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The First Kobe Bryant
"He has a clean slate and an opportunity to do the unthinkable, not only to be the next Michael Jordan, but to be the first Kobe Bryant."
By Mike Oseroff
Kobe Bryant is an eight year NBA veteran, a six time all-star, and has three world championships. He is a larger than life superstar and a national icon that has been to the pinnacle, as well as the rock bottom, of professional sports. He is, to many people, a hero- a charismatic leader, workhorse, and winner, who embodies the drive and determination of every kid who ever had a dream of playing in the pros. However, to many others, he is scum - a selfish waste of talent who craves the spotlight and an accused rapist, who very well might end up rounding out his playing days in a state prison. But starting the 2004-2005 NBA season, little of that will matter. Kobe Bryant will have a chance to rewrite his true legacy. His career, and what will be remembered of it, will start right now.
For the record, we have entered a new era of NBA basketball. Many of the teams that ruled the late 90’s and early 00’s are on the downfall, and notorious losers are on their way up. Teams such as: Utah, Philadelphia, and Portland, who where mainstays in the playoffs for the past decade, are in rebuilding phases. Teams such as Memphis, Denver, and now Miami are on the rise, and are primed to rise to the top. But most importantly, the most infamous dynasty over the past 8 years, the Los Angeles Lakers, is no more.
As of Wednesday, the 14th of July, the unstoppable duo of Kobe and Shaq broke up. Shaquille O’Neal, the most dominant force in basketball, was traded to the Miami Heat for Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, and Brian Grant- 3/5 of the Heat’s starting lineup. In exchange for the “Big Daddy,” the Lakers’ have received a young but cocky guard in Butler, a substance abusing utility man in Odom, and a power forward who is WAY past his prime in Grant. With these three solid, but questionable additions, and Karl Malone and Gary Payton each already a foot in the retirement home, the Lakers’ next few years seemed to be headed south. It all depended on whether or not Kobe would stay.
Kobe’s contract with the Lakers ended this past season culminating with the pangs of being manhandled by the Pistons in the NBA Finals, Shaq leaving, and Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson being fired without the consent of the players’- it would have seemed very understandable for Kobe to walk away from the purple and gold.
Los Angeles’ other NBA franchise, the Clippers, have a great coach, a solid nucleus of young talent, (Elton Brand, Chris Wilcox, Corey Maggette, and phenom Shaun Livingston), and are willing to play games in Anaheim, a location that is not only closer to Kobe’s home, but also a place where he expressed a desire to play. They are a team on the rise, with the possibility of starting a new LA dynasty if Kobe is the focal point of their new dream team. The Clipper’s traded two players to the Charlotte Bobcats, to clear up cap room just to give Kobe a very lucrative offer. They offered him the maximum: $100 million dollars. But it was all on Kobe to decide. His options were clear: take a great offer, join a rising team of stars, and get a fresh start, or stay with the Lakers, a team with a lot of question marks, entering a rebuilding phase of their own. The entire basketball world waited hungrily in anticipation.
Finally, on Thursday July 15th, at 12:00 PM, just an hour ago as I write this, Kobe made his decision. He signed a seven year contract for a team that he will most likely play out his career with. Kobe forever will be remembered as...a Laker.
So there it is. At the crossroads of his career in the NBA, and with a whole lot of excess baggage in tow, Kobe decided not to walk away from his past, but rather, rewrite it. Throughout his entire career, critics wondered whether or not he could lead a team of his own, if he could grab the steering wheel for himself, rather than share it with Shaq. They wondered if this so called leader would crack under the pressures of the media scrutiny surrounding his rape trial. They tried to look deep into his character to uncover whether Kobe is the man he wants everyone to think he was, or if he is someone totally different when he emerged from Shaq’s monstrous shadow.
Kobe decided not to join another team where he was simply a great player among other great players. He wants to be the diamond in the rough. He wants to prove he is as good as the hype, maybe even better. He wants to show that he can lead a team to victory, even if that team is a team full of nobodies. He wants to be the greatest of all time.
They once said of Michael Jordan, who is undoubtedly the greatest player of our generation and perhaps of all time, that it wasn’t just his talent that made him great, it was his ability to make his teammates better as well. But Jordan’s supporting cast was nothing to frown upon. Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Charles Oakley, BJ Armstrong, Toni Kukoc, Dennis Rodman all played better with Jordan on the floor, but were all stars of their own without him.
Kobe won’t have amazing talent on his side when he steps out on the court in November, but his mission is clear. If Kobe can turn a team full of question marks and average talent into a championship ball club, then he will have reached the ultimate tier. If Kobe accomplishes this, he will go down in history as, perhaps the greatest basketball player of all time- which is why his career and what will be remembered of it starts now. He has a clean slate and an opportunity to do the unthinkable, not only to be the next Michael Jordan, but to be the first Kobe Bryant. Stay tuned.
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