I watch fucking WIZARDS games out here. If that doesn’t show a love of basketball, I don’t know what does…
[quote]overstand wrote:
I’ll say it again, nobody is saying he’s a bad player. He’s great, top 10 easily, he’s just not the best anymore.[/quote]
For the life of me I can not understand why Lakers fans think calling someone a top 5 or 10 player in the world is an insult. There are some damn good basketball players right now.
He certainly WAS the best for a while.
The argument for him being the best seems to revolve around his making the hardest shots. I would much rather a guy CREATE EASY SHOTS than make hard ones. That’s why LeBron’s 35pts look less impressive than Kobe’s but will always be done more efficiently (note: I’m not saying I’d take LBJ in a one-game-for-all-the-marbles, so don’t put words in my mouth, I’m just making a broader point about stars).
From what little I’ve seen of Kobe this year - I don’t get many Lakers games in DC - it seems to me like he still picks his spots on D and uses it to rest up a lot, instead of manning up the whole time he’s in. I’m sorry but that’s part of being the best player in the world.
LeBron is a better passer, scorer, rebounder, and defender than Kobe plus is bigger and faster. Kobe is a better shooter and better in the clutch. For a season, and a whole playoffs, I take LBJ. For the last 5 minutes… honestly, I would take Chris Paul. He is unguardable with the game on the line.
Oh by the way… Dwight is second all time in rebound rate (percentage of missed shots rebounded) behind only Rodman.
http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/trb_pct_career.html and I’m not counting ABA… he would be third if you count Big Swen
I also think Dwight’s demeanour on the court really ignites unfair criticism.
People interpret smiling on the court as a sign of lack of interest.
[quote]scj119 wrote:
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Dude, he was poking fun 'cause he doesn’t watch games and I do.[/quote]
I was poking fun because you SAID I didn’t watch games. You don’t actually still believe that do you?[/quote]
Dude, you ADMITTED you don’t watch much ball other than the Wizards. Do I have to go digging and bring it out?
[quote]scj119 wrote:
[quote]overstand wrote:
I’ll say it again, nobody is saying he’s a bad player. He’s great, top 10 easily, he’s just not the best anymore.[/quote]
For the life of me I can not understand why Lakers fans think calling someone a top 5 or 10 player in the world is an insult. There are some damn good basketball players right now.
He certainly WAS the best for a while.
The argument for him being the best seems to revolve around his making the hardest shots. I would much rather a guy CREATE EASY SHOTS than make hard ones. That’s why LeBron’s 35pts look less impressive than Kobe’s but will always be done more efficiently (note: I’m not saying I’d take LBJ in a one-game-for-all-the-marbles, so don’t put words in my mouth, I’m just making a broader point about stars).
From what little I’ve seen of Kobe this year - I don’t get many Lakers games in DC - it seems to me like he still picks his spots on D and uses it to rest up a lot, instead of manning up the whole time he’s in. I’m sorry but that’s part of being the best player in the world.
LeBron is a better passer, scorer, rebounder, and defender than Kobe plus is bigger and faster. Kobe is a better shooter and better in the clutch. For a season, and a whole playoffs, I take LBJ. For the last 5 minutes… honestly, I would take Chris Paul. He is unguardable with the game on the line.[/quote]
You are out of your fucking mind if you think James is a better scorer, and Bryant plays much better man D. Some of the shit ya’ll are saying is ridiculous.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
[quote]scj119 wrote:
[quote]overstand wrote:
I’ll say it again, nobody is saying he’s a bad player. He’s great, top 10 easily, he’s just not the best anymore.[/quote]
For the life of me I can not understand why Lakers fans think calling someone a top 5 or 10 player in the world is an insult. There are some damn good basketball players right now.
He certainly WAS the best for a while.
The argument for him being the best seems to revolve around his making the hardest shots. I would much rather a guy CREATE EASY SHOTS than make hard ones. That’s why LeBron’s 35pts look less impressive than Kobe’s but will always be done more efficiently (note: I’m not saying I’d take LBJ in a one-game-for-all-the-marbles, so don’t put words in my mouth, I’m just making a broader point about stars).
