Very well said Tony. I'd like to point out that this is a player who in the last 2 years and 2 summers has played in an Olympic qualifier, an 82 game regular season plus 21 game postseason en route to the Finals, an Olympics in China winning gold (and being the best player down the stretch against Spain), and finally another 82 game regular season plus ~ 23 game postseason en route to a championship and Finals MVP (crosses fingers).
The fact that he has been able to stay healthy these past 2+ years with all that on his shoulders says practically as much about Kobe as his actual production and impact on the court. Kobe's endurance, tolerance for pain, and the fact that he hasn't broken down once during that period of time is truly a special feat. It's going to be a sad day when he retires.
Absolutely correct and insightful post. The best yet on why Kobe's play in this series goes far beyond the 33/8/6 he's putting up.
And to think there are so many who think he's played "good but not great." _________________ “It took many years of vomiting up all the filth I’d been taught about myself, and half-believed, before I was able to walk on the earth as though I had a right to be here.”
― James Baldwin, Collected Essays
Oh the Irony! _________________ “It took many years of vomiting up all the filth I’d been taught about myself, and half-believed, before I was able to walk on the earth as though I had a right to be here.”
― James Baldwin, Collected Essays
Thanks Tony. It's hard when you're watching the game moment from moment, especially in a nail-biter like this one. I tend to exploit the small mistakes because of the stage we're on. As a whole of a game though, I am so appreciative of Kobe out there. Re-watching it again: the timing of it all, the emotional maturity against the refs, the matchup against their all-star. Huge props. A leader in the clutch and an awesome team who shares his trust. Cannot wait till you change your avatar.
Kobe is an amazing player and his skill along with his desire and passion for the game make him the best. Thank you Jerry West for realizing this kid was going to be the next great and bringing him to the Lakers.
During these playoffs I repented on this board for my criticism of Kobe, but still found myself becoming frustrated. I needed to read this to see beyond the box score and see the details of a man playing great basketball in those areas that don't show up on the stat sheet.
Great write up TA. STICKY IT! _________________ Only this time, the Lakers fought back for Bryant. They fought with him. And when he wasn’t his best, they had Bryant’s back. Enough is enough, Kobe Bryant finally witnessed his teammates tell the Boston Celtics.
Truly the most underappreciated 33/8/6 in modern memory. And the numbers really don't tell us anything about those incredible no-look passes, the sensational foul on Superman, snatching the ball away from the strongest man in the game, etc.
Terrific post. You articulated what I have been marveling about -- how Kobe executes perfectly in so many small ways that seldom get noticed, let alone appreciated.
How great would Kobe's performances 'look' if he received the proper calls? The difference between he and Jordan is Jordan would have been on the free throw line at least 10 times in the 4th quarter. Nevermind how many times Pippen, Grant or Kukoc would have also got there.
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Still, Kobe understood what was going on. He, Fish and Walton had experienced the same thing their previous two Finals trips. I noticed those 3 guys took everything in stride more than anyone else. Heck, even Phil and Frank Hamblen lost their cool.
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Must say Kobe's demeanor and focus were very impressive. It helped that Sasha got less than 5 minutes. _________________ Stop crying and start doing.
Joined: 15 Nov 2006 Posts: 19877 Location: Prarie & Manchester, high above the western sideline
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 1:39 am Post subject:
Addicus wrote:
How great would Kobe's performances 'look' if he received the proper calls? The difference between he and Jordan is Jordan would have been on the free throw line at least 10 times in the 4th quarter. Nevermind how many times Pippen, Grant or Kukoc would have also got there.
-
Still, Kobe understood what was going on. He, Fish and Walton had experienced the same thing their previous two Finals trips. I noticed those 3 guys took everything in stride more than anyone else. Heck, even Phil and Frank Hamblen lost their cool.
-
Must say Kobe's demeanor and focus were very impressive. It helped that Sasha got less than 5 minutes.
While backpedaling to the other basket, Kobe signals that he was fouled and/or that his shot was deflected. He's obviously furious and wants to explode on the refs but thinks better of it and holds it in and goes back to work. You can see the repression in his face. Amazing. _________________ http://chickhearn.ytmnd.com/
Perhaps if you would take the time to read the things I say, instead of giving a kneejerk reaction anything other than something 100% complimentary was said, you'd feel otherwise. I said Kobe had played a pretty good series, but wasn't great (by his standards). And moreover I did so in a manner that was intended to defend him against things that had been said by the media, and you and others acted as though I spit in his mother's face. I don't think anyone who watches the Lakers 82 games a season, could not appreciate Kobe. But it also doesn't mean they have to pretend he is flawless. Unfortunately for some people (and you are definately one of them) anything less than absolution is treason. You've made that obvious by your one line comments like this in other threads when I've been complimentary of him.
With regards to Tony's writeup here. It's easy to appreciate a well written post. Even if you don't agree with it fully, heck even if you disagreed with it. I agree with most of what Tony wrote here, though I don't think it's been Kobe's finest hour by any stretch. There's a lot of things that other guys on here have written that I may not at all agree with, but if its a well formulated opinion, I can certainly respect it.
Last edited by J.C. Smith on Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:58 am; edited 1 time in total
Joined: 15 Nov 2006 Posts: 19877 Location: Prarie & Manchester, high above the western sideline
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:04 am Post subject:
J.C. Smith wrote:
KobeBryantCliffordBrown wrote:
J.C. Smith wrote:
Nice writeup Tony.
