Imo, its talent plus hard work. Have you seen those clips in his rookie year were in the playoffs against the Jazz he air balled his shots. I still don't like him but you have to respect him.
Agree with most sentiments already posted. On a scale of 1-10.... Natural talent= 7.5 God given athleticism/body= 8 Intelligence/learning curve/resilience= 9 Hard work and determination to make the most of his talent/athleticism/body= 10 Hunger to win and desire to be the best= OFF THE SCALE I don't think anybody expected Kobe to turn out as good as he did. Otherwise he wouldn't have slipped to 13th pick overall; gotten traded for Divac etc. He also struggled his first couple of seasons and faced many hardships throughout his career. Any other player could have folded with the rape allegations etc. I know he's not very popular on this board but you gotta give him his props.
Kobe is very talented. But is obviously one of if not the most skilled player in the NBA today. I've said for the past few years, Lebron James is much more talented then Kobe Bryant, yet the only thing keeping Kobe on top of him has always been Kobe's skill.
It's like what Grant Hill was saying a couple of days ago, Lebron has 2 great "pitches," the pull up jumper from behind the arc and the drive to the basket. Kobe has the whole arsenal of "pitches."
I think MJ had a weaker field of peers amongst the 2 guards to contend with. The names I remember the most are Reggie Miller, Joe Dumars, and Clyde Drexler. That's not to say I'm devaluing his dominance, he deserves every bit of recognition he has received. But just saying his athletic gifts were perhaps magnified since he didn't have too many similar peers. And yes those large hands separated him from the rest of the pack, including Kobe of the present day. So to say the wings of today is as athletic as Kobe should not be a negative to Kobe's athleticism, just a statement on the proliferation of athletic wings. I still think Kobe is an above average player if he just relied on his athleticism, as his speed and quickness is still better then most (in the past anyways, as he isn't as quick these days).
I agree with that, but biggest difference is that MJ played at a time where you could get hit, pushed, punished as a guard and not get a foul called. Now if you get touched with the ball anywhere, it is automatic call. Even with that MJ put up HUGE numbers, with less calls. I just think in today's time he would be insanely good offensively.
kobe was pretty gifted in his younger days. <object width="640" height="505"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YqiViGHl8jM&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YqiViGHl8jM&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="505"></embed></object> not the most out of this world gifted athlete like a prime vince carter but definitely above average athleticism its a combination of both. above average athleticism with the heart of a champion. all work would be like someone like steve nash imo
No he doesn't, he doesn't demand the ball late in the game. Killer instinct is wanted and taking that final shot no matter what. I guess saying NONE is incorrect, but honestly it is the single most improvement he can make to make him unstoppable (that along with driving to the hole more often).
One can argue that MJ started the no hand check on the perimeter rule (that and Derek Harper manhandling Kenny Smith in the 94 Finals), as MJ started getting superstar no touch fouls as his career progressed in the 90's. It's like the NBA saw that the moneymakers were players like MJ doing all those acrobatic crowd pleasing moves and realized they need to make sure those type of plays need to keep happening.
I think work is the majority, look his first years, he had talent, but he had to work it out to make those skills raise up. In his first years, he wasnt the starter, and he got good dunker reputation, then he in the playoffs he airballed 3 crucial shots against the jazz, then the next season, he still wasnt the full-time starter, and they got swept by the spurs, then comes the 3 peat, and he gets better and better. So I think is more work than raw skill.
Of course it has to be both no matter what Ryan Bowen does in the training he cant be good. and if you have raw talent but you are lazy and you dont do anything in the offseason, and dont do anything to work your game, you never will be a superstar, only a star in a bad team.
I think you forgot the correct answer which is both. and you should have put a disclaimer that if people start yaking about tmac or vince carter, that they should do something productive like dress up like milli vanilli and start singing girl you know it's true. at least milli vanilli won a grammy for their sham they pulled on us.
This may also be a result of not working hard in the summer. I recall folx mentioning how good workouts will help with injuries but help prevent them as well. Rocket River
Why not both? I don't get it when people say Kobe has average athleticism. He's not as athletic as Jordan and LeBron that's for sure but he is still an elite athlete. And you know what, I would rank Kobe above Tmac and VC from a physical attribute standpoint. The latter two has bigger hands and a longer wingspan. VC obviously has the most hops and Tmac has the greatest length. What they don't have is the combination of a quick, decisive first step and perfect body control, which Kobe has. Tmac has always been a sub-par finisher around the rim through contacts among elite guards because he has weak core strength. VC can jump, but what good does it do for you when you can't get by people efficiently? He just doesn't have enough speed and agility for my taste to be considered as an elite two guard. Kobe has also exhibited unparalled stamina and durability throughout his career, which is another sign of his physical gifts. It looked like he could go on and play another game right away after he scored 81 against the Raptors. That's something you don't see in Tmac and VC.
i really really realllllly doubt that t-mac spent 1/10th of the time kobe did in perfecting his game, yet the fact that in his prime, t-mac was considered on par or better than kobe, speaks incredibly about his natural talent and knack for the game. do i think t-mac was born with scoring ability? yea i do. his incredible scoring, infinite range on his jumper, deceiving speed (ran a 40 in 4.3 his rookie year), and great hands are all things he was born with. the fact that t-mac is so awful now should tell you how much he relied on his natural talent.