From what little I’ve seen of Kobe this year - I don’t get many Lakers games in DC - it seems to me like he still picks his spots on D and uses it to rest up a lot, instead of manning up the whole time he’s in. I’m sorry but that’s part of being the best player in the world.
LeBron is a better passer, scorer, rebounder, and defender than Kobe plus is bigger and faster. Kobe is a better shooter and better in the clutch. For a season, and a whole playoffs, I take LBJ. For the last 5 minutes… honestly, I would take Chris Paul. He is unguardable with the game on the line.[/quote]
You are out of your fucking mind if you think James is a better scorer, and Bryant plays much better man D. Some of the shit ya’ll are saying is ridiculous.[/quote]
Agree on scorer, but James is a better defender.
[quote]scj119 wrote:
For the last 5 minutes… honestly, I would take Chris Paul. He is unguardable with the game on the line.[/quote]
Did you see the crossover/hesitation step CP pulled on Lebron at the end of the Clippers-Heat game a couple nights ago? He missed the shot and I don’t think he got it off in time anyway, but it was one of the sickest moves I’ve ever seen. Totally broke Lebron’s ankles. I was looking for the video but couldn’t find it.
[quote]overstand wrote:
Listen to Kenny talk about Kobe and Lebron. Kobe goes 2-8 in overtime and he’s the fucking man, Black Mamba is back baby! Lebron does the same thing, but the Heat lose and Lebron is unclutch, choker etc.
People see what they want to see.[/quote]
I saw that last night. It was very poorly articulated in my opinion. His entire tortured dissertation boils down to nothing but HIS perception (as you point out, people see what they want to see); To move beyond that, we have these things called “statistics” and they are even broken down by quarter 
Now, if we really want to know the answer, we can look at the statistics.
His ONE keen observation was when LeBron took what he called a “bail out shot”. LeBron takes WAY too many of these - I don’t need statistics for that. Lebron does NOT have a midrage game - I’ve been saying it for years. It’s either a bull-run to the rim or a long jumper.
PS
I recently read an interesting article “rating” various players for 4th quarter efficiency. Of course these are formulaic calculations and depending on how you want to structure it, you can get various answers. However, Kevin Durant had some gaudy 4th quarter stats, including points production and shooting percentage. Lebron was somewhere at 9th and Kobe was 13th (but we acknowledge he wasn’t healthy either).
Which brings me to the real point about Lebron. 9th, no matter how you structure your formula, is not bad. And Overstand is right; people see what they want, and they can interpret statistics and manipulate intangibles like team composition and winning record to suit their tastes. However… Lebron is the self-proclaimed “King”. He wears that title with arrogance and without apology or any apparent humility. He has made a startling number of “PR” misteps - and I mean startling. When you consider the relatively unscathed image Michael Jordan enjoyed while he played compared to the person MJ actually was (not a very nice guy, with a few ugly vices), you wonder how the fuck Lebron fell so far PR wise and how he ended up a villain. Who the fuck was giving this kid his advice/direction? Oh, I forgot; dumbass put his high school buddy in charge. LOL
Anyway, 9th is NOT good enough, under any analysis, no matter “what you want to see” for the so-called “king”. Yes, it’s largely a perception issue with him, but it’s also a reality issue too. He’s just not as productive as other guys in the league in the 4th quarter. And those long jumpers he’s want to take are absolutely puzzling for, as SJC pointed out, the most physically gifted player on the floor.
ESPN is reporting Lebron feels like Tebow. Imagine playing with all that pressure every single game, knowing the fans are tweeting bad shit about you every time you miss a jumper on the second.
Maybe Lebron is all about team. Maybe his lack of 4th quarter production is attributable to him wanting to find his open team-mates. Maybe he doesn’t want to isolate his team-mates in the 4th quarter by stealing all the highlights. He wants to give players like Norris Cole and D-Wade the opportunity to be on Sportcenter’s Top 10 Plays.
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
ESPN is reporting Lebron feels like Tebow. Imagine playing with all that pressure every single game, knowing the fans are tweeting bad shit about you every time you miss a jumper on the second.
