sportscribe
Superstar
Is having career numbers across the board
. Even the most ardent Kobe fan cannot deny the level of all-time greatness the man is playing at right now.
28 ppg; 9.1 assists; 8.3 rebs; 1.2 steals; 1.1 blocks, 41 3P%, 63 2P%. He's bettering his career averages in basically every major statistical category.
Sure he's put himself in an ideal situation, with the right balance of players to make these sort of stats attainable, but bearing in mind his level of durability, you have to put this man in the conversation of top 3 or 5 players of all time. He's stepped into that Kareem, Jordan echelon, and I'm saying this as a 90s bball advocate and someone that views Jordan as the greatest player to ever touch a basketball.
I think the reason a lot people have a hard time accepting his basketball greatness is that it's happening before their very eyes. He came into the league with unprecedented hype and his detractors have really never liked him since then. I liken it to Lonzo Ball, where people just don't want to see him rise because of the hype surrounding him (mainly from Lavar). What makes it worse for detractors is that he has lived up to and might have even surpassed the hype placed on him as a young basketball player out of Akron, Ohio. He's a basketball living legend and that might be hard to accept for some. As good as Kobe was, it's almost inconceivable for some that LeBron is clearly better than him in almost every facet of the game.
Sure he doesn't have the most aesthetically pleasing game, might not have that 'killer instinct' of a Jordan at times, gets away with a lot offensive fouls via his stiff arms, and gets a lot of favorable calls from the refs (admittedly these are aspects of his game I can't stand), but ultimately the proof is the pudding and he won't get the respect he deserves until long after he retires. Until then, y'all just got to enjoy watching one of the greatest basketball players alive do his thing.
. Even the most ardent Kobe fan cannot deny the level of all-time greatness the man is playing at right now. 28 ppg; 9.1 assists; 8.3 rebs; 1.2 steals; 1.1 blocks, 41 3P%, 63 2P%. He's bettering his career averages in basically every major statistical category.
Sure he's put himself in an ideal situation, with the right balance of players to make these sort of stats attainable, but bearing in mind his level of durability, you have to put this man in the conversation of top 3 or 5 players of all time. He's stepped into that Kareem, Jordan echelon, and I'm saying this as a 90s bball advocate and someone that views Jordan as the greatest player to ever touch a basketball.
I think the reason a lot people have a hard time accepting his basketball greatness is that it's happening before their very eyes. He came into the league with unprecedented hype and his detractors have really never liked him since then. I liken it to Lonzo Ball, where people just don't want to see him rise because of the hype surrounding him (mainly from Lavar). What makes it worse for detractors is that he has lived up to and might have even surpassed the hype placed on him as a young basketball player out of Akron, Ohio. He's a basketball living legend and that might be hard to accept for some. As good as Kobe was, it's almost inconceivable for some that LeBron is clearly better than him in almost every facet of the game.
Sure he doesn't have the most aesthetically pleasing game, might not have that 'killer instinct' of a Jordan at times, gets away with a lot offensive fouls via his stiff arms, and gets a lot of favorable calls from the refs (admittedly these are aspects of his game I can't stand), but ultimately the proof is the pudding and he won't get the respect he deserves until long after he retires. Until then, y'all just got to enjoy watching one of the greatest basketball players alive do his thing.
Durant wasted years playing with Westbrook. 
