http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/294678/20120207/kobe-bryant-lebron-james-larry-bird-poll.htm Kobe Bryant or LeBron James? Larry Bird Makes His Choice By JASON VAN HOVEN February 7, 2012 5:03 PM EST The debate over Kobe Bryant or LeBron James as a preferable teammate rages on, as Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird gave his own take on the matter on Tuesday. Appearing on "The B.S. Report" with Grantland.com's Bill Simmons, Bird said that James is both the best player in the league and one of the greatest players ever, so much so that fans should continue to sit back and enjoy what he can do on the basketball court. Despite both Bryant and James drawing comparisons to Michael Jordan, the debate over who is actually more worthy of those comparisons never seems to cease. (Reuters/Andrew Innerarity) However, when Bird was asked to choose any current player that he would most want to play with for a whole season, he instead chose Bryant, despite his deep-rooted rivalry with the Lakers. Like us on Facebook "Well, of course he wouldn't have been shooting as much as he does now, but his desire to win, his dedication to always get better... and he's just, he's just tough," Bird said. "He's just a tough cat." Bird continued: "But, if you want to have fun, like I did with Bill Walton, play with LeBron. It would have probably been more fun to play with LeBron, but if you want to win and win and win, it's Kobe. Not that LeBron's not a winner, just that [Kobe's] mindset is to go into every practice, every game, to get better." Although some have argued James is a better talent than Bryant, others note each player's resume, implying Bryant's long-term success: Bryant has won five championships with the Lakers, one short of Michael Jordan's number, while James, who has also drawn comparisons to Jordan, has no title to his credit. He joined the Miami Heat last season, but fell short in the NBA Finals, leaving him searching for his first title. Currently, both Bryant and James are one-two in scoring average, having led their teams to be contenders. Nevertheless, the Heat seem to be more poised to make it back to the Finals as they hold the second seed in the Eastern Conference at 18-6, while the Lakers are tied with three other teams for the sixth seed in the Western Conference at 14-11. So who is your preference? Answer the poll below and explain why in the comments section.
Lol coming from a Celtic... Legacy wise, LBJ has a long way to go to be compared to Kobe Today though, I'd probably take Bron over Kobe regular season OR playoffs
So Kevin Love thinks Kobe is the best player in the league, while Larry Bird thinks LeBron James is the best player in the league. Interesting.
Pikachu, I choose you! Does it really matter? Neither of them won a ring last season and the Rockets are winning it this year.
How did you get that? "But, if you want to have fun, like I did with Bill Walton, play with LeBron" Do you remember Bill Walton's role when he played with Bird? If you just want to win, you team with best player. If you want to win while being the man (that's fun for Bird), you are looking at Bill Walton in his celtics years, a good supporting role.
Kobe is nearing the end of his career. Lebron is still in the beginning of his. This is not a fair comparison indeed. In hindsight, it tells you the very high expectations imposed on Lebron (maybe imposed by himself). This is the same when comparing a then rising star Kobe with his Airness. So upon looking now it would seem that...oh wait...Jordan is still the best ever :grin:
Nobody will come close to Michael. Don't really care how many rings LeBron or Kobe win or what kind of statistical seasons each of them have/had.... nobody put up a resume like Jordan. For Kobe, we've seen his resume, it isn't good enough IMO to compare to MJs. For LeBron, he can't replicate Jordan's resume either.. too late for him. Jordan could've potentially had more rings (as hard as it is for me to admit) and more MVPs than he currently has now if he hadn't retired in 93 or 98 (I think he could've played and won titles a couple more years after 98).
Lebron only took a million or less off the max that he could play. Its not like he had the 20-25 million kobe makes on the table, ith the CBA you are only allowed certain percentage increases and kobe is a 13,14 year veteran so naturally his pay rate is going to be way higher...nexst contract lebron will get 20 and he will take 20 or 19, but yea that is definitely misleading
[rquoter] Appearing on "The B.S. Report" with Grantland.com's Bill Simmons, Bird said that James is both the best player in the league and one of the greatest players ever, so much so that fans should continue to sit back and enjoy what he can do on the basketball court.[/rquoter]
In 1990 most would have taken Magic over Jordan. This stuff is meaningless now, let's wait until both player's respective careers are over.
Maybe actually reading the article fully would help or listening to the actual podcast. Shocking I know.