To say Kobe Bryant has been on a tear the last three games would be an understatement. After tallying 60 points against the Memphis Grizzlies, Kobe reached a plateau that only a few players in NBA history have reached. First, he became the fourth player in NBA history to score 50 or more points in three straight games (The other three to accomplish this feat are Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor). As well, Kobe became the third player in NBA history to score 60 or more points at least 4 times in a career (Kobe and Jordan each have reached the 60 point plateau four times, while Wilt Chamberlain only managed to do it thirty two times...It's safe to say no one will ever catch Chamberlain in this category).
Ladies and gentlemen, we are seeing history unfold before our eyes. I know that we are in an age where everyone and everything in the public spotlight is overanalyzed. But for a second, forget whatever negative thought you might have planted in your head about Kobe and just enjoy him. He's achieving things that only Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan have achieved. WILT CHAMBERLAIN AND MICHAEL JORDAN!!! You know, the basketball Gods...The two guys whose records no one was ever supposed to be able to come close to matching. Yeah, those guys.
I know it's hard to remember, but the same things they used to say about Jordan pre-championships, they've been saying about Kobe the last three seasons. They say he's not good enough to win a championship by himself. They say he's not a team player. They say he's nothing more than a great scorer. But I have a feeling that the same people that are critical of him now are going to be the same ones that praise him after his career is finished.
I'm not a fortune teller. I can't tell you if Kobe will win another championship. But I do have enough knowledge of basketball history to tell you that if Kobe's career ended today, the sum of his regular season statistics and awards, his playoff achievements, and his clutch performances would place him in the conversation as one of the greatest players ever. Argue against that again all you want. But while you're doing that, Kobe will probably be breaking another record.
Post Note: Kobe Bryant would probably already have six sixty point games if he would have played the fourth quarter in two of his top scoring games. He scored 56 in three quarters against the Memphis Grizzlies in 2002 and 54 points in three quarters against Michael Jordan and the Washington Wizards in 2003.
Previously at FanHouse:
Kobe's 65
Kobe Goes Off Again, Drops 50 On Minnesota
Will Kobe Go for 50 Again?
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
As expected, Kobe did it again. Congratulations Kobe, you are officially the greatest athlete of all time, better than Muhammad Ali, better than Tiger Woods, better than Lance Armstrong, better than Paris Hilton.
And the best part of this is, the next opponent for the Lakers, the New Orleans Hornets, the 4th consecutive CRAP team , this is another opportunity, go for it Kobe, go for gold. And when the season is over, Kobe will run for president, believe me, it's gonna happen.
proof that some people just won't give a guy props no matter what. No matter what you think of him, that is amazing stats
Ever since LA got rid of Shaq to make Kobe happy, the Lakers suck. The triangle offense got converted into the pass-it-to-Kobe offense. Yea, injuries, bla, bla, bla, but the game plan is the same with or without Walton and Lamar and the rest. Give Kobe the ball- and get out of the way. BORING!
KG, AI (last years w/the sixers) and Kobe got one thing in common- great personal stats and a team going nowhere. Some MVP- pffff
Good Morning DM,
Somehow i knew i would find you here. Still think it is not an obsession?
What does this guy have to do to get the respect he deserves? If this were Lebron or Nash there would be an orgy of praise at how they take over the game and "will" their teams to victory. Face it this is the best player in the league and the MVP nobody else is even close.
Laker4Life or Nedu or whoever you are,
Speaking of obsession, you seem to follow me everywhere i go, like a shadow, seems like i have a fan in you. You a stalker? Do you need a friend? Because guess what kiddo, you are OBSESSED with me. Looks like i need to file a restraining order here. Better disappear loser.
P.S. if you reply to this message, even under a different name, because i know you would, you are officially my obsessed fan, or stalker.
To DeMented,
Son, I only read the Lakers page (exclusively), somehow you are always here regurgitating stupidity. But you did say you were a Pistons fan and considering the state of the city of Detroit I can understand. As for your stalker comment, let me be the first to say you lack imagination and common sense. I could engage you in a retarded game of "who makes the most redundant statements but since my IQ is over 50 I will quickly be bored, so I pass. Here in LA LA land we like Kobe just as he is, SHAQ is gone and he is not coming back, the mechanics of his leaving is subject to random speculation by uninformed second guessers (like yourself) with an axe to grind. You can’t continue to make illiterate and incendiary comments just because the immediacy and anonymity of the blogosphere allows just about any home made critic to pour out their inner inadequacies on the general public. Your views are completely skewed and mostly irrelevant to just about everybody (but I am sure that there is a colony of like minded imbeciles, judging from the five or six idiots that routinely post comments here), but since you have chosen to make a nuisance of yourself, I have taken it upon myself to point out your lunacy. If Kobe is such a poor example of “whatever”, go read something else, do something else, leave the man alone, I can’t understand it. So if you are literate enough, bring it on, I got plenty where that came from.
The thing that i find funny is this: Kobe is a ballhog in the eyes of many. He has haters. Kobe turns into a team player. He has haters. Kobe discovers a cure for cancer. He is gonna have haters. I don't know what it is about the "black mamba" that just brings the envy out in people. Great players carry their teams when they need it most and that's what Kobe does best! Name another player in the league today who can single-handedly shoot down any team in the league? Regardless of what you think about the man, averaging 58.3 ppg for the last 3 as well as 6 boards a game, can you imagine what he might do if the league suspends him again? Watchout Wilt!
Dammit! I just wanna know when they are finally going to give Kobe his MVP. He was robbed last year and it seems that he's going to have to come with more outlandish, legendary, great, performances (as soon to come with Golden State) in order to do so. I mean, come on, he's the man! Who can guard him, who can stop him? Its about that time people. Oh yeah, gotta love the Lakerfans* (lol!) Take it easy on em'!
I would like Kobe to know, that this 73 year old Grandma, has been following him since his entry to the NBA,the firt time I saw him, he awed me, and has provided me with the most exciting basketball games I've ever seen. He is THE GREATEST BASKETBALL PLAYER ever, bar none. Thank you,thank you, thank you Kobe, for being who you are, and what you are.