Only Kobe. Nobody has ever been this good. Nobody. Not Kareem. Not Jordan. Not even Wilt. He's the greatest scorer to ever play the game. There have been better basketball players. There are players with more championship hardware and more All-Star Game appearances, but when you're talking about scoring, then Kobe is at the top of a short list. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was more consistent. Michael Jordan was more clutch. And Wilt Chamberlain was more dominant. But Kobe Bryant is an amalgamation of all of them.
Kobe's past four games
65
March 16: Kobe Bryant scores 65 in a 116-111 win over Portland, including eight three-pointers.
March 16: Kobe Bryant scores 65 in a 116-111 win over Portland, including eight three-pointers.
50
March 18: Bryant totals 50 points in a 109-102 win over Minnesota.
March 18: Bryant totals 50 points in a 109-102 win over Minnesota.
60
Thursday: His third straight game with 50 or more points, Bryant leads the Lakers to a 121-119 win over Memphis.
Thursday: His third straight game with 50 or more points, Bryant leads the Lakers to a 121-119 win over Memphis.
50
Friday: Bryant scores 50 in a 111-105 win over New Orleans. Michael Jordan and Elgin Baylor topped out at three consecutive 50-point games in their careers.
Friday: Bryant scores 50 in a 111-105 win over New Orleans. Michael Jordan and Elgin Baylor topped out at three consecutive 50-point games in their careers.
You run out of superlatives trying to describe his greatness and you sometimes make foolish proclamations following his dazzling displays. But this isn't one of those times. What's so foolhardy about bestowing him the title of G.O.A.T? To be sure, he'll probably fall short of Jordan's 10 scoring titles. His 81 points against Toronto last year was 19 fewer than Wilt's historic 100. And at 28, he's not even halfway to Kareem's all-time point total. But go behind the numbers.
As magnificent as Wilt was, he dominated an era in which the NBA was in its infancy. There were only eight to 17 teams in the league during the 14 years when the 7-foot-1 giant literally stood tall over everyone else.
Today's NBA, with 420 players from 38 countries, is much more diverse. Wilt never faced the myriad defenses, the media scrutiny and the off-the-court demands that Kobe endures. Kareem mastered a skyhook that couldn't be stopped, but essentially he was a one-trick pony, while Kobe is a five-tool player. He scores in the paint, outside the three-point arc, off the dribble, over and around double teams and in transition. Jordan is probably the most complete basketball player to play the game — his tenacious defense and six NBA titles put him ahead of everyone else — but MJ never shot the three-pointer like Kobe. Jordan shot less than 30 percent from three-point range in nine out of his 15 seasons. Kobe has failed to break 30 percent just twice in 10 years.
There has never been a scorer as versatile as Kobe. The amazing part of his current four-game streak in which he has scored at least 50 points isn't the points that he has accumulated, but rather the look in his eyes and the expression on his face. It's as if he took no joy in dropping 65 points on Portland or exploding for 50 against Minnesota and New Orleans or burying Memphis with 60. He hasn't smiled during postgame interviews. He doesn't deliver boastful comments or pound his chest like he used to. There is only anger and a look of focus and determination that you see on Sundays from Tiger Woods.
"He just smells blood in the water," coach Phil Jackson said. "He's going to go after them. That's what you see and admire in Kobe is that he's going to attack. He's going to be in that mode and he's going to continue to go at a team until you stop him."
Bryant has taken more than his share of criticism lately. The seven-game losing streak. The two suspensions for elbowing opponents. The whispers he's a dirty player. The refuted reports of contacting Texas freshman Kevin Durant on behalf of Nike. But it seems as if he's using that criticism to feed a fire burning inside him.
You saw it when he canned improbable three-pointer after improbable three-pointer against Portland's double and triple teams, or when he drove into the lane for dunks, twisting layups and jumpers against Minnesota and Memphis. You felt it when he played 47 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back against New Orleans.
And here's the kicker: Everybody knows he's trying to score, yet they can't stop him. "Believe me, nobody is letting him go out there and put up points," Minnesota's Mike James said. 'He's just that good.' Watching Kobe rage against the machine makes me wish other players played with his intensity. What if LeBron James matched his desire? Or Dirk Nowitzki? Or anyone in Sonics green and gold?
Watching Kobe this week reminds me of his remarkable stretch in February 2003, when he scored 40 or more points in nine straight games. I remember talking to him after he hit the Sonics for 41. The Lakers were at the end of their Three-Peat dynasty and the locker room was divided into two camps that either supported Kobe or Shaquille O'Neal. I remember Kobe saying: "I've been holding back because of the team and because we have a pecking order here."
Ever since, I've always wondered just how great he might have been if he hadn't played alongside O'Neal. His trophy case would probably be empty, but this streak might have happened much sooner.
We saw a glimpse of Kobe unshackled last season when he averaged 35.4 points, which is the eighth-highest average ever. And we're seeing glimpses again. 65. 50. 60. 50. "He's in a zone right now," Lakers forward Luke Walton told reporters. "Most people get in a zone for one game. He's been in a zone for about a week straight now. It's been a pretty amazing display that he's put on."
