in a later interview, yao ming said luthor head used to scream at him and go back and forth. really helped yao's shanghai shook hook.
Kobe is acting way too hard to seem like he acts hard. He's full of it and though I get challenging each other is good and I think he's a great competitor, the stuff he put outs there like he's Mr. Know-it-all thinking he can re-write history in the process (Hornets trading him for example) makes him very unlikeable. As a player, he was very good but I will always remember him for being a dick. Why? Kobe threatened to leave the Lakers when he finally showed he could not do it without much around him, was never the alpha dog leader he proclaims himself to be (Shaq was and without Pau, no 2 more rings), his ego to the point where a lot of players do not want to join him (Ask Nellie and the latest signing of that ridiculous contract (also an extension of his ego). Face it Kobe, even if you get a 6th ring, you are never going to be viewed as the best player the way MJ is and yes: MJ was better.
I think he is ok with that. And one thing. He is actually very intelligent something you can't say about a lot of professional athletes.
I get that Kobe is/was legitimately tough on the court but the tough guy, lead through intimidation type of leader has always seemed like it was forced but no one but Shaq called bull**** on it. Kobe's intimidation came through being the franchise player who was extremely vocal to management when he wanted a player gone. I highly doubt anyone was intimidated by him psychologically and certainly not physically. He is today's tough guy leader but only because players are no longer mentally tough. Had he tried that **** with MJ's Bulls, Larry's Celtics, Isiah's Pistons, Magic's Lakers...I can go on and on...he would have had his ass kicked. Hell, even MJ learned that you can't always lead by being a perfectionist jerk to your teammates. Ask Bill Cartwright or Robert Parrish.
He is a bit contrived but you can't doubt his work ethic. That's what's taken him so far. I have to respect that kind of dedication.
What I got out of these excerpts were that he's going out of his way to be an ******* to his teammates with the intention of "pushing them to their maximum potential". I'm sorry, but "being an ******* to be an *******" doesn't sound like a great motivating tactic -- you're just going to de-motivate folks and run them off (Shaq; Dwight). And when they leave he can control the narrative: "they weren't mentally tough." It's ridiculous. It's like how so many youth coaches (in any sport) yell just to tell, either because 1) that's all they know how to do 2) they have serious personal issues themselves or 3) they assume every kid responds to "motivation" the same way. If he's genuinely curious about learning new strategies, he should start taking courses in sports psychology. Otherwise, he'd be an awful coach.
I never really like Kobe from the things I've heard concerning his ego from Smush Parker to his feud with Shaq and how he did Battier and Artest back in the '09 playoffs. Now that I know Shane is a bate artist and the homer goggles have come off I see why Kobe elbowed him in the head to get him Battier off nutsack (literally). Kobe is playing to finish out his absurd contract.... Way to go Kobe.
Go back to the footage of the 2002 LAL vs SAC Play Off Series. Kobe had all 3 refs as teammates every single game. :grin: It was amazing that the NBA allowed such a rigged series to take place.
Most professional athletes are intelligent enough not to get caught up in rape cases with fugly hotel employees, or dime teammates out when being questioned about it.
The last 3-4 years have been really weird for me and basketball. I was so young when we won the championships, I vividly remember watching the finals -- as my parents were at the game -- but now all the players that I really grew up watching, the 96 Draft class and later, are all retiring...Kobe is among the last and greatest of that generation...it's the same feeling I got when McGrady retired...I can't describe it, it's like this sad yearning for the past, coupled with the simultaneous realization of our own mortality. Sports is supposed to take my mind off of life, not reflect on it! ...sorry, kind of trailed off there, these pain killers are started to work...yayyyy
I doubt it. By his own words it's clear he is physically diminished. He can talk about being smarter and "sharper" (whatever that means) but the fact remains that he is 36 with a ridiculous amount of mileage on his broken body. He won't be any more skilled now than he has been for the past 8ish years. He will just be older, slower, less explosive and with less stamina than before. Assuming he stays healthy and can play 30+ minutes I wouldn't expect more than 21-22 ppg with less efficiency than he has performed at for the last five years. Also, get ready for him to be the victim of some epic ankle breakage vine clips when he gets isolated defensively against any players quicker than Luis Scola. That's assuming he even attempts to play defense which I'm not sure will happen. I didn't reply to bash the guy but the more I hear from him the more I expect him to go out there and suck, throw his teammates under the bus and try to make sure we all know he is trying really, really, hard despite being old, injured and on a team full of losers. This is his last chance to convince the world that he really is as mentally invincible as he thinks we think he thinks he is. But everyone over the age of 30 knows the guy is MJ without all the important things that made MJ the goat. Mainly, the supreme but still human confidence, true killer instinct and an actual understanding of how to carry a team to a Championship. Kobe talks it every chance he gets when someone puts a camera or microphone in his face. MJ did it and then went to casino, blew $100k, had too many drinks and then woke up and did it again the next day like a boss without chasing down a camera or microphone to share with the world how ruthless, cold-blooded and obsessed with winning he was. When you walk the walk it's obvious what you're about and who you are. Kobe never learned that.
Watching some of the games they have been playing on NBATV, I wonder what he would do in today's NBA. Just filthy in the Shaq/Kobe era.
