You obviously don't like T-Mac. Tracy would have at least 5 rings if the Lakers acquired him instead of Kobe. I don't think you watched T-Mac in Orlando. He was better than his first year as a Rocket. Don't you remember T-Mac in the fourth before all those injuries? He averaged almost 10ppg, he was very clutch. Comparing LeBron to Jordan is a slap in MJ's face. Their games are nothing alike. The only 3 players currently in the league that have similar games to Jordan are Kobe, T-Mac, and Wade. Click Click
You obviously hate Lebron. Kobe is right now the most like MJ but give LeBron 8 more years (to get to teh age Kobe is) and he will likely be even or very close to MJ (depends on Championships obviously). LeBron has become better and better at defense and this year put up numbers close to MJ's best year (32 8 8 in season five; 30 8 7 in season five). Kobe is at best a lap behind MJ.
lebron is already better than kobe on defense i believe at the tender age of 23. dude locked down kobe twice this yr in the 4th and played superb D in the playoffs. he's superior than kobe on everything EXCEPT his jumpshot. once lebron gets that jumper to be consistent, he'll be easily considered the best player. right now, kobe barely beats him simply b/c of that jumper.
I understand words can be confusing to those who skim. NO ONE IS COMPARABLE TO MJ RIGHT NOW. The only person currently in the NBA that is remotely comparable is Kobe, and that's if he wins it all this season. LeBron could get injured tomorrow, and then he would have a worse career Vince Carter. Tthe only 3 players currently in the league that have similar games to Jordan are Kobe, T-Mac, and Wade. Don't call me a hater.
Didi you not see Wade suck this year and his team not be able to win? I call you a hater when you think a guy who is a freak athletically, drives at will, dunks like crazy, and averaged 30-8-8 not like MJ. And it's even worse when you think Wade and TMAC are more like MJ than LeBron. Sorry but LeBron is on a different level than those two. He and Kobe are head and shoulders above anyone else in the league right now.
Lebron's game is different than MJ. Lebron is beast, and he uses his strength and athleticism to score. MJ was not as big as Lebron and was more of a finesse scorer. Honestly you can't compare Lebron to anybody in the past. His game is just different. Maybe you can say Len Bias, but even he had a better jumpshot.
Whoever think TMac can win a ring with a Shaq in their prime is dumb. Shaq was very good in year 2000 and 2001, much declined already in 2002, Kobe wasn't the best player in Lakers in 2000. But he's already their best player since 2001. Evident by averaging more points than Shaq in west playoff. Yes, Shaq got final MVP, but it's because East was weak inside. Can TMac average 38 points vs. Spurs? Can TMac single-handed will a win with an injured ankle in final OT when Shaq's fouled out. Can TMac play when he's poisoned with burger? How many game winning shots TMac had in playoff? Kobe took over 4th quarter every game, how much stamina TMac will have after chasing Miller all night long? TMac had his chance, game 7, up 5 points in 4th, 6 mins left, at home, he couldn't close it out. What makes you think he's a clutch player? Name me another elite player who has lost the series after 2:0 twice, 3:1 once. People keep talking how TMac's a good defensive player in Raptors. True, but that's because he didn't have to carry offense at the same time. Once he has to, he never plays decent defense again. All D team is selected by coaches, Kobe has 7, TMac has 0. You think it's coincidence?
so are you saying kobe never had a bad playoff game? there is a reason phil jackson was willing to let kobe go when buss chose him to choose b/t shaq and kobe. you can argue all you want, but shaq was the main reason they won all those rings, and yes kobe did play a big part. but shaq was the primary culprit. and it's not even that. penny got to the finals with shaq. kobe did, then wade did. that's 3 all-nba guards that got to the finals with shaq. are you saying tmac in his prime isn't even close to those 3 guys??? that's 100% proof of the trend on how to win with shaq. team him with an all-nba guard and voila -> championships.
and please watch the game and not reputations. kobe hasn't played a lick of D since 2000. lebron has played better D than kobe this year by far. if you see the playoffs, that should be VERY obvious.
coaches tend to vote on reputation. so battier wasn't a top 5 defender this yr b/c the coaches think so from the voting distribution. he got less vote than even chris paul kobe has a reputation of a great defensive player. having a great reputation does not mean you were a great defensive player that year, which he was not for the past 7-8 years.
I didn't watch Penny's game, but Wade was clutch (at least with refs' help). TMac never proved that. Kobe had his fair share of bad games in playoff, but playoff is 7 games series. Barring 2004 final, Kobe won every series lakers were supposed to win and some. He lead the comeback of game 7 comeback of 2000 blazers and 2002 Kings series. Kobe's clutch, Wade's clutch doesn't automatically translate TMac's clutch. He's not, proven again in last year's playoff. You are up 5 points at home in game 7, no excuse not to win the game. Kobe would win it, Wade would win it. But TMac couldn't score a single point until down 4 with 7 seconds left, garbage time. Playoff is a mental game, TMac just doesn't have the mental toughness to come through wars.
No, media tend to vote on reputation and numbers. Coaches watch games and compiled films, they know what they are talking about.
Battier is a good defensive player. He can't crack first team because he's a forward. They've got Bowen in first team as a guard just to have one more roster.
then explain the voting distribution. and explain to me how chris paul made all-nba 2nd team? b/c he led the league in steals? who did he ever shut down? smh it doesn't matter if battier is a forward. he guarded the "guards" and "Forwards." coaches should know that. didn't he guard kobe bryant on national tv and shut him down? kobe is a guard.
it's not about position really. bowen guards forwards and guards, which is the same as battier. they play basically the same way on 2 different teams. if coaches were really smart as they seem rather than going off of "big defensive names" like bowen and kobe, then battier would get unanimous votes for all-nba defense. when people voted for all-nba teams, they dont' care about positions, but moreso who play the best. one year, you had jkidd, tmac, AND kobe on the all-nba first teams a few years ago. battier was the most impressive perimeter defensive player. there was no explanation for why even a guy like chris paul had more overall votes than him. it's a shame that coaches vote for that. you should have the names of all the coaches who vote. i guarantee you defensive-minded coaches had battier on 1st teams, and offensive-minded coaches (which are abundant nowadays) don't even know who he is.
Why is this difficult to understand? TD and KG are locks in forward, they are defensive anchors. Bowen and Battier are forwards as well, but they don't make a difference as much as TD and KG. Now some coaches would think, OK, they defend guards, I would put them in guards position. Others wouldn't, they'd simply put the best defensive guards in there, and Kobe's always top1 or 2. So even Battier may play better defense than Kobe, he won't get 1st team votes, it's normal. Battier is about the 4th best defensive forward in the league, after TD, KG, Bowen. Kobe's the best defensive guard in the league. I don't see anything wrong in the voting. If you check the history, Bowen didn't get many 1st team selections either for the same reason. Actually this is the first time Bowen's voted into 1st team as a guard.
