The Cult of Kobe

The sane people on sports radio are talking about how Dwight Howard and Steve Nash will play better without Kobe.  Very true.  Not only that, Gasol and Blake are playing better.  In and of itself, this does not mean the Lakers are better without Kobe, but the guy doesn't - and never did - make his teammates better.  This is why I don't believe Kobe is an all-time great.  The case for him being an all-time great rests on one item:  five rings.  There is supporting evidence: longevity, offensive statistics, defense capability, but all of these elements are pointless without the rings.

There is slippery logic going on within the cult of Kobe.  Five rings broken up over two different eras.  The Shaq era and the Gasol era.  No even talks anymore about the fact that Kobe was the second best player on the team during his first three rings.  What happens when Wade wins 2 or 3 rings with LaBron?  Does this escalate him into Kobe territory?  Why not?  Wade wins one ring as "the man" and then two or three more as the second best player?

Let's not forget:  Shaq wasn't just the man in the way Dirk is man on Dallas or Carmelo is the man in New York.  Shaq was the best player in the league.  Shaq scored 30 points a game with 12 rebounds and was completely unstoppable.  He clogged the lane on defense and the offense was run through him.  His only flaw was famously poor free throw shooting.  If the guy could shoot free throws and played at his high level a few more years (and maybe if Kobe wasn't such a weirdo), he would be in discussion for greatest players of all time.

In the Gasol era, let's remember two things:  1) Gasol and Bynum won game 7 against Boston in 2010 because Perkins was out.  Kobe shot 6 for 24.  2)  In 2008, the Lakers beat a weak-ass Orlando team.

Kobe gets too much credit for the five rings.  He wasn't the man for three of them and the two other victories were not particularly iconic or even the result of his spectacular play.

Further, the statistics prove Kobe isn't a particularly "clutch" player.  And there is certainly a big enough sample size given the enormous amount of shots he's taken.

Look, he's talented, he's competitive, I get that a lot of people like him.  But his teammates play better when he's not around and the media and his fan embellish his "greatness."  There is a cult of Kobe and many believe he is greater than he is.  Believe me, I've watched him play for a long time.