Best Player in the NBA

[pt1gard]

well the best player in the league had it all laid out for him and even his guru PJ couldnt help as Suns absolutely embarrassed Lakers ... game 6 PHX has nothing going for them and yet win, accomplished what only 4% of team in NBA history have done ... maybe their best player (Nash and two time MVP) had something to do with that, or maybe not... all those pundits who put a fork in PHX must be down ... this series was one of the true treats Ive witnessed in a while ... congrats Suns, maybe next year Kobe you can actually win a series w/o Shaq .. Kobe unraveling late, love it Least you can sleep in your own bed now since you made it by buying your way back in with the big piece of ice

 

[x2man]

For all you Kobe LOVER, did you just see him leave and not show any sportsmanship? What a LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[pt1gard]

missed that, but what else would you expect from off the court loser--love it

 

[gman2]

For all you Kobe LOVER, did you just see him leave and not show any sportsmanship? What a LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

in all seriousness, "sportsmanship" is so overrated in professional sports. it goes without saying that trying to hurt someone or take a cheap shot is obviously wrong, and outside the scope of what im talking about.

but its incredibly utopian for the casual fan to just expect every player to handle a loss with a smile and a handshake.

id rather have a guy like kobe, who genuinely hates to lose, than a guy like gilbert arenas, who was in the cavs locker room joking around with larry hughes after the cavs beat them at the buzzer in game 5 in cleveland the other night. when i heard that, it made sense as to why the wizards have lacked a killer instinct in that recently completed series. arenas is a great player, but im not sure it really bothers him that the wizards are going home for the summer.

 

[LetsMakeMoney]

For all you Kobe LOVER, did you just see him leave and not show any sportsmanship? What a LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE DID THE RIGHT THING, HOPE HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN A COUPLE OF PUNCHES AT RAJA AND THOMAS..........FOCK PHO AND SPECIALLY RAJA BELL AND TIM THOMAS, I HOPE THEY GET SWEPT BY THE CLIPPS :clap:

 

[pt1gard]

gman2,

im kinda surprised you dont think being a good sport counts for much; the nhl seems to value it; personally I think it sets a good example for life and being a leader even tho god knows these guys say they arent role models etc, is still something of value ... to say Arenas doesnt care is pretty flippant and unsubstantiated too ... arenas wasnt why wiz lost--i believe he played decently , with a 1/2 break on goal tending in game 7 or baseline cutoff in game 6 or adept move by their coach series ends 4-2 wiz, not b/c he went into a locker room to offer congrats when he lost ...

 

[Taximike]

After watching Arenas play these last 6 games, i've actually become a fan of his. Besides being a fricking animal on the floor and impossible to cover (at least by a cavalier), he seems to have fun on the court and doesn't take himself to seriously off of it. He was gracious in defeat, blaming himself btw for the 2 missed free throws; how many 'superstars' would've ducked in the training room after game.

 

[gman2]

i definitely should have been a little more thorough in my above post because i agree with taximike -- arenas is definitely a class act in terms of not ducking reporters after missing those free throws. and he's also a hell of a player. and that really doesnt do him justice. the guy can flat out play. that being said, im not sure losing really bothers him. and i have a bit of a problem with that. his talent is undeniable. but he's too laid back and lacks the killer instinct from the great ones.

ptgard --
again, i probably should have elucidated my above post. there definitely is something to be said for carrying yourself with class. and arenas is definitely one of the 'good guys' in the nba. and we can certainly agree that the nba can always use some more guys like arenas in that department. but i still stand by my original post when it comes to my questioning of arenas' killer instinct and true passion for winning. its hard to put it into words in an online forum post. invariably, its going to come out sounding wrong. but i just dont think the guy cares about winning anywhere near as much as a guy like kobe. by that i mean, arenas WANTS to win every time out, but does it really eat at him if he doesnt? the fact that he was in the cavs locker room after game 5 has me wondering about that. i really cant imagine bird being in the lakers locker room, or jordan being in the pistons locker room after ANY game back in the 80s and early 90s. all things considered, i just think its a bit utopian to expect genuine competitors (specifically kobe) to be friends with the opposition immediately following a season-ending loss.

 

[thisisbad]

I get what you are sayin and agree on several point gman. Being a guy who is very competetive, i would never be caught in the opposing teams locker room after a loss. When i heard that i was shocked. Couldn't imagine it happening with MJ or any of the old guard. And no i don't think it takes away from Gilbert as a player, but i would much rather have heard how pissed he was or something like that.
Otherwise, yes very classy, especially standing up and takin the blame. And how does a guy hit a 3 to tie when i don't think he could even see the rim from where he was shootin, and then miss 2 free throws.