Next up is Golden State. The Warriors have the worst defense in the NBA, allowing an average of 106 points per game. Earlier this season, Kobe scored 42 against Don Nelson's squad. Given all that, I'm guessing he goes for a double nickel tonight. Then there's the rematch against Memphis on Tuesday and Houston on Friday. If Kobe can keep the streak alive this week, the rest of the Lakers' remaining opponents shouldn't pose much of a threat. Considering Wilt set the record at seven, it's ridiculous to think Kobe could stretch this streak to 17 games, but because it's Kobe, you have to consider it.
He's making the impossible seem plausible. He has put the Lakers on his shoulders and carried them to a four-game winning streak and a two-game lead over Denver in the Western Conference standings.
Even more impressive, he's threatening to upstage the NCAA tournament. Now who else could do that?
Kareem? Jordan? Wilt?
Only Kobe.
As magnificent as Wilt was, he dominated an era in which the NBA was in its infancy. There were only eight to 17 teams in the league during the 14 years when the 7-foot-1 giant literally stood tall over everyone else.
Today's NBA, with 420 players from 38 countries, is much more diverse. Wilt never faced the myriad defenses, the media scrutiny and the off-the-court demands that Kobe endures. Kareem mastered a skyhook that couldn't be stopped, but essentially he was a one-trick pony, while Kobe is a five-tool player. He scores in the paint, outside the three-point arc, off the dribble, over and around double teams and in transition. Jordan is probably the most complete basketball player to play the game — his tenacious defense and six NBA titles put him ahead of everyone else — but MJ never shot the three-pointer like Kobe. Jordan shot less than 30 percent from three-point range in nine out of his 15 seasons. Kobe has failed to break 30 percent just twice in 10 years.
There has never been a scorer as versatile as Kobe. The amazing part of his current four-game streak in which he has scored at least 50 points isn't the points that he has accumulated, but rather the look in his eyes and the expression on his face. It's as if he took no joy in dropping 65 points on Portland or exploding for 50 against Minnesota and New Orleans or burying Memphis with 60. He hasn't smiled during postgame interviews. He doesn't deliver boastful comments or pound his chest like he used to. There is only anger and a look of focus and determination that you see on Sundays from Tiger Woods.
"He just smells blood in the water," coach Phil Jackson said. "He's going to go after them. That's what you see and admire in Kobe is that he's going to attack. He's going to be in that mode and he's going to continue to go at a team until you stop him."
Bryant has taken more than his share of criticism lately. The seven-game losing streak. The two suspensions for elbowing opponents. The whispers he's a dirty player. The refuted reports of contacting Texas freshman Kevin Durant on behalf of Nike. But it seems as if he's using that criticism to feed a fire burning inside him.
You saw it when he canned improbable three-pointer after improbable three-pointer against Portland's double and triple teams, or when he drove into the lane for dunks, twisting layups and jumpers against Minnesota and Memphis. You felt it when he played 47 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back against New Orleans.
And here's the kicker: Everybody knows he's trying to score, yet they can't stop him. "Believe me, nobody is letting him go out there and put up points," Minnesota's Mike James said. 'He's just that good.' Watching Kobe rage against the machine makes me wish other players played with his intensity. What if LeBron James matched his desire? Or Dirk Nowitzki? Or anyone in Sonics green and gold?
Watching Kobe this week reminds me of his remarkable stretch in February 2003, when he scored 40 or more points in nine straight games. I remember talking to him after he hit the Sonics for 41. The Lakers were at the end of their Three-Peat dynasty and the locker room was divided into two camps that either supported Kobe or Shaquille O'Neal. I remember Kobe saying: "I've been holding back because of the team and because we have a pecking order here."
Ever since, I've always wondered just how great he might have been if he hadn't played alongside O'Neal. His trophy case would probably be empty, but this streak might have happened much sooner.
We saw a glimpse of Kobe unshackled last season when he averaged 35.4 points, which is the eighth-highest average ever. And we're seeing glimpses again. 65. 50. 60. 50. "He's in a zone right now," Lakers forward Luke Walton told reporters. "Most people get in a zone for one game. He's been in a zone for about a week straight now. It's been a pretty amazing display that he's put on."
Next up is Golden State. The Warriors have the worst defense in the NBA, allowing an average of 106 points per game. Earlier this season, Kobe scored 42 against Don Nelson's squad. Given all that, I'm guessing he goes for a double nickel tonight. Then there's the rematch against Memphis on Tuesday and Houston on Friday. If Kobe can keep the streak alive this week, the rest of the Lakers' remaining opponents shouldn't pose much of a threat. Considering Wilt set the record at seven, it's ridiculous to think Kobe could stretch this streak to 17 games, but because it's Kobe, you have to consider it.
He's making the impossible seem plausible. He has put the Lakers on his shoulders and carried them to a four-game winning streak and a two-game lead over Denver in the Western Conference standings.
Even more impressive, he's threatening to upstage the NCAA tournament. Now who else could do that?
Kareem? Jordan? Wilt?
Only Kobe.
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