The Black Mamba

Kobe Bryant, one of the most loved and hated individuals in the NBA. Mostly hated on now by the teenagers who can't remember him destroying everything in his path for the last 17 seasons. To them, they only notice LeBron James, because he is now the face of the league and is shoved in everyone's face by ESPN and others.

Kobe Bryant has accomplished everything you can in the NBA, 5 titles, 2x finals MVP, 2x NBA scoring champ, NBA MVP, 15x All-Star, 9x all defensive team, 2x Olympic Gold medalist and the list goes on and yet he still gets doubted. If anything, the doubting seems to fuel Kobe, who is entering his 18th NBA season and coming off an achilles tendon injury. He seems to improve every year and for someone who is 35, he does not show any signs of letting up. His heart and soul are still driving him to this game. He is 4th on the all time scoring list for the NBA and could very well pass Michael Jordan, who is arguably the best player of all time, for 3rd place this season. He is only 675 points away from doing this, so it does not seem that far off, coming off a season where he scored 2,133 points.

People have always said that he had help in winning his 5 titles and they try to take that away from his talents and what he accomplished in those seasons. But, the same goes for every NBA champion and other greats in history. Jordan had Pippen and Rodman, LeBron has Wade and Bosh, Larry Bird had Parrish and McHale, and Magic had Kareem, so that excuse is irrelevant.

This upcoming season could be Kobe's last or it may not be, but just know he will do everything that his talents allow him in pursuing his 6th title  Whenever he plays this season, he is going to leave it all on the court, as he does every single night. You can not take away from his toughness and his determination and will to win games. He may shoot the ball more than anyone else on his team and sometimes the league, but if you look at his current team, you would too. Call him selfish, a ball hog, old, injury prone, whatever you want, Kobe Bryant will still go down as one of the greatest to ever play the game, and for me and many others, one of the best we have ever witnessed.



CroJack