Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 at 4:22 pm  |  36 responses

Kobe’s Redemption Song

Can Kobe become a fan-favorite in 2010?

by David Dennis

Only in the world of Kobe Bean Bryant can a fifth NBA championship come as a detriment to his legacy. Sure, the Lakers could have lost. Badly. Just like they did in 2008. But in terms of championship victories, the 2010 NBA Finals was rough for Bryant.

More important than NBA Championships are NBA Finals moments. Jordan has tons: The switching hands in mid-air lay-up, The Shrug, scoring all but three points in the fourth quarter to beat the Suns in Game 6, The Flu Game, The Shot. Kobe Bryant hasn’t had a memorable NBA Finals game since he took over against the Pacers in overtime during Game 4 in the 2000 Finals. And, according to most of you, tKobe Bryanthat was during the Shaq years so it didn’t count anyway.

Game 7 could have been Kobe’s moment. Imagine the praise heaped on him if he’d have scored 40 points or put on a 4th quarter rally or hit the game-winner. In a make-or-break game for Bryant’s legacy, Game 7 was a definite letdown.

That game seemed to be Kobe’s last chance at approaching the rare air reserved for Jordan, Magic, Bird and the rest. Because, really, who was left? The Celtics are still aging. The Magic are still clueless. And LeBron was still incapable of reaching the Finals.

Let’s not forget the biggest reason Kobe isn’t celebrated like the other MVP multi-champions: People hate him. Whether it’s because of the wannabe Jordan mannerisms, Colorado, the belief that he ran off Shaq, the cocky attitude, or a combination of all of them; Kobe Bryant is one of the most hated men in the NBA.

But that all changed with one man’s announcement that he’d be enjoying some sun in South Beach.

With on self-aggrandizing ESPN special, Kobe Bryant turned from villain to hero. OK, maybe not “hero” as much as “a guy who doesn’t suck as much as the other guy.” Either way, LeBron’s decision to move to Miami has given Kobe Bryant a chance at greatness that many though he lost with each ugly Game 7 brick.

Now, Kobe’s the anti-LeBron. And that’s undeniably a good thing.

LeBron eschewed greatness to join All-Stars that could shoulder the load. Kobe doesn’t want help and openly scoffed at the idea of teaming with LeBron. LeBron ditched a team when he didn’t win. Kobe stuck with the Lakers his whole career, temper tantrums notwithstanding. And if Kobe Bryant can defeat The Evil Miami Trifecta of Doom, then it can bring that defining Finals moment missing from his repertoire.

Bill Russell has 11 championships. Of all of them, the most memorable came when an aging Russell defied the odds and beat a heavily favored and stacked Lakers team that had Chamberlain, West and Baylor. Kobe has a chance to have a similar story.

As a side note: It’s also important to note that, as Shaq continues his word tour in his quest to play for every team before he retires, he’s left a legion of disgruntled teammates in his wake. Most recently, he even called Mo Williams out for the way he played in Cleveland. All of the grumblings about Shaq as a teammate have caused people to think that maybe the Kobe/Shaq deterioration wasn’t all Bryant’s fault, tempering the anti-Bryant sentiment that came out of the break-up.

As Kobe’s healing from his banged-up ’09-10 season, he has to be licking his chops at this second chance at a legacy-defining year. If Kobe can take on the Big Three and win, 2010 will be seen as the year that he ascends to the level of greatness that has seemed to elude him so far. The year would also bring redemption for all of his past mistakes and fan support that his stats have earned him. Bryant has five championships, but a sixth could bring something totally new for him: resounding national support.

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  • Jay

    I also respected Kobe so don’t speak for me. If he beats the “Bigger Three” for number six, he will be greater than what he already is

  • JTaylor21

    Kobe doesn’t want any help? HAA what was he bit*hing and pouting about when he wanted to be traded. Kobe needed and begged for help, so don’t act like he does it on his own. Also I don’t understand, do you want Bron to stay on a team that wasn’t winning a chip in the foreseeable future and couldn’t attract any top-tier free agents. You do know that NBA players prime only last for about 6-7 years and should not be wasted on incompetent franchises ala KG. Come on son every star needs and wants help.