Oh the Irony!
Perhaps if you would take the time to read the things I say, instead of giving a kneejerk reaction anything other than something 100% complimentary was said, you'd feel otherwise. I said Kobe had played a pretty good series, but wasn't great (by his standards). And moreover I did so in a manner that was intended to defend him against things that had been said by the media, and you and others acted as though I spit in his mother's face. I don't think anyone who watches the Lakers 82 games a season, could not appreciate Kobe. But it also doesn't mean they have to pretend he is flawless. Unfortunately for some people (and you are definately one of them) anything less than absolution is treason. You've made that obvious by your one line comments like this in other threads when I've been complimentary of him.
With regards to Tony's writeup here. It's easy to appreciate a well written post. Even if you don't agree with it fully, heck even if you disagreed with it. I agree with most of what Tony wrote here, though I don't think it's been Kobe's finest hour by any stretch. There's a lot of things that other guys on here have written that I may not at all agree with, but if its a well formulated opinion, I can certainly respect it.
Just for fun you should use a series of arbitrary numerical values (rounded down, not up) to the nearest tenth to express your respect. Try to be efficient. _________________ http://chickhearn.ytmnd.com/
Joined: 13 Sep 2008 Posts: 5743 Location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:20 am Post subject:
C M B wrote:
J.C. Smith wrote:
KobeBryantCliffordBrown wrote:
J.C. Smith wrote:
Nice writeup Tony.
Oh the Irony!
Perhaps if you would take the time to read the things I say, instead of giving a kneejerk reaction anything other than something 100% complimentary was said, you'd feel otherwise. I said Kobe had played a pretty good series, but wasn't great (by his standards). And moreover I did so in a manner that was intended to defend him against things that had been said by the media, and you and others acted as though I spit in his mother's face. I don't think anyone who watches the Lakers 82 games a season, could not appreciate Kobe. But it also doesn't mean they have to pretend he is flawless. Unfortunately for some people (and you are definately one of them) anything less than absolution is treason. You've made that obvious by your one line comments like this in other threads when I've been complimentary of him.
With regards to Tony's writeup here. It's easy to appreciate a well written post. Even if you don't agree with it fully, heck even if you disagreed with it. I agree with most of what Tony wrote here, though I don't think it's been Kobe's finest hour by any stretch. There's a lot of things that other guys on here have written that I may not at all agree with, but if its a well formulated opinion, I can certainly respect it.
Just for fun you should use a series of arbitrary numerical values (rounded down, not up) to the nearest tenth to express your respect. Try to be efficient.
Who has the highest PER when taling about expressing respect, if you know by any chance?
Just for fun you should use a series of arbitrary numerical values (rounded down, not up) to the nearest tenth to express your respect. Try to be efficient.
It should be noted, that the last paragraph of my post, in no way referred to any of your posts.
Kobe has done everything he has so far this series+ better shooting in previous playoff series. If you think this is one of Kobe's best series ever than you are short changing him. _________________
Joined: 15 Mar 2002 Posts: 7276 Location: Sovngarde
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:44 am Post subject:
City_Dawg wrote:
BUH BUH BUH 11-31
GTFO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
18-31 if the refs do their damn job with arguably one of the greatest playoff performances in history. 46 pts, 8 assists and 7 rebs.
BTW great article but make sure to also post up the link next time? _________________ The great Laker Center Tradition continues.....Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, Shaq, Gasol, AD....Gasol.
Joined: 15 Nov 2006 Posts: 19877 Location: Prarie & Manchester, high above the western sideline
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:06 am Post subject:
J.C. Smith wrote:
C M B wrote:
Just for fun you should use a series of arbitrary numerical values (rounded down, not up) to the nearest tenth to express your respect. Try to be efficient.
It should be noted, that the last paragraph of my post, in no way referred to any of your posts.
Ah, 20.00 words. My abacus tells me that this could be your shortest, yet most meaningful paragraph to date.
But with all of my sincerity, I don't understand how you can compliment what Tony Almeida wrote when it directly contrasts your rigidity to essentially meaningless statistics. I say this in the most non-condescending way possible.
But with all of my sincerity, I don't understand how you can compliment what Tony Almeida wrote when it directly contrasts your rigidity to essentially meaningless statistics. I say this in the most non-condescending way possible.
I use stats to support my opinions. I don't form my opinions based on them. If someone says, "this guy did nothing in the game" yet I thought they had a good game, I'll use the stats to show that they did. Or vice versa. You can't prove or disprove opinions, all you can do is express them. But you can at least demonstrate the faults in someones opinion by using numbers. While they never depict the full picture, they get you at least in the ballpark and they are completely unbiased.
Joined: 15 Nov 2006 Posts: 19877 Location: Prarie & Manchester, high above the western sideline
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 4:16 am Post subject:
melo061 wrote:
Kobe has done everything he has so far this series+ better shooting in previous playoff series. If you think this is one of Kobe's best series ever than you are short changing him.
To date it's his most impressive Finals series by default, production-wise, and when you factor all of the added weight--Olympics, injuries/fatigue/mileage, refereeing--you just have to shake your head and say "damn." _________________ http://chickhearn.ytmnd.com/
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