A lot of arguments provided here Kobe was > Tmac b/c he's carrying his Lakers past the Suns (ahem) when TMac couldn't carry the Rockets past the Mavs. Hmmm, soo...no argument that Kobe is a freak of a talent, as is McGrady. I love watching both players play. So, let's re-evaluate: T-Mac up 2-0, no closer than 2 games from a round 1 vicotry until game 7. Lost. Kobe up 3-1, one game away from moving past the suns, and nope...can't do it. But some will argue, but wait, his numbers, his monster 80-something point game... I will just say what T-Mac haters always said, results are the same, T-Mac can't get out of round one without some help, and neither could Kobe. Nevertheless, both players deserve props, and both need to come back next year with more to prove. I don't know how much discussion this thread will lend, but let's keep it at that...just discussion! Regards!
kobe maybe the better player, but last year's playoffs and this year's playoffs proved it doesn't matter with either one of them. they still went out in the first round. it takes a lot of will to push your team through the playoffs with their styles, being perimeter players. only jordan has proven to be able to in the last 20 years.
what's up man. Well, my argument is this...why? b/c of the rings? If Tmac had Shaq, could he have won in Orlando? Or are you arguing Kobe just has more of an impact and can do more than McGrady? I try not to be biased, and am tryin to base my views before McGrady became a Rocket. he's hardly a slouch of a talent. I really do find it hard to argue who is better than the other. 81/82 points? well does that means TMac was better when he scored 62 and Kobe had not? I think that is irrelavent in the grand scope of the discussion. Awesome milestones no doubt, but hardly enough to base your "judgement" of who is a better player. I believe it's hard to make a decisoin b/c, yep...Kobe has the hardware, T-Mac hasn't come close. Again, just some friendly discussion...
Actually, I think there's a temptation to devalue McGrady because he's a Rocket. In attempting to not sound like a homer, a lot of people undervalue guys on their own roster. I think there is also an injury-myopia here. We haven't seen McGrady play much recently because of his injuries. You have to remember what he did a year ago. And, that was some awesome stuff. I don't know if I'd say Bryant is an inferior player, but I don't see how you can say anyone is really superior to McGrady.
NOW he is...next year, we'll see. Not to mention, this season was a bust b/c of injuries. The past year, yao was far too inconsistent. Lamar Odom is hardly a slouch for the lakers.
I think that's my point here...it's just a tough call. You can make arguments for each case, but I just don't think it's so crystal clear as some make it out to be.
outside of the stats, the 81 point game , the 62 in 3 qtrs , the rings etc Kobe has proven to be a more durable player. A more durable player makes a better player because a player on the bench does nothing for their team!! at peak form , McGrady's possible of stringing together Kobe like performances- But 8 has the edge. He keeps coming and keeps coming. (insert Colorado joke here) as much as i might not like it (im no fan of his) 5 -10 -30 years on , they'll remember Kobe Bryant as one of the best, and most controversial, of all time. Tracy's legacy is in peril. But I , like all of us, am cheering for him.
Very good question. I have been going back and forth with it in my mind. But I think that Kobe is a better player. More consistent, has a much higher basketball IQ, and not afraid to take the final shot. More importantly I think Kobe is more of a competitor. T-Mac is nowhere near as aggressive. I am sure the last year of T-Mac being hurt is clouding some of my memories, but Kobe>T-Mac for sure.
Talent-wise? I'd say it's pretty much a wash. Their games are quite different, so it's difficult to compare. As far as being able to score at will and the ability to get to the basket, I believe Kobe has a clear edge over McGrady. On any given night, I'd say Kobe has a greater chance of going off for 60 points. The way McGrady plays...his scoring depends a lot more on being "in the zone." However, McGrady has a lot of other qualities that we saw last season that make him the consummate team player. In my opinion, he sees the floor better than Kobe does. He also has more range on his shot, and his length makes him a better defender...that is when he wants to be (as we all saw last year in the playoffs). He can still get a little lazy on defense from time to time. I'd say Kobe right now is a step above McGrady for one reason alone...his durability.
Exactly. That's the ONLY differentiator I see. When TMac was the two time scoring champion, nobody even bothered to compare Kobe to TMac as TMac was obviously the better individual player. Kobe has progessed and TMac had disgressed since. Give me TMac @ 100% healthy with the new-improved Yao Ming and people will be saying Kobe who? (oh, and upgrade Ryan Bowen, pls)
I don't know about that, I heard a lot of people say the lakers had the two best indiviual players in the league. not saying they were right or wrong, but there was that talk.