  • JTaylor21

    I was one of the biggest kobe fans in about 07-08 but it’s talk like this I hated and made me lose interest in dude. His fans will put down anybody and say they suck just to gas him up, like the Bron’s just big and all he does is dunk talk. Kobe fanatics are the BIGGEST reason why people dislike dude.

  • Kadavour

    The Cavs weren’t slouches. Their last two seasons were very impressive. It is unfair and misleading to call them an incompetent franchise. Consecutive 60+ win seasons and overall #1 seed is hardly incompetent.

  • Clownfish31

    @JTaylor21:

    Umm, actually, the reasons mentioned in the article are the reasons why people dislike Kobe. If you think people hate the guy because of his fans then you must either hang around way too many Kobe fans or you think basketball fans don’t have their own reasonable opinions.

  • http://www.slamonline.com/ niQ

    To be honest, any team that beats Miami’s big 3 this year will have headlines for days saying “_____ beat Miami’s big 3!”

  • http://twitter.com/HarryByrdMan44 LA Huey

    “Kobe doesn’t want help”? So how did the Lakers win after that god-awful shooting performance? Granted, the man, snagged well-above his average for rebounds but his TEAM came shouldered the load with him.

    And I guess not re-upping when your contract is up is far worse an offense than trying to bail on your team when you still haven’t fulfilled your contract.

    Not a fan of this slanted article.

    That being said, if Kobe can get his 6th against the Big 3, that would be great for his legacy.

  • http://www.need4sheed.com Tarzan Cooper

    I see things havent changed much. Another kobefan writes a biased article. including crazy things like kobe doesnt need help. Selective memory. Kobe should be thanking ron every day for game 7. Bean got very lucky perk went down and everything that went their way in game 7. Bean played like total crap in probably the biggest game of his career. How badly would beans legacy have been shi# on if celts won?

  • unrel

    why do we keep piling measurements on guys?.. ie: he won 5 but doesn’t have that finals moment.. that shouldn’t matter.. because, in reality.. this was his first game 7, ever.. because he (with shaq) dominated and didn’t even need game 7s.. i don’t really know what i’m saying, to be honest.. but he’s a 5xChamp.. if we’re looking for moments to cement legacy.. maybe we can look at 81 or 62 in 3.. a few things no one will duplicate

  • unrel

    ^i’m a kobe fan.. but i’m speaking for every nba player.. lebron’s not great because he hasn’t won?.. please.. d.howard doesn’t dominate because he doesn’t have a go-to post game?.. dude dominates.. etc etc.. excuse the finger babble..

  • http://smokingsection.net S. Cadet

    I’ll respectfully argue with the point that Kobe doesn’t want help NOW b/c he begged, screamed and threw his teammates under the bus until he got it. Also I don’t think Kobe would’ve stayed around much longer if LA’s front office didn’t pull off that deal for Pau Gasol. That’s hard to ignore even for fans of Kobe’s play (not his off-court antics) like myself. Then again I do agree that, should LA see Miami in the ’11 finals, Kobe would get a big boost on his resume since the Heat are public enemy no. 1 right now.

  • http://shaq_attaq@msn.com kobesBESTfriend

    My main man Kobe is already a fan favorite(last i checked he still has the #1 selling jersey for the 2nd str8 year)so this write up is 100% garbage!If u ask me he proved in game 7 why he is reguaurded as the best since MJ(sure he had a bad shooting display but he had a broken finger people).Mamba has been doing his thang for 13 seasons and if u haters cant give him his respect by now then you are all idiots.So there is no reason for Bean 2 worry about getting fan favorite status cuz he’s already been there since 96.The only thing on his agenda is tying mj with 6 this year and passing him up with 7 next year!hate him 4 any reason u want but know that he is loved 4 the same exact reasons!

