I think the Lakers win in 7 because I dont see them closing out a series in Boston. I just dont think that will happen. So either 5 or 7 but more than likely 7 IMO.
LETS GO LAKERS!
.greg.
[quote]randman wrote:
Kobe Byrant may be better than Michael Jordan, but the public may not ever let him believe it. The unfortunate truth for Kobe is he can never be Michael because he isn’t thought of as likable as Jordan, also the greatest commercial pitchman ever for an athlete. … “Let’s say he does get two more rings,” Tim Legler, the former player and now an ESPN analyst, said recently in a telephone interview. "Even if he doesn’t win any more MVP awards, he will probably approach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record. You absolutely can make a valid argument for Kobe being the greatest ever when that happens. “But he will never be revered like Michael Jordan will be revered,” Legler added.[/quote]
Oh boy…
we still all agree hes not in the discussion with mike YET, regardless. Its all these hypothetical outcomes, what if he wins 2 more rings, what if he gets more mvps, gets the scoring title…
plus like ive said before wtf does better mean? all we have is perception that is shared by the masses. people perceive mj to be the best. ‘better’ is subjective especially when you’re talking about talent and not influence.
man i hope the celtics win. a celts victory would be a win for basketball because it would re-enforce the power and importance of teamwork (eh what basketball is all about…) like the pistons, spurs, and 08 celtics before them did.
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
man i hope the celtics win. a celts victory would be a win for basketball because it would re-enforce the power and importance of teamwork (eh what basketball is all about…) like the pistons, spurs, and 08 celtics before them did.[/quote]
but it would be a loss for humanity because pierce, rondo, and garnett are douches. (yes kobe/fish can be a little douchey sometimes, but it doesn’t compare.)
ANY THING IS POSSIBLE!!!
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
[quote]randman wrote:
Kobe Byrant may be better than Michael Jordan…[/quote]
Oh boy…
we still all agree hes not in the discussion with mike YET, regardless. Its all these hypothetical outcomes, what if he wins 2 more rings, what if he gets more mvps, gets the scoring title…
plus like ive said before wtf does better mean? all we have is perception that is shared by the masses. people perceive mj to be the best. ‘better’ is subjective especially when you’re talking about talent and not influence.
[/quote]
I’m not disagreeing. I’m just seeing more of these type of articles now. Here’s another one…
WP: Kobe vs. MJ argument is no longer heresy
Man, how do I get Legler’s job? I wrote all that at different junctures throughout this thread, and aside from a few folks most just thought I was hyping Kobe and discrediting James. Looks like several well respected journalists, players, ex-players and coaches feel the same way I have for years.
this really sucks… I want it to be thursday already! I was reading articles on ESPN about all the matchups and whatever else hype they had on there and I cant wait for this series to start!!! The crappy part is I have class thursday night so that really sucks lol. Gonna have to shut off my phone and record the game to watch when I get home.
.greg.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Man, how do I get Legler’s job?
[/quote]
Being a former player certainly helps. Seems like they get all the analyst gigs.
I don't buy this revenge b.s and two years is not enough time to make somebody over the hill. Celtics in 6,again.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Man, how do I get Legler’s job? I wrote all that at different junctures throughout this thread, and aside from a few folks most just thought I was hyping Kobe and discrediting James. Looks like several well respected journalists, players, ex-players and coaches feel the same way I have for years. [/quote]
Those of us who look at the game and say you need to be a leader, put your team on your back, have a killer instinct and consistently make great plays in crucial moments to win big playoff series, you think of Jordan and Kobe as the best there are.
When you view the game as who is the best athlete, the most exciting person to see play basketball, have “out of this world” moments on the basketball court and do stuff physically never seen before in the game, you think of Dr. J and Lebron James. Yep, I said it. And so has Bill Simmons here → Bill Simmons: LeBron James and the choice -- winning, loyalty or immortality? - ESPN
After the Cavs were beaten by the Celtics where Lebron didn’t show up the last two games, Simmons finally concedes that Lebron is no Michael Jordan (he still has his biases against Kobe which is evident once again in this article). He likens him more to Dr. J. I think the analogy fits perfectly. That’s why you got so many fans thinking Lebron is greater than Kobe. If you put a measuring stick to the two players of what I mentioned above, it makes sense. The problem, however, is that Lebron, like Dr. J., never really led a team to a championship(s), and that’s really what puts you in the upper echelon of the NBA. The article is a very interesting read.