As far as Kobe, i always hate when a guy leaves and doesn't ackowledge the other team, i like the classiness of shakin hands, but givin how chppy the series was, and how tough it is blowin a 3-1 lead, and how much Kobe wanted this, i am not suprised.

 

[blgstocks]

in all seriousness, "sportsmanship" is so overrated in professional sports. it goes without saying that trying to hurt someone or take a cheap shot is obviously wrong, and outside the scope of what im talking about.

but its incredibly utopian for the casual fan to just expect every player to handle a loss with a smile and a handshake.

id rather have a guy like kobe, who genuinely hates to lose, than a guy like gilbert arenas, who was in the cavs locker room joking around with larry hughes after the cavs beat them at the buzzer in game 5 in cleveland the other night. when i heard that, it made sense as to why the wizards have lacked a killer instinct in that recently completed series. arenas is a great player, but im not sure it really bothers him that the wizards are going home for the summer.

Yeah Kobe did much better this year than Arenas did with his team, since they are both going home first round. Yeah I agree, Kobe does have that "killer instinct" the way he went for the suns jugular and closed them out when he was up 3-1. OOOPS. Yeah I totally agree that Kobe has that "will to win" like how he needed to take control of the game and put his team on his shoulders, OOPS, i mean how he took 3 shots the whole second half and passed the ball like it had aids, because he knew his team was going to lose and he wanted the media to blame someone else but the "selfish kobe" which is even more selfish. Yeah I definitatly agree that Arenas joking around with fellow teamates after a tough loss is SO LAME, I much rather have Kobe who NOBODY likes, even on his team, and rather get into brawls in the lockerooms with his teamates(odom).

Gman, I respect you but cmon, Kobe is a grade A @sshole. NOONE can deny that, if you think he is the greatest player in the NBA, thats one thing, or the most talented thats another, both LEGIT arguments, but downplaying Kobes arrogance and attitude that obviously affects the way players treat him (bell) or the players that want to play with him (shaq) is not an issue is not much of an argument in my opinion.

 

[x2man]

BlgStocks:
I totally agree with everything you just said. What makes a champion is not how you win but how you accept defeat. I have entered plenty of tournaments and consider myself as competitive as the next guys, but I will show sportsmanship whether I win or lose. Kobe seems to get away with this just like he gets away with everything
else.

Can you imagine Tiger not shaking Mickelson's hand after he just won a tournament or vise versa,
the media would have a field day with this.

 

[pt1gard]

i understand where you are coming from, gman2, I respect your classy replies and views as always ... thanx for commenting ...

as for some others who were so pro Kobe I see they are in the FBI relocation program today ... one of the lasting memories from this series was his ariball at end of game 6 reg. that could've won it ... coaches these days just give the bellcow the ball in last seconds, stop coaching, and say win it--the D is set and its difficult to get a good shot as your teammates stand and watch ... Kobe also scoring 1 pt in the 2nd half of game 7 was amusing ... for him to be the next MJ, maybe he needs to just once close a series since exodus of Shaq ...

Im just not sure what criteria goes into being the league's top player anymore b/c ive heard the incredible hype for the AIs, the Tmacs, and the rapidly slipping Kobe team-accomplishments for a long time yet players who actually make their teams better like Kidd and Nash or even a Paul Silas back when seem to never get the amount of respect they deserve (nash wins MVPs and still gets bashed) its astounding

gl,
gregg

 

[BleedDodgerBlue]

as for some others who were so pro Kobe I see they are in the FBI relocation program today

i'm right here tough guy. what's there to say. i still think he's the best in the league and i still think you are a fcking moron. who the fck cares about sportsmanship. r u too stupid to read. its about who the best player is. not if he raped anyone or you particularly don't like him. or he didn't shake someones hands. have you ever met nba players. they are all pricks.

its idiots like you why i'll never post anything useful again.

glad u are amused in others failure. have a great life.

 

[soul train]

Kobe is the best...period.

Just because he lost a game 7 does not mean anything...

He was the only player on the team...

Can`t do it by himself :shrug:

 

[pt1gard]

man DB, way to personalize it, nice ad hominem ... and yes, Kobe is not my fave .. sorry you are so depressed about something, can we help here at MJs?

and yes I have met many nba players, people like brent barry, TD, Nate Mac, Parker, Jason Terry, Nash, Lenny Wilkens, and many many more are great guys ... nice lumping them all in with Kobe

 

[freelancc]

Suns absolutely embarrassed Lakers ...

in the 4th quarter Raja Bell gave the Laker Bench that classic thug gesture.. the famed "throat slash".. :SIB