  • Tyler

    Kobe is my fav player but honestly people need to make up their mind either make excuses for his bad games cuz of his finger or not. SMH

  • http://shaq_attaq@msn.com kobesBESTfriend

    if winning finals mvp and a 5th ring is a bad game then i hope the rest of his career is as bad as his game 7 was

  • JTaylor21

    @KobesESTRANGEDmistress, of course you wish he had games like Gm7 because that would mean that he would come home mad and take out his anger on you, getting all in your a** literally. I bet you’ll love that, huh.

  • http://slamonline.com Chris Deaton

    Half-agree, Dennis: Kobe is an antihero. Sure, most of us would probably root for him against Bron and the Miami Sizzle, but ours would be begrudging cheers. “Really, no one else is gonna take out these guys? OK, fine. I’ll pinch my nose and root for the Lakers for a couple of weeks.”

    If we’re truly in search of the anti-LeBron, it’s KD. Humble; lifted a garbage team from the floor to the contender rung in one year flat; plays with “homegrown” players and stands to be the leader of a Jordan-era, Bulls-like cohesive unit; is committed to his city and team; wants to BE THE GUY … this is our Luke Skywalker, baby. Heart of a lion, talent of a superstar, ceiling of a legend. And like Michael, like LeBron and UNLIKE Kobe, he’s a prototype — have we ever seen a 6’10″ shooting guard? (Forget his listed position: he’s inside-out, slashes like a 2, scores like a 2.)

  • http://www.need4sheed.com Tarzan Cooper

    And the broken finger thing has been greatly exaggerated. He was scheduled for surgery last summer but didnt get it. I know why: if he loses, he can say ‘my finger was bothering me, but im not making excuses’. And people will say ,’well, he has a broken finger, what u want from him? Hes a warrior. And if he wins ‘my finger bothered me but I still pulled it out and won. And people will say ‘look,, hes so great, hes playing despite a broken finger’. The whole thing is win win for bean. He has a built in excuse(but im not making an excuse, ha!), and added credit for playing through a minor injury. Thats why he didnt get it fixed, and hasnt yet. Hes had 3 months of offseason, has anyone heard of him getting it fixed? Thats because he doesnt want it fixed.

  • http://www.dimemag.com Royal

    Oh so Kobe wants to keep his finger broken……OK I guess were all entitled to our own opinion

  • wottywo

    Kobe is the key to betting the heat this upcoming season(LOL) Man please,If the bound together early and can see eye to eye, if the heat and Lakers meet in the finals, it will be a long 7 game series for Kobe and the Lakers, because the heat are looking to tear down the dynasty of the Lakers..

  • JTaylor21

    Tarzan is right, kobe could have had that finger fixed a long time ago but he keeps on holding out to use it as an excuse whenever he goes 6-24 again. I bet that he’s gonna have that stupid tape on it to start the season therefore setting the wheels in motion for the media and his fans to continue talking about how he plays hurt and all that BS. Stop acting kobe, the finger was NEVER broken, it was only a tiny boo boo.

  • SoCalHoopsFan

    Anything to dig on Kobe. I guess outrebounding the entire Celtics frontcourt in game 7 wasn’t enough. Being a freakin whirling dervish on defense, then crashing the boards from the perimeter wasn’t enough.

    Kobe is like a chameleon, his shot not falling then he takes it out on the man he’s covering, he rebounds, he sets other guys up. This is the beauty of him.

    I’m not going to run-down Kobe’s Finals performances, his playoff performances, because it’s simply easier – like the author does – to hate. You can brush aside whatever Kobe does like a flittering moth, and say the only reason Kobe is getting looked at in a better light is because LBJ is now a villian.

    Yeah, let the hate pour outta you. Fact is, Kobe is still the best player on the face of the planet, LeBron’s athletic gifts or not. Kobe is 3 lakers injuries away from having completed a three-peat, even so he still has a lot of career left to rack up more numbers.

    I guess though, when it’s all said and done, it will always be easier to hate and dismiss than to give a man his due props…

  • Conoro

    For all of you who say that Kobe is the “ultimate selfish player”… how?

