I never thought that Kobe would repair his reputation, but he managed to do it by playing nice to the media and winning another ring. LeBron has bigger hurdles to overcome, though. He has all of Kobe's arrogance but none of his team success and has the "hype" factor that still haunts him 8 years after his SI cover. I think he's become the Barry Bonds of basketball, a guy who is absolutely despised by every fan except his own. It would be strange to market a guy as the face of the league when he is hated by all of the league's fans and has yet to win a championship. Would a championship help LeBron's image? Would staying in Cleveland help him seem loyal?
Uh, LeBron despised? I've never heard such a thing. I haven't seen him get flack for anything other than not going to the post-elimination interviews and this dunk thing. Despised? Are you kidding me? I'd say he's one of the most beloved players in the NBA right now.
No. He's doomed. 20 years from now there will be a film entitled My SUCKY Life produced by Spike Lee and starring.. You guessed it, Michael Keaton.
I'm not a fan of his, but I still respect him. Certainly, I don't hate him. He's mature. He's not cocky like Stephon Mabury or Jennings. He has some mistakes here and there (like not shaking hands....), but who doesn't?
despised? no, more like he's a soar loser and he will dunk on you all night but god forbid anyone dunk on him. I still can't understand what is so bad about being dunked on by some kid from xavier.
LeBron has a lot more in common with pre-championship Jordan than Kobe, I think. The Barry Bonds comparison is just bizarre.
Either you're joking or you're a delusional hater. I'm trying to think of someone I know that doesn't like LeBron and I can't think of a single person. I'm a huge Rockets fan and bron is my favorite player in the league hands down. Besides Yao LeBron has to be the most popular player in the league and there's not any form of an image problem whatsoever for him.
I really don't see how you can like the guy, especially after his latest stunt. How can you not cringe at this too? But to compare him to Barry Bonds, that's too far.
Firstly, I don't think Kobe has repaired his reputation all that much. Sure, he's proven the doubters wrong by winning a ring without Shaq. But do you remember what his Laker teams were like before Gasol was around? Lebron - no team success? Has Cleveland not improve year-by-year? They had an awesome regular reason record this year, and reached the eastern conference finals. Did he not take his team to the finals a few years ago?
LeBron has been well liked all his career, until this offseason after his bad attitude on losing and this destroying evidence thing. Kobe's reputation had been much worse even before the rape thing.
but lebron still has mo williams, west and Z. which arent the best out there, but not a bad bunch. while kobe had to deal with kwame and smush parker and still made it to the playoffs. ****, not even michael could have won with that team. how has kobe not repaired his situation, he shut every single hater out there by showing so much matureness this year, he stopped hugging the ball and started trustin his teammates, showed real leadership and led the lakers to a championship. hate all you want on kobe man.
I´m not going to get in to this because I really don´t care but kobe has a better team than Lebron...which is why he won the title.. again.
i think he's a douche that's been babied by the league. he's athletically gifted, why give him more help with uber all-star calls. that "clean" block on richardson or his lecrab dribble.... that's crap. i think lebron is twice the athlete kobe is but kobe is twice as skilled. kobe's footwork > crab dribble
I hate the man, and don't know how any fans of other teams cannot. He's a great player and that's what he has going for him. His actions on and off the court are arrogant and annoying. If he wants to pretend to play baseball and take fake pictures before games, then so be it. He better win a championship soon though if he expects people to keep giving him the excuse, "He can do whatever he wants, he's the best." Honestly cannot stand that man. I hate Kobe and I was waaaay more happy to see him win another championship than I'd have been for Lebron.
Really?? That's not saying Lebron's humble but that's an awful lot of arrogance to amount anybody to. I dont like any of Lebron's theatrics, but just about everything Kobe's done outside of actually playing ball just seems fake.
I'm not even a big 'Bron fan but I just don't get the big deal with the dunk thing. If we see it then great, if not then so what? It's not like Lebron is Dikembe or some impossible mountain that it's impossible to dunk on. IIRC didn't Courtney Lee dunk on him in the playoffs?
