I would like to start off by congratulating the BOSTON CELTICS and the LOS ANGELES LAKERS for making the NBA Finals. This should be a magnificent championship series, and as a huge NBA fan I plan to enjoy every game. Trust me, this will not be a dud of a series like the San Antonio Spurs v/s LeBron James and the Pips series of a year ago. You can probably tell by the title of this entry that I will be pulling for the CELTICS.
Before I continue, I would like to clarify the title of this entry. I don’t have anything against Kobe personally nor do I wish any harm or ill will toward him or his family. With that being said, he is by far my favorite athlete to root against in the history of sports. Kobe Bryant has won three championships, two scoring titles, one MVP award, and is a 10-time NBA All-Star. Although he is immensely talented and quite possibly the best player (we might not agree if he is or isn’t, but we all must agree that he is in the conversation) in the game today, I still can’t find a reason to root for him. I’m simply not a fan. I see him as the Nas of the NBA. Nas is an incredibly talented rapper, but I’m just not feeling his music. Let’s be honest, there is a lot not to like about this guy. Having trouble figuring out why someone would hate Kobe Bryant? Don’t worry, I have detailed some the reasons below.
I must admit that I began hating Kobe Bryant the minute that Adidas released his first signature shoe, the Adidas KB8 (if you don’t remember how ugly they were, please do a Google image search for them). That was by far the ugliest basketball shoe ever made. I consider myself a stylish fella, and there is no way that I could be a fan of a player who wears shoes that ugly. I am going to take pause for the cause to allow all of the readers who ever owned a pair of these shoes to slap themselves and feel really bad……..
Ok, I will resume now. The main reason that I am a Kobe hater is because he is an arrogant player who didn’t realize how fortunate he was to play with Shaq during his prime. Thanks to Shaq, Kobe has three championship rings. He was a great Robin to Shaq’s Batman, but what he failed to realize was that Shaq would have won those championships with any other elite perimeter player in the NBA at that time (i.e. Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Paul Pierce, and maybe even Vince Carter).
My dislike for Kobe grew during his feud with Shaquille O’Neal. They were both immature about the situation, but I felt as though Kobe was the instigator. In my opinion, he seemed to have grown tired of playing Robin, and was upset that his mommy wouldn’t let him wear the Batman costume on Halloween. Why couldn’t he just enjoy winning championships as a member of a team? After all of his complaining, Shaq was eventually traded to Miami, where he won another championship a year later. I must admit that Dwyane Wade is better than me, because immediately after winning that championship with Shaq, I would have worn a “THANK YOU KOBE” t-shirt to the press conference.
I also hate the fact that Kobe has had the reputation of being a terrible teammate and was once called uncoachable by Phil Jackson.
Another reason to hate Kobe Bryant is that he fights like a girl. Come on, you all remember the fight with Chris Childs of the New York Knicks. That moment proved that he is a baller and not a fighter. Should we be surprised that he can’t fight? I mean, his middle name is Bean. Do you really think that someone named Bean could scare anyone?
What really makes me a Kobe hater is the fact that he violated a sacred man-law. Never put another man’s business in the streets when you get caught up in a difficult situation. He reportedly told police about matters in Shaquille O’Neal’s personal life during the investigation into the rape allegations brought against him.
These are only some of the reasons to hate Kobe Bryant. Trust me, there are more, but I simply don’t have the time or space to get into them. If you like you can hate him for your own reasons. If you can’t think of any, don’t worry, I got your back. You can simply use any combination of the ones listed above.
Kobe Bryant had a great season this year by averaging 28 points, 5 assists, and 6 rebounds in route to his first MVP award and also earned a place in the NBA Finals. He is very talented, as a matter of fact I often find myself amazed by the things that he is capable of doing on the basketball court. I have a great deal of respect for his individual skills, but I would hate to play with him.
So sit back and enjoy the NBA Finals. It should be a classic series. GO CELTICS!!!!
****WARNING****
Prepare yourself for non-stop replays of historical Celtics v/s Lakers playoff games on ESPN Classic and NBATV. This is a dream series for the NBA, so you know they plan on capitalizing on it as much as possible.
4 comments:
Never been a Kobe fan either ... but I will say that if I need the last shot of the game, I give him the ball every time. EVERY time. That's saying something for an old-school Clyde Frazier/Jerry West fan of the past.
Hate the player, not the game. Which you have perfectly depicted. He was a child, when ironically, he got beat like one, when agai ironically, by a man named CHILDS. In any opinion, his game is Jordanesque, his heart is questionable, but his love for the game is undeniable. Kobe might get lazy, like his eye(atleast it's not the Tracy McGrady, ya know looking in the bleachers), but let's save our hate for the commissioner. He's a fat white guy who walks around exemplifying nothing that the NBA is considered, actually he's the opposite: short, fat, & white(caucasian, anglo-saxon). That's what I hate. A whole bunch of...Anyway I think hate is a tad bit strong, considering what hating is. So before you hate Kobe, remember he played ball in Japan with short people(that's nice), and that his name is not Tom, Dick, or Harry(that's nice) and that he can actually walk in public knowing that his middle name is BEAN. Yeah, hate his parents.
In response to the comments....
If you want to look at the past, I will always have the ball in Jordan's hand with the game on the line. He will either make the shot or PASS IT TO THE OPEN TEAMMATE (Kobe would NEVER do that). In today's game, I want the ball in the hands of LeBron James, because LIKE JORDAN AND UNLIKE KOBE, he will always make the correct basketball play, and not shoot no matter what. and....
Although Kobe's game is undeniable, I have a list of players, that play his position that I would rather play with before him. They are:
Allen Iverson
Tracy McGrady
LeBron James
Paul Pierce
Joe Johnson
Richard Hamilton
Carmelo Anthony
Caron Butler
Manu Ginobili
Although some may feel that they aren't better players than Kobe, they are definitely better teammates.
Notice that Dwyane Wade was not included, because I no longer consider him an elite player. NO ELITE PLAYER IN THE NBA CAN PLAY ON A TEAM THAT FINISHES DEAD LAST IN THE ENTIRE LEAGUE!!!! He has work to do (championship or not) before I consider him elite again.
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