[quote]nomorewar wrote:
I don't buy this revenge b.s and two years is not enough time to make somebody over the hill. Celtics in 6,again.[/quote]
Maybe not. But having Vladimir Radmanovic guarding Paul Pierce, the MVP of the 2008 series, was like having a wet paper towel around Pierce; and conversely saving Kobe from having to guard him the other part of the time let’s Kobe focus much more on offense. Having Ron Artest guarding Pierce I believe you will see a different result this time around.
Celtics have no James Posey, the 3 point killer and defensive stopper that killed the Lakers last time around. You better hope Rasheed steps up in the big moment; big risk here.
The Lakers have Bynum back now. Even a hobbling Bynum provides defense and rebouding and can bang bodies with Paul Pierce. Leaving the other key matchup of Garnett and Gasol. Now 2 years ago is where Gasol became Gasoft and caved into Garnett’s ridiculous tough guy histrionics. But as shown in last year’s finals and the two regular season matchups between the Celtics and Lakers this year, Gasol is not backing down to Garnett or Perkins anymore.
Which leaves Rondo. The biggest change of improvement for the 2010 Celtics. I think Kobe will be spending some time on him and slowing him down a la Russell Westbrook.
Kobe having an out of this world playoff series can definitely be the deciding factor in this series obviously but I think Tony Allen does a pretty good job defensively on him so we’ll see.
I actually think the Celtics bench has been playing better than the Lakers bench so the big question is whether the Lakers bench will show up for the series. And guess who the X factor is here??? Of course, Lamar Odom. I think the whole series comes down to Lamar Odom. If Lamar shows up big for most of the games, the Lakers win this series. If he doesn’t, the Celtics win.
And by the way, Tim Legler is an idiot. He mentioned three keys to the series and gave the Celtics the advantage in all three. Better starting 5, better bench and better coach. I used to respect Tim Legler but even if you wanted to argue the first 2 and I seriously disagree that the Celtics have a betters starting 5 the most ridiculous assertion was that Doc Rivers has the advantage at coach over Phil Jackson. Does he have relatives in Boston?
And there ya go…
By the way, did we just annihilate the NHL Playoff thread or what?
[quote]tmoney1 wrote:
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Man, how do I get Legler’s job?
[/quote]
Being a former player certainly helps. Seems like they get all the analyst gigs.[/quote]
Wonder if there’s anyway I can pad my resume without getting busted?
Edit: T, you know what happened to Gary Payton? He and Chris Webber were a riot on the NBA channel.
[quote]randman wrote:
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Man, how do I get Legler’s job? I wrote all that at different junctures throughout this thread, and aside from a few folks most just thought I was hyping Kobe and discrediting James. Looks like several well respected journalists, players, ex-players and coaches feel the same way I have for years. [/quote]
Those of us who look at the game and say you need to be a leader, put your team on your back, have a killer instinct and consistently make great plays in crucial moments to win big playoff series, you think of Jordan and Kobe as the best there are.