    For the initial stage of his career, he diverted to a less talented and physically inferior player in Shaq for the first three quarters of games and then took over when his TEAM needed him most at the end of said games while O’Neal was relegated to the bench either due to consistent foul trouble or his inability to hit free throws. He did this for six or seven years. In that time span, the Lakers won THREE CHAMPIONSHIPS.

    How much more of a “team” player would you like Kobe to have been? Would you be happy if he utilized the stated philosophy with KWAME BROWN after Shaq was traded? Probably not, since you can’t do anything but HATE on Bryant.

    Total ignorance on your part(s).

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  • Conoro

    And as for “overrated”/not having a series of “moments” in the Finals?

    I suppose Gasol, who reportedly “dominates anybody” DIDN’T shoot under 50% in the Finals against the same Celtics who you would argue were “old” and “past their (collective) prime” in order to diminish Bryant’s performance, right? I suppose Bryant DIDN’T win Finals MVP in June of 2010 AND 2009? I suppose Bryant DIDN’T become the first player to score 600+ points in three consecutive PLAYOFFS?

    Five rings and counting… AND, his hangtime shot past Courtney Lee/Dwight Howard against Orlando in the Finals (2009) was infinitely more difficult and NECESSARY than Jordan’s pointless hand switch, amongst a plethora of others.

  • Conoro

    * he did the sit back/take over routine with the first Three-peat Lakers for four to five years. Not seven, like I stated earlier.

  • MikeC.

    @Conoro – Thank you for mentioning Jordan’s hand-switch play. By far the most overrated and overplayed highlight I’ve seen. It wasn’t necessary to switch hands on that play. Jordan had so many unbelievable highlights that could be repeated ad nauseum. Why that one gets in the loop is beyond me.

  • http://www.kb24.com The Seed

    So Kobe has no defining moments in the NBA Finals, but MJ has two (one I don’t know why) Magic and Larry have how many to be exact. Also Kobe has been fan favorite since 1996, Yea he went through some things, but his jersey is number one selling, and he is tied with Tiger as the number one sports star according to CNN. You are telling me that Kobe needs now to beat the Miami three to be consider great. See every year Kobe has something new, people use as his thing, he couldn’t win without Shaq-won two, Kobe can’t win without Gasol/trade-Gasol came up small in 2009 people, 2010 better, Kobe shot bad, but got 16 rebounds and still score 10 points down the stretch and hit a shot to put the Lakers up two points, but Kobe needs the Heat team. Dude this article is wack. I don’t know why Slam would let you write this, sounds like a slow NBA day to me. Also Kobe has no national support now, so he needs to win again, Kobe had a rough year, but won a ring and Finals MVP. Most media had Kobe winning the Finals MVP, win or lose game 7 cat. Also you act like Kobe has done nothing in the NBA Finals ever. So if I hate this article then you haven’t had your defining moment as a Slam writer yet, where’s your proof, but hey maybe next time you will research facts and not just talk of your head. BOOK IT!!

  • Slam Corrector

    What is with Slam Magazine and it’s FAILURE to recognize. Where is the professionalism and unbiased even handed reporting of facts. It seems to me this magazine writes articles with reverence for Jordan, in the past wrote love song articles and sonnets about A.I. and now is in love with Bron and when it writes pieces about these guys it is generally pretty positive. Now I have seen plenty of articles and cover story’s on Kobe but I’ve also read more than a few articles in the magazine and on the website where the writers personal bias has gotten in the way of doing a quality job of writing articles about one of the GREATEST athletes in sports. This article is a waste of space, Kobe’s never had a moment in the Finals… who approves these articles (or is this the strategy to get the reads and clicks up on the website, write something being critical of Kobe and you know folks will read it). In your top 50 players article for the past 2 years it seems the writer instead of writing a piece discussing what makes Kobe special or how his game is evolving, Slam’s writer starts quoting poetry in this years BS or last year the tone of the article sounded like someone who didn’t care for Bryant. Maybe the magazine should either hire a writer who can write quality articles about Kobe since it seems like your arrogant writers don’t seem able to. It’s not about writing fluff pieces either but the bias is so obvious it makes this magazine look like a blog instead of a place for top notch journalism.