Maybe Lebron is all about team. Maybe his lack of 4th quarter production is attributable to him wanting to find his open team-mates. Maybe he doesn’t want to isolate his team-mates in the 4th quarter by stealing all the highlights. He wants to give players like Norris Cole and D-Wade the opportunity to be on Sportcenter’s Top 10 Plays.
[/quote]
That would be pretty incongruous with a guy who has a giant “Chosen One” tattooed across his back.
You think Jesus could have got his message across by himself?
No, he needed his team-mates, his disciples.
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
ESPN is reporting Lebron feels like Tebow. Imagine playing with all that pressure every single game, knowing the fans are tweeting bad shit about you every time you miss a jumper on the second.
Maybe Lebron is all about team. Maybe his lack of 4th quarter production is attributable to him wanting to find his open team-mates. Maybe he doesn’t want to isolate his team-mates in the 4th quarter by stealing all the highlights. He wants to give players like Norris Cole and D-Wade the opportunity to be on Sportcenter’s Top 10 Plays.
[/quote]
You don’t really believe this do you?
Anyway, I can’t recall another NBA superstar before him so disliked. We can go back to Bird, Erving, Magic, Isiah, Barkley, Jordan, etc. etc. etc.
The public WANTS to like these guys. You got to be a major asshole to turn public opinion against you the way he has. He has no one to blame but himself. It’s been one bad “Decision” after another with this guy.
I could be the most effective handler in the business if they’d follow my simple advice: Shut the fuck up and play ball. The public will forget. Little brown people slaving for .03/hr to put together your $150 shoes? Shut the fuck up and play ball. Squabble with your wife at 2 am and she bust your windows out and you hit something? Shut the fuck up and play ball. Gambling? Shut the fuck up and play ball. Infidelity? Shut the fuck up and play ball. For crying out loud - Kobe was accused of rape and he’s got a better profile than Lebron right now.
You know what MJ did better than all of them? He shut the fuck up and played ball through rumors, accusations, innuendo, arrogance, assholerly and assorted transgressions. He shut the fuck up about all that and played ball. And people loved him.
Lebron: Shut the fuck up and play ball. They’d even forgive you not winning it all.
why is d rose so good. that’s the real question.
[quote]PB Andy wrote:
why is d rose so good. that’s the real question.[/quote]
he can be better.
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
You think Jesus could have got his message across by himself?
No, he needed his team-mates, his disciples. [/quote]
so you’re saying LBJ is not just “The King” but he’s the Jesus of basketball? LOL
[quote]gregron wrote:
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
You think Jesus could have got his message across by himself?
No, he needed his team-mates, his disciples. [/quote]
so you’re saying LBJ is not just “The King” but he’s the Jesus of basketball? LOL[/quote]
Now ya’ll see why I blocked Get? Literally everything he’s ever posted has been embarrassingly stupid. Every single thread, every single post.
Oh yeah, Bryant dropped 42 last night. 3 straight with 40+. He’s leading the league in scoring by about 2 points over the next guy (James) and is playing a few minutes less while still averaging 6 boards and 6 assists. His 2 pt % is through the roof, but his 3% has been down until last night where he went 4-6. I’ll give James credit in that he’s only shooting .5 threes a game this year, and apparently hasn’t hit one yet this season.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Oh yeah, Bryant dropped 42 last night. 3 straight with 40+. He’s leading the league in scoring by about 2 points over the next guy (James) and is playing a few minutes less while still averaging 6 boards and 6 assists. His 2 pt % is through the roof, but his 3% has been down until last night where he went 4-6. I’ll give James credit in that he’s only shooting .5 threes a game this year, and apparently hasn’t hit one yet this season.[/quote]
Not that you want James shooting a ton of 3s, but it is worrisome that he isn’t hitting ANY of the few he is taking. He wasn’t a knockdown shooter, but he hit a respectable amount for a big guy. Feels like he put so much work into his post game that he perhaps let the ‘decent but not good’ shot get even worse. It’s not just the 3s, he isn’t hitting the deep 2s he is taking either(again, not horrible that he is taking less, but it used to be a staple shot of his and he isn’t hitting any now). Isn’t his FT% down too?
Reserve the right to not praise Kobe for lighting up my team last night though =p