A legendary figure revered for his god-like qualities on the basketball court. Owner of 5 rings, possessing a career 25.3 points per game average, and a career 34% shooter from behind the arc. Played with the greatest player of his era for 3 of his championships. Shaquille O'Neal seriously owned everyone (He shot 62% from the field in 2003. 62%!) Luckily, there's the NBA Finals MVP trophy, which Kobe has been awarded twice. He stole the latest Finals MVP from Pau Gasol, after Kobe's super clutch 6 for 24 shooting performance in Game 7 of the Finals, evidence that he is indeed the greatest player in the game, truly like Mike.
What people need to realize is that he is the best player on the best team; meaning the Lakers are the best team, there is a reason why they lead the league in payroll and have to pay nearly $27 million in luxury tax. Kobe Bryant is the best player on that team, which is still debatable to some degree but Kobe claims such an Alpha dog status and everyone on the Lakers refers to him in that role. The best player in the league? Just imagine if you plugged pre-"incident" LeBron in Kobe's place, the Lakers would be looking at 74-75 wins in the regular season, try John Hollinger's Player Efficiency Ratings (PER). Gasol, Fisher, Odom, Bynum, Artest-these guys all make Kobe look that much better. Derek Fisher was unbelievably clutch in the Finals, as was Artest in Game 7. Pau put up big numbers in the games they put away early. Kobe's signature Finals game was one that he lost. He's a gamer, he's a winner, etc. but he is not that good. He has 5 rings, but he is not 5 rings good. Heck, Robert Horry has 7 rings. Kobe's quest for rings will not get him the validation he is seeking, the validation he thinks he will receive if he ties or surpasses Jordan. Rings does not equal greatness, greatness equals greatness.
