only a .500 team when Shaq doesn't play; but we're talking about Shaq as if he were Shawn Kemp or Vin Baker. Shaq is the game's most dominant inside threat at the center position, despite his flaws, by an incredible margin. He is the one player in the game NOBODY has an answer for. You're entitled to your opinion, but I will be shocked if Miami isn't better this season than last, and the Lakers worse.

[See Red]

Playing without Shaq and playing without Kobe are two completely different things. Losing Shaq is more important because the players that replace him aren't as good as those that get more playing time when Kobe is gone. And the whole comparison is unfair because it's all about the chemistry of those that are playing on the court together, and the fact that when Shaq goes out, they can apply better defense to Karl Malone, eliminating any inside threat.

Ponder this -- If Phil Jackson and Shaq were to stay, but Kobe were to go, they'd still be running the triangle offense, correct? In this case, they may lose Gary Payton, or they may keep Gary Payton and have him render nearly useless in that system like he did this season. And Malone is probably gone, also. So now the Lakers are without a 'go to guy' shooter. So essentially all they'd do is pound the ball down low into Shaq -- Now think back to the Kings game where Kobe made a statement and took only one shot in the first half (because people were b*tching that he was shooting too much) and all he did was pound the ball down low to Shaq. What's my point?

When the Lakers had ONLY Shaq as an option, with someone feeding the ball into him just about every possession, the Lakers lost by some 20 points.

Your stats are misleading, As I said, they don't take the chemistry of the rest of the players into account at all. And considering how Karl Malone may be gone and Gary Payton will be a completely different player than he was last year, it's important to remember that when the Lakers had ONLY Shaq and Kobe, their record without either was about equal.

[pking34@comcast.net]

While disagreeing with me, you have, in a fashion, illustrated my point. Shaq is not necessarily a better player than Kobe, but the skill set Shaq brings to the table is harder to duplicate or replace than the skill set Kobe brings to the table. When Kobe threatens to leave the Lakers if Shaq remains, and Dr. Buss caves in to these demands, Kobe is hurting the Lakers' chances of winning championships for the sake of being the undisputed #1 guy ( We are turning into the Laker news network, aren't we?).

[Roger Clemente]

Am I the only one who has no clue about how Kobe's ego played any part in this re-structuring of the Lakers?

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[Waffles]

Am I the only one who has no clue about how Kobe's ego played any part in this re-structuring of the Lakers?

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

I think the theory goes a little something like this:

Kobe wants to be The Man the way MJ was The Man back in the day.

So he implicitly tells Jerry Buss to get rid of anyone else who might get credited for the Lakers success, like Shaq and Phil, so there can be no doubt as to Kobe's being the sole reason the Lakers succeed...or else he'll find another terrible team and become their savior.

There's also the less conspiratorial and more conceivable idea that Shaq and Phil had gotten to the point where they were simply unable to work around Kobe's ego. But that isn't as sexy...

[pking34@comcast.net]

LOL to Mockba for the "heads up". While I'm college-educated, I am 53 years old and have only owned a computer for a few months, so I'm still learning a lot of things about a computer's use, so it is always gratifying when I get some help from those of you whose computer skills are more advanced.Muchas Gracias, Mockba---- "furthermore" is now spelled correctly.

[See Red]

While disagreeing with me, you have, in a fashion, illustrated my point. Shaq is not necessarily a better player than Kobe, but the skill set Shaq brings to the table is harder to duplicate or replace than the skill set Kobe brings to the table. When Kobe threatens to leave the Lakers if Shaq remains, and Dr. Buss caves in to these demands, Kobe is hurting the Lakers' chances of winning championships for the sake of being the undisputed #1 guy ( We are turning into the Laker news network, aren't we?).

Yes, I know I proved your point essentially and I was trying to think of a way to argue my case on that issue without doing so. However, I have found a way --

My argument was intended to be as more of a mid-season thing, in that it's difficult to pick up a player who would be able atleast be a body down low in replacement of Shaq as it's more difficult to work a mid-season trade than it is to work an off-season trade. But it's Free Agency right now, and that makes it easier to pick up a guy who can atleast somewhat fill those shoes.

Also, in Brian Grant, the Lakers have gotten someone who has had success playing down low in the past and will go in there and do his job -- I'm not saying he's as good or important as Shaq -- but I'd rather have Brian Grant stepping in for Shaq than Kareem Rush stepping in for Kobe.

Also -- The Hack a' Shaq strategies have shown vital to the Lakers at time. You always hear the 'If you don't shoot free throws, you make it real hard on yourself to win'. Shaq shooting something like 30% from the line in the playoffs this year was shown as the Lakers played a lot of close games, especially against Houston in the first round. Kobe had to save Shaq's butt many a' times with late game Heroics. And Kobe's final shot against the Pistons in game 2 should've never have happened because Shaq should've been fouled.

At this point, Shaq has become a liability.

[pking34@comcast.net]

I don't think that anyone posting on this board has a problem with the proposition that Kobe is a great player, although he is displaying character deficiencies of Dracula-like proportions. Kobe, however, plays a position which, in the NBA, is loaded with talented players; Tracy McGrady recently changed teams. Is Kobe THAT much better than Tracy McGrady? If Kobe had signed with the Suns or Clippers, don't you think Tracy would have been attracted to the chance to play with Shaq? On the other hand, there is a very wide gap between Shaq and the next best center.That might not have been true a decade ago, with David Robinson, Pat Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, and Hakeem still in the league, but it is true now; Yao has a chance to get there if he keeps developing, but he is nowhere close yet.

[See Red]

Yes -- however, Shaq is an ageing big man who is a liability at the free throw line which has cost his team alot of games over the past few years and continually shows up to camps out of shape and has a nagging toe injury. Say what you want, but the majority of Lakers jerseys that I see (and an overwhelming majority, at that) are that of Kobe Bryant. In fact, I think you're stretching the difference between Shaq and the next best big man in the league. I'm not saying these players are great at all, but a guy like Brad Miller or Yao Ming (as you mentioned) is not too terribly far of a step down -- and a lot of Shaq's game is opened up by the fact that the Lakers were able to play an inside, outside, inside game to get Shaq the ball and give him chances to back down a defender one on one. The Heat don't have a shooter of Kobe Bryant's ability -- as Dwayne Wade is a slasher. Kobe Bryant made it incredibly difficult for defenses to defend Shaq.

Also, while SG is an easier position to replace, Tracy McGrady and Kobe Bryant are head and shoulders above the rest.

** just a note- This poll is retarded as based on his reasons for leaving Shaq is just as egotistical, cocky, self centered, and moronic as Kobe Bryant.

[pking34@comcast.net]

You are entitled to your opinion,but for civility's sake, please refer to the poll as "suffering from Dementia". Thanks.