  • Jessdogg

    The Cavs organsiation were very much incompetent. They can thank Bron for the back to back 60+ wins seasons. Bron will be winning 60 games a season until for the rest of his career.

  • Slam Corrector

    In American professional sports you have some athletes that are liked and they get shown love even if they haven’t won anything or haven’t won much… In Football, Dan Marino played in one Super Bowl and lost but is revered for his great passing skills and stats, Brett Favre won one Super Bowl over a decade ago and seems to make a bad play, throw an interception to lose the key game every season but he get’s treated like an American treasure. Peyton Manning has ONE ring and is worshiped. In the NBA you have Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitski winnning MVP’s but have not won any championships, John Stockton and Karl Malone have titles but get treated with reverence.

    My point in all this is I look at what Kobe Bryant has accomplished over his professional career and I don’t understand…

    Kobe’s played 14 NBA seasons and has made it to the NBA fianals 7 times… Half of his career he’s been in the Finals!!! He’s won 5 Championships and he’s had plenty of memorable moments, highlights and victory’s. He led our Team USA to a gold medal and he plays through injury and he is clutch.

    HOW are we even writing articles like this… Kobe does his job better than most of us do ours…he’s dedicated and his results are excellent. I’m not suggesting he is beyond critique but let’s be fair, he is one of the best athletes in sports history…he is an All-Time Great and instead of celebrating his 5 rings you look for something negitive to say about his accomplishments…

    As a writer David Dennis has not had any really good work yet…maybe this year will be the year he actually writes a quality article, since Miami Thrice is here… (That’s how this article sounds)

    Kobe does not need to do anything to cement his legacy and his post season performaces have been pretty dominant averageing approx 30ppg 6ast and 6reb each of the last 3 years. The object of the game is to WIN, not impress David Dennis with some dipsey doo lay-up ahh lahh Michael Jordan (right hand to left hand lay-up)…Kobe is doing what he is supposed to do…WIN

  • http://itsahardwoodlife.blogspot.com omphalos

    If anything can add to his resume against Jordan is the quality of opposition; this year’s Heat team is arguably more talented than any team Jordan faced in Finals series’. That said, Kobe will never be 6/6 wins in Finals played and 6/6 Finals MVPs. Hard to argue with a 100% strike rate, but a win against the Heat with Bryant doing the heavy lifting would be interesting.

  • http://kb24.com Bigi

    Sillyness!

  • http://www.need4sheed.com Tarzan Cooper

    Slam corrector is obviously new and doesnt realize most of the slamfam are lakerlovers, and it gets in the way plenty.

  • ab40

    Chamberlain, west, baylor > james, wade bosh. and the lakers their starting 5 is better than that of the miami heat. They only have a better small forward. That’s it. pau did the heavy lifting in these finals

  • http://www.need4sheed.com Tarzan Cooper

    Ab, baylor was old by then and retired in 71. Wilt wasnt philly wilt anymore, still a great team. I truly wish elgin would have stayed on for the rest of the 71 72 season. Bron, wade, and bosh are still very much in their primes.

  • dyaneg

    Kobe is the best player in the league right now this guy is the toughest I’ve seen in all my years watching the NBA. Aside from all his injuries he’s always just battled through them he’s never given up and game 7 of the NBA finals was proof of that. Even if he had all the burden on his back and with all the critics the expectations he didn’t give up he found a way to help the team everyone on the team had to step it up anyway its the LA Lakers not the LA Kobe. Any other player of his caliber in his shoes that game 7 would of just gave up! He’s a fighter he’s tough determined focused and works extra hard because of all his injuries. Even when he gets so much attention he still keeps his composure and doesn’t make a fool of himself in the court. He plays during the season and goes off during the post season that’s what he’s about.

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