“I’ve got one more than Shaq.” — Kobe Bryant
The accolades would seem to indicate that respect has not been an issue for Kobe Bryant — the respect of fans, the respect of his peers, the respect of the media.
In his career, Kobe Bryant has been selected to the All-Star Game twelve times. He has been named All-NBA First Team eight times. He’s gotten it done at both ends of the floor, winning two scoring titles and garnering first team All-Defensive honors eight times. He’s been named league MVP once (2008) and in his prime seasons (age 28+) when Kobe didn’t win the regular season MVP, he responded in each of those two seasons by winning the NBA Finals MVP.
The latest honor came last night on the heels of an 83-79 Laker win in Game 7 of the NBA Finals that was equal parts heart-pounding and hideous.
Further, in the last two seasons, Kobe had to listen to virtually
everyone anoint LeBron James as the Chosen One, including the media who
not only handed LeBron a second-consecutive regular-season MVP Award in
overwhelming fashion but also insultingly allowed the league’s weak
sisters’ chase for James’ services for the next half decade to
overshadow the chase for something that players who are in actuality the
most valuable go get — the NBA Championship.
In some sense, it would seem Kobe’s two NBA Finals MVP awards are a
direct response to a basketball world quick to turn the page on the only
player of this decade who can truly stake a claim to 2000-2010 as his
era (Bryant), a direct response to everyone wanting to fast
forward to the LeBron Era because…well, LeBron is spectacular,
especially from November till May.
But this is not about LeBron. Not for Kobe, it isn’t. If you peel
back the layers of the onion that is Kobe Bryant’s career, his obsession
is with two people — Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal, the former
being the benchmark that he has been bred to surpass from the time he
was balling for Lower Merion High School near Philadelphia, and the
latter being the source of the shadow that he has spent the better part
of his adult years trying to escape.
I’ve always thought that we find out the most about a person — who
they are, what they are about — at one of two times: one, when they think that no one is watching; and two, when they
are answering questions in times heightened by raw emotion (love,
hatred, death). When Kobe Bryant was asked what last night’s
championship win meant to him, he answered immediately, decisively, and
with ZERO hint of a smile — “I’ve got one more than Shaq.”
It would be interesting to know if Shaquille O’Neal even cares. The
Shaq-Kobe relationship has always had a big brother-little brother
dynamic to it, in both physical stature and the respective treatment of
the rivalry — Shaq being the big brother making calculated, but playful
comments (“Tell me how my ass tastes, Kobe!”) and Kobe being
the little brother who overreacts by running and telling mom (or forcing
mom to trade his big brother to the Miami Heat). Shaq is largely
viewed by fans as a big, playful kid; Kobe is viewed by fans as a
single-minded prick.
There’s nothing Kobe can do about that. As much as he wants to kiss
his wife in the middle of the floor after winning the title and bring
his young daughters to the post-game press conference, many will always
see Kobe as a douche bag who happens to take over basketball games. Deep
down, Kobe knows this. Hence, the 100 percent authentic answer of
“What does this title mean to you?”
“I’ve got one more than Shaq.”
The irony in all of this is that Bryant in his younger, more selfish
years probably viewed Shaq as an impediment to his birthright, the
inheritance of the title “best ever” from Jordan. After all, how can
you be viewed as the “best ever” if there’s a question as to whether
you’re even the best on your own team? That selfishness was the impetus
for the Lakers’ trading Shaq to Miami, and for Kobe nearly leaving Los
Angeles mid-decade when the Lakers had devolved into “Kobe and a pile of
turds.” It’s ironic because in today’s sports world where the easiest
thing to do is just start ranking players using “titles won” as the end-all and be-all and saying that one player is greater than another
because he won five titles and so-and-so only won four, the fact of the
matter is that Kobe Bryant wouldn’t have five championship rings without
Shaquille O’Neal. Not even close.
And without those five rings, there is no comparison to Kobe Bryant’s
other obsession — Michael Jeffrey Jordan. From the time he arrived in
the NBA, Kobe Bryant has been obsessed with Michael Jordan. He may not
have come out and said it, but look at the evidence. Look at his game.
Hell, look at the way he moved his lips when he spoke in interviews
when he first came into the league — every interview looked like Kobe
was entered in a Michael Jordan Impersonation Contest….and winning.
Last night, outwardly Kobe was talking about being one ahead of Shaq,
but in his mind, my guess is he was thinking about being one away from
Jordan. The problem for Kobe is that he can win seven, eight, nine
titles. He’ll never be Michael. There are similarities, to be sure —
their respective evolutions from explosive phenom to fully rounded
superstar, the insatiable will to win, the euphoria over ripping an
opponent’s heart out of his chest and dangling it in front of their face
with no remorse. They are similar, but they’re not the same.
To know the difference between Michael and Kobe is to have
experienced both of them as a fan — throughout his entire career,
Michael Jordan was a rock star who turned the Bulls into the Beatles.
Kobe is more boy band than rock star. Michael was about a level of
dominance that left you beaten by his sheer aura before you even took
the floor. No way Michael lets an aging Celtics team scoring in the 70’s
hang around for an entire Game 7. Actually, there’s no way Michael
lets that series get to Game 6. Whereas other players won MVP
awards on Michael’s watch because the media seemed to get bored with his
greatness, Kobe has only won one MVP award largely because people have
legitimately thought other guys are better.
Michael Jordan routinely shot over 50 percent from the field for his
career; Kobe Bryant has never shot 50 percent from the field for a
season in his career. Ever. In fact, he’s a 45.5 percent career shooter.
Michael Jordan never had the help of an elite level big man in winning
any of his six NBA championships; Kobe had Shaquille O’Neal for the
first three, and Pau Gasol for the last two. The lasting memory from
Michael Jordan’s final NBA title was his shattering the ankles of Bryon
Russell and knocking down the game winner; the lasting memory from
Kobe’s most recent NBA title was Ron Artest thanking his psychiatrist
and then promoting his new single in the post game interview.
You see my point — as hard as Kobe tries, he is not Michael. He
never was Michael, and he will never be Michael. Ultimately, Kobe will
have to settle for going one for two in vanquishing the pair of foes
about whom he has obsessed for his entire career. That will be his
legacy. At least he can say he shot fifty percent on that.
Listen to Sean Pendergast on 1560 The Game from 3-7 p.m. weekdays on the
“Sean & John Show” and follow him on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/SeanCablinasian.
This article appears in Jun 17-23, 2010.
