[ojandpizza]

Quote: Originally Posted by AlexBrady

Spoiler Kobe did take plays off on defense (no player in history besides MJ went all out on both ends consistently) and didn't always attend to his defensive rotations. But when Kobe turned the switch (especially in important playoff games) he was the best man to man defender in the game. His lateral quickness was outstanding and he had the willpower to dodge screens. At his best, Kobe could play shutdown defense against point guards and both wing positions. Kobe had a terrific middle game with a vast arsenal of pull-up jumpers. In the clutch (last 8-10 minutes or so) he could beat you in a number of ways. From a jumper with a defender hanging on his shooting arm to a creative pass. He could come down with a traffic rebound or rescue a loose ball. He had that stopper mind set where he could really bear down in the big moments and get the solo defensive stop. Numbers do not capture the heart of the game and are merely a marginal guide. The ultimate function is to win Championships and Kobe did provide vital and irreplaceable contributions to five Title teams. I agree that Kobe could revert to selfish play more often than you would like but he did sublimate his ego long enough to achieve glorious success. Ranking the best non-bigs. MJ was much stronger than Kobe, handled better in a crowd, played more consistent defense, and didn't free-lance on the court as much. MJ was the most perfect player ever. Oscar Robertson was also much stronger than Kobe (and MJ for that matter). He was a better passer, post up scorer, rebounder, and played more consistent defense than Kobe. Put him number two behind MJ. LeBron's biggest edge over Kobe is his power and size which makes him even more versatile. LBJ's skills are more team oriented than Kobe's were. Maybe give LeBron the slight edge. Tough to give Magic and Bird the edge over Kobe. Magic really couldn't hit shots from beyond 15 feet for long stretches of his career and played shamefully poor defense. Bird lacked the otherworldly athleticism of a Kobe Bryant which meant that he couldn't guard anybody one on one (until the clutch when he did everything right). But all those guys were so great. It is tough messing with legends.

I replied to this, with basically my whole Kobe scouting report in the top 100 thread. Didn't feel like it belonged here.