MichaelJordanKobeBryant

Before I get into this, here’s an amazing(ly unrelated) quote from Gilbert Arenas I have been waiting to post:

“My mind is not in killer mode. I haven’t thought killer in two years. It’s like I’ve been laid off. It’s like getting an assassin, putting him in a box and making him watch TV. He can’t go back to straight killing. Now he has a conscience. Before, I didn’t.”

Word.
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I want to talk about the Lakers loss to the Cavs.

Before I do that, I want to write a few words about Kobe Bryant that may or may not be relevant. Chris thinks Kobe Bryant is the greatest basketball player of all time. I generally disagree. Just recently though–like, three days ago–I decided that I believe there’s a legitimate chance Kobe Bryant retires as the greatest basketball player of all time. To be clear, I don’t think he’s there yet. Furthermore, I don’t really think I have any shot of convincing you this is true if you don’t already believe it, so let me just share what’s been on my mind. In order to retire as the best player of all time, Kobe is probably going to have to get 6 titles. The key word is probably (there’s no way of definitively knowing what it will take). The key number is 6…as in not 7. He can get to 6. He can absolutely get to 6. And I don’t think he needs to win more titles than Jordan in order to overtake or at least be seen as on par. That’s because kobe is already in the conversation for greatest of all time. He’s closer than anyone was willing to admit before he won that 4th title. One thing I will not budge on is my belief that kobe bryant was the best player in the nba last year. One thing I think is hard to deny is that kobe bryant is better this year than he was last year. One thing I think is interesting is the notion that kobe bryant, currently in his 14th season, has gotten better each year he has played in the league. If kobe had 6 rings today, I don’t think he would be the best player of all time. It’s not only about the rings. It’s about what it takes to accomplish them. With the way kobe continues to improve and expand his game, I can only assume that whatever he did to win two more titles would knock everyone on their asses.

I don’t know if I did a very good job of explaining it, but this is pretty much what I’ve been thinking about the last few days. I’ve been fantasizing about all the possibilities. And maybe that’s why this loss hurts so much…because I think it’s Kobe’s fault.

OK, that’s a little harsh. I’m not trying to say that without Kobe the Lakers would have won. As a matter of fact, Kobe had a phenomenal game. I actually thought it was a spectacular performance. He played the first three quarters of the game without a minute of rest. 35 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals. It was kind of unbelievable, but not really, because, I mean come on, he’s Kobe Bryant. But as far as I’m concerned, the game turned on one of his shots. A specific shot. The third one.

With 9:30 left in the 1st quarter, Kobe Bryant missed a 17-foot jump shot. He had made his first two shots of the game on the previous two possessions. After the first two shots I thought, “wow, this offense looks potent and kobe looks sharp.” But that third shot reeked of personal gain. He was trying to pile it on. He was trying to win it right there. Over the next 9 and a half minutes kobe…missed an 18-foot jumper, got a defensive rebound, missed a 9-foot jumper, assisted a Pau Gasol dunk, missed an 11-foot jumper, fouled Anthony Parker, missed a layup, traveled, missed a three pointer, and finally made a shot and a layup in the last minute. I guess that doesn’t tell the whole story. Kobe wasn’t chucking or playing selfishly. The whole team was just off. But after that first miss, when Kobe looked like he was trying to take over the game in the first 3 minutes, the whole game changed. The Cavs went on a 9-0 run that gave them a lead they would not give up the rest of the game.

I’m not mad at him for it. I don’t REALLY think that shot decided the game. But I do think it was a mistake. And I do think it carried more weight than it should have. And I’m sitting here, at 3 in the morning, completely restless, trying to decide if Jordan passes on that shot, or just hits it and gets back on D.

And all I want for Christmas is for Jeff Van Gundy to shut the fuck up. Jesus Christ.