I'm in complete agreement with Vengeance. I don't really have anything against Kobe, but I did grow tired of him trying to do it all himself. He is one of the best players in the league and is a fierce competitor. I admire the fact that he went out there and played to win, but he probably should have tried to get his teammates involved more. It was still an exciting game to watch especially when the East came roaring back to get within 10 only to have the West's 3 point barrage seal the deal.
I just hate his punk-a$$, wanna-be Jordan, ball hog attitude. There is no doubt that he is one of the best players in the league, he just thinks he's God. That is the problem I have with the guy. My top 10 most hated NBA players: 1. Karla Malone 2. John Stockton 3. Rick Fox 4. Kobe Bryant 5. Rasheed Wallace 6. Scottie Pippen 7. Nick Van Exel 8. Charles Oakley 9. Latrell Spreewell 10. Kenny Anderson
I thought the All-Star game was more about the fans than the players. If the fans didnt want to see it, then they didnt want to see it. I actually agree withmost of your points. However, nationwide, it seems, there is just a hatred of Kobe by a large number of fans. Undoubtedly, there are also a lot that really like him, but I wouldnt be surprised to see more contempt of him than not. Why? Who knows. Sometimes winning breeds contempt, but that isnt the case with Jordan or Hakeem, although it seems to be the case with Pippen. Sometimes its the attitude, and it isnt always something you can easily point out - it is the way the player carries himself, etc, etc. Anyway, I dont think Philly fans are the only ones who would have booed (well, at least disliked) what he did in the All-Star game. As your posts point out though, Major, it is illogical given the stats and the like. I, like Drewdog, do not like Kobe. I dont know why, but I just dont.
<B>I thought the All-Star game was more about the fans than the players. If the fans didnt want to see it, then they didnt want to see it.</B> True, but right after the all-star game there was an ESPN poll about who you would build your team around if you could. When I answered, well over 50% had picked Kobe. McGrady was in 2nd with about 25% or so. That tells me people really like watching Kobe. Don't get me wrong -- I don't like the guy. I think he's an arrogant ass (still a great player, though). There are lots of legitimate things to bash him for, but I just didn't feel the All-Star game performance was one of them. I just feel like, every year, someone takes over an All-Star game, and this year it just happened to be Kobe.
The All-Star game is a joke anyways. Its seems more and more like the MVP award is rigged. Magic and Jordan winning it during their comeback years, Karla and Stockton being Co-MVP's in Utah for the '93 game, Kobe winning in his hometown, etc. They are probably just coincidences, but makes me wonder a bit.
How many of Kobe's 25 shots were either dunks or lay-ups? I'm guessing that Kobe had about 5 dunks and 2 lay-ups. That leaves 18 shots. I watched a rerun of the game's second half on NBA.com TV yesterday. If anybody was jacking up shots, it was Paul Pierce. The reason Philly fans booed is because of the general perception that Kobe is soft, has no street cred, is more from Italy than Philly and obviously b/c of last year's Finals. The ballhogging argument is kind of ridiculous.
Kobe blew the booing way out of proportion. The fans were not necessarily booing him because he is Kobe, they were booing him because he is a Laker, an enemy, and he beat the Sixers in the Finals. They even booed Derek Fisher in the 3-on-3 event on Saturday night. It wasn't just because he is Kobe...although taking that many shots didn't help him. I'll admit it...I used to look for everything negative about Kobe. But last year, I started to respect him, and he is a good player. But the thing I despise about him is his huge ego. You can just tell that he thinks he's on top of the NBA already. I'd like to see him take the place of Jordan on the Wizards and see if he can lead a winning team there. Fortunately for him, he'll probably never have to suffer this reality, because when Shaq is gone he will be hitting his prime.
I believe that if people want to hate Kobe then go ahead, I'm not going to say it's rediculous beccause you are speaking your opinion. Personally I would rather see the whole world get off Jordan's jock. Another thing, I can see why many people on this board would show hate/dislike for Kobe being that the majority of us are Rocket fans yet I don't see the reason behind why Philly folks boo Kobe? I mean it comes as no surprise because Philadelphia has some of the most ruthless fans in the world (these are the same guys that cheered when Michael Irvin suffered that career-ending neck injury in a football game against my favorite team, the Eagles). What's the reason behind besides he helped the Lakers win the title last year?
I think it also may have to do with some comments Kobe made about Philly last year in the Finals. He said something like, "I don't care what the Philly fans think of me now. I'm a Laker. I wanna get booed, be the villian, and be treated like any other player coming in here". Of course, this was during the NBA Finals, and I don't think being booed in the All-Star Game was what he had in mind. By the way, isn't "rediculous" supposed to be spelled "ridiculous"?
