so are you saying kobe was responsible for their defense? chris paul made all-nba 2nd team defense and got more votes than shane battier. that tells you a lot.
once again, is it that difficult for u to understand. defense wins championships; TMac is a definite no-D while Shaq is a borderline no-D
so kobe got a ring one year avg 21, 5, 5 in the playoffs. you don't think so huh? and "maybe" get out of the first round with a center putting up 30 and 15 on 57% shooting for him???? y'all know tmac took every team to the max # of games by himself most years. and you don't think teaming a prime shaq + a prime tmac could only "maybe" get out of the first round. esp. with phil jackson, veterans in ron harper, rick fox, horry, fisher, ac green... you do know we're talking about tmac in his orlando prime and shaq in his championship year primes right?
so tell me who kobe shut down in the playoffs during their championship years except for iverson in one quarter of game 3? ron harper and rick fox guarded most of the big scorers most of the time. stop basing on all-nba teams and watch the freakin' games. and please, shaq is borderline no-D??? dude was the msot feared guy to penetrate against.
in a roundabout way, ur asking what make Kobe such a great defender.? quickness, work-ethic (something Shaq lacks), pride and BB smart. while Shaq is just too lazy, guys like TMac and Penny are just indifferent about D
your argument lacks substance. kobe wasn't their primary defender during their championship years. rick fox and derek fisher were (just like derek fisher and vujacic are the main perimeter defenders right now). he guarded the scorers for "short" stretches. but for the better part of the game, kobe was defending scrubs. and the part i bolded tells your lack of cohesiveness in your argument. give me facts, not what you think.
ask phil jackson, who chose shaq over kobe when he had to b/c he knew who was responsible for his championships in LA . he even wanted to trade kobe when buss asked him to choose a side. so yea, think about that.
guys like TMac and Penny are just too indifferenct to D up, so even scrub can score on them. replace Kobe w TMac, laker's defense will have too many holes to cover. w TMac, Laker would never win a ring.
Kobe is also a great defender. He makes all defensive teams almost every year. Tmac has the potential to be a good defender. He started out his career in Toronto as a defensive specialist but since he became a star, Tmac has let his defense go. Tracy lacks the work ethic and passion to be a geat offensive as well as defensive player like Kobe.
my point is with shaq in his prime years, you put any all-nba 1st team guard, which tmac was, he would have won a few rings. hell, penny, another all-nba 1st team during his prime years, went to the finals with shaq in their SECOND year together under brian hill, a coach you probably don't even know. and shaq went to the finals with dwayne wade, another all-nba guard. all i'm saying is during shaq's hey day, you put an all-nba guard next to shaq, you can say with certainty that that team will reach the finals and most likely win it. 3 all-nba guards (penny, kobe, wade) have proven it. the prime tmac was on par with kobe and better than penny and wade. so is it wrong to conclude that tmac would have made it to the finals with shaq and most likely win it? the proof is right there. the trend is obvious.
I dont think these dudes gets it. I think they're forgetting how great Shaq was back then and how great Tracy was too.
Is Kobe your brother or something? Becasue there not one person in their right state of mind would say that a Prime Shaq and a Prime Tracy couldnt get to the finals.
Penny wasn't a no-D player when he was young, healthy, and with Shaq. He averaged over 2 stls a game 4 or 5 seasons and finished in the top 5 two of the years he was with Shaq.
that's just ignorant and extremely stupid. Shaq was an unstoppable force for years and when he had a guy who could score along side him he made the finals half of the time. With TMAC, a guy who averaged 25+, 6, 6 during the LA championship run they would have won at least one.
