This is exactly what's happening. His post game and jumpshooting allow him to continue to succeed in producing despite any dropoff in athletic ability.
Kobe losing his athleticism? Probably... getting protection from the refs? Probably as well... NBA has a problem with giving stars beneficial treatment, but Wade and Lebron get away with FAR WORSE... as for athleticism, kobe probably isnt as physically gifted as the Gerald Wallaces, Josh Smiths, Lebrons of the world but the man worked hard to work on his basketball skills. Check out the clips below, most of these highlights are from the last 3 years to show how his game has transformed from the more athletic young kobe to the "smarter" more refined kobe we see today. Highlights #1 Highlights #2 Highlights #3
What happened to Kobe fading, Dakota? Three 41 point games already this season. This prediction is even worse than saying Chase Budinger would be the playmaker the Rockets need in the 4th quarter.
Please stop hyping up Budinger, DD. The opposite of what you say seems to come true more often than not.
Yea its kinda like Jordan during his last three peat where he relied almost exclusively on his jumper and only drove when he had to.
i think kobe still have effciency ,he jump still high ,even in the half match play a lazy ,but it's not dount ,he great ,i have a reason believe kobe still this type condition at least from 2 to 3 year season,for instance ,he last match fight with rocket ,all of people watched kobe how to burst into in end time ,how to throw key ball .
its funny how he is scoring more than last season and more efficiently this season after this thread but the thing is, i agree, naturally he is still athletic but not as athletic as he used to be, but he just keeps getting smarter and deadlier.... folks, you gotta read chris ballard from SI's book the art of the beatuiful game a thinking mans guide to the nba, read the first chapter on kobe or just goto a book store just for that chapter on kobe, really amazing read on him and understanding his mentality
Ouch. These highlights just killed your argument DD. I only needed to watch 30 seconds of the first one.. The guys did a 360 dunk.. easy. DD, his athleticism is still there, very much so. He may not be able to win a dunk contest, but the guy could still probably get his head above the rim.
Kobe would need a 43 inch max vertical to break even with the rim. He sure doesn't have that now, and I doubt he ever did. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26WqnWtFXpk That video shows a young Kobe taking a running start from a good 30 feet out, and at his peak his head is still a good 5 or 6 inches from the rim. His max vert is rumored to be 38", which that video seems to support.
His athleticism has certainly dropped of noticeably as would be the case with any player with as many miles on their legs as he has. I am impressed with his jump shot and his post game but let's not get crazy here, kids. The season is very, very young. It should be no surprise that a gym rat like Kobe comes out guns blazing early in the season. Let's season how he does after about 60 games. Defensively is where you can see the most decline anyway. That's where you will see it more and more over the next two years as well. He already has trouble staying with quicker wing players so that trend will continue. I still expect him two years from now for him to fall off and be a 20ppg scorer at best. By then, his athleticism will definitely be below average for a SG and all the post game and fundamentals in the world can't cover up for that. I'm not taking anything away from the guy. In fact, I respect his game more than ever but he IS human and humans lose athleticism fast after age 30 in the NBA grind.
Well that is stating the obvious. The man is in his thirty's of course he can't do it with ease as much as he used to.
I don't get the point. The fans can argue MJ wasn't as athletic in 96-98 as before that, but the guy stilled won his 2nd 3peat. Kobe is beasting in the post with 35 ppg and 48% kind of stats, and we are talking about him losing athleticism? Epic fail.