When you view the game as who is the best athlete, the most exciting person to see play basketball, have “out of this world” moments on the basketball court and do stuff physically never seen before in the game, you think of Dr. J and Lebron James. Yep, I said it. And so has Bill Simmons here → Bill Simmons: LeBron James and the choice -- winning, loyalty or immortality? - ESPN
After the Cavs were beaten by the Celtics where Lebron didn’t show up the last two games, Simmons finally concedes that Lebron is no Michael Jordan (he still has his biases against Kobe which is evident once again in this article). He likens him more to Dr. J. I think the analogy fits perfectly. That’s why you got so many fans thinking Lebron is greater than Kobe. If you put a measuring stick to the two players of what I mentioned above, it makes sense. The problem, however, is that Lebron, like Dr. J., never really led a team to a championship(s), and that’s really what puts you in the upper echelon of the NBA. The article is a very interesting read.[/quote]
I’m sorry, I don’t know who Bill Simmons is and I really don’t give a shit if he says Lebron James has done things we’ve physically never seen before, 'cause he doesn’t know what the fuck he’s talking about. James is a bigger Clyde Drexler who doesn’t dunk on anyone his own size or bigger, has a launch pad left leg but doesn’t jump near as well off of two, does the same 3 dunks EVERY TIME and, despite being as big and strong as he is, can’t play with his back to the basket. Everything he does physically we’ve all seen before. He puts up some killer numbers but he’s the most overhyped player in pro sports history.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
He puts up some killer numbers but he’s the most overhyped player in pro sports history.[/quote]
C’mon now you know that’s not true. You are trying to push the scale so far in the other direction at this point. You want overhyped, maybe you should start with players that were actually full on busts first, and then move on to people that are revered in their respective sports despite minimal accomplishment.
Joe Namath? The Bos? Ryan Leaf?
You people are so stuck on this it’s retarded, it’s not even about being a LeBron ‘lover.’ You can’t even think the dude is a good basketball player in this thread anymore without catching shit for it. But inevitably, there will be another post bringing this shit back up in a page or 2 because Kobe goes for 30 and hits a good shot, because it’s impossible for more than 1 player in the league to be good, that person has to be stealing Kobe’s thunder.
I don’t want to say I’m rooting against the Lakers, because I actually love Kobe, and root for greatness to happen at any and all times in my life(the more the better, so far I’ve got Jordan, Rice, maybe Woods and Manning or Brady depending how their careers flesh out); however I would find it fucking HILARIOUS if the Lakers lost this series. The best thing about it is, you’ve raised Kobe up so high in this thread that he is now to everyone else what you were so mad about LeBron being: a constant lose lose scenario. If he wins, well he fucking better have he’s Kobe mother fucking Bryant, you’ve already slung all the ammo you have on that one.
But if he loses? Oh well we better not talk about that…
[quote]Randman wrote:
Stuff I said about Kobe, Lebron and associated Simmons article[/quote]
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
I’m sorry, I don’t know who Bill Simmons is and I really don’t give a shit if he says Lebron James has done things we’ve physically never seen before, 'cause he doesn’t know what the fuck he’s talking about. James is a bigger Clyde Drexler who doesn’t dunk on anyone his own size or bigger, has a launch pad left leg but doesn’t jump near as well off of two, does the same 3 dunks EVERY TIME and, despite being as big and strong as he is, can’t play with his back to the basket. Everything he does physically we’ve all seen before. He puts up some killer numbers but he’s the most overhyped player in pro sports history.[/quote]
LMAO! Dude, you really don’t give LeBrick any credit. You crack me up. I think the guy’s a physical beast for sure but definitely not the best player in the game based on the criteria I laid out above.
I think Rondo makes Kobe look foolish if he tries to guard him.
And lmao at Lebron being overrated.
You know the biggest thing LBJ has going against him is being compared to MJ, it’s not fair. They are different players, different positions, have different skill sets. Kobe is just closer to Mj it doesn’t make him better than LBJ. Shit if LBJ was playing on this Lakers team it would be no contest the team would be unstoppable. And Whiteflash know more than Bill Simmons gtfo.
[quote]drewh wrote:
I think Rondo makes Kobe look foolish if he tries to guard him.
And lmao at Lebron being overrated.
You know the biggest thing LBJ has going against him is being compared to MJ, it’s not fair. They are different players, different positions, have different skill sets. Kobe is just closer to Mj it doesn’t make him better than LBJ. Shit if LBJ was playing on this Lakers team it would be no contest the team would be unstoppable. And Whiteflash know more than Bill Simmons gtfo.[/quote]
So, uh, what’s with the avatar?
[quote]drewh wrote:
I think Rondo makes Kobe look foolish if he tries to guard him.
[/quote]
Don’t agree with that assessment whatsoever. Kobe’s already done it many times and hasn’t looked foolish once. He’s played effective defense on him on all of their previous meetings when he’s on him. I don’t see this playing out any differently. He’s just not going to be on him the whole time.