The Driving Force(s) Behind the Anti-Kobe Bryant Agenda Explained

[GhosDini]

By now most of us know that Kobe Bryant is the most consistently discredited and disrespected NBA legend of all time. But what most people don't know is why. Of course his detractors will say he gets criticized because he truly is overrated and not as high all time as he is touted to be. However, the rest of us know that is complete and total BS and that Kobe gets held to double standards at every turn. So the question remains...what is the driving force behind this anti-Kobe agenda that's all too prevalent within the NBA community? Well, having been someone who has been watching the NBA since before Kobe allow me to explain.

The reason Kobe gets so much hate is because he is caught in the middle of various competing agendas and interests groups. There are several competing narratives at play here tha all share Kobe Bryant as the one common threat between them all. I'm going to break down each group, agenda, and narrative that has, over 20+ years, accumulated into the constant disrespect you see today.

Group #1: Jordan Fans

The first group that has always had a vested interest in discrediting Kobe Bryant are Jordan fans. The Jordan fan base is probably the strongest, most cult-like, most religious fan base of all time. Kobe came into the league when Jordan was at his all time peak while being touted as "the next Jordan". Jordan fans would have none of it as there have been several "next Jordans" that had crashed and burned. However, it was clear from the get go that Kobe was different. It wouldn't be long before Jordan fans would begin to feel extremely threatened. Think about it. In 1998 Michael Jordan retired from the Bulls after completing his 2nd 3peat of which seemed an untouchable feat at the time. However, just 2 years after Jordan retired Kobe Bryant already won his first championship. Only 5 years after Jordan retired Kobe already had his first 3peat. Imagine how insecure and threatened Jordan fans were feeling at the time. Remember this is before the hyper focus on stats and individual accolades. It truly was all about the rings and Kobe had 3 of them by the time he was 22. Not to mention Jordan had came back for his Wizards tenure during this time and got routinely scorched by young Kobe. The hate from Jordan fans was real and it was strong.

So the first thing Jordan fans did was start pointing out that Kobe had Shaq and thus his titles aren't worth as much as Jordan's. This is what gave birth to the "Shaq carried Kobe" narrative that's endured ever since. This "Shaq carried Kobe" narrative then leads into the next group of opposition.

Group #2: Shaq Fans

Granted Shaq never had a cult, rapid like fan base but he was still top 3 in terms of popularity during his time in LA. So when Shaq ended up leaving LA his fan base(along with Jordan's) blamed Kobe. Because of their bitterness toward Kobe they fed the "Shaq carried Kobe" narrative until it became a permanent fixture in Kobe's legacy. It also didn't help when Shaq was able to win in Miami with D Wade. After winning the title Shaq famously got on stage and asked Kobe to "tell me how my *** tastes". This allowed his detractors to really put the pressure on Kobe to have to win on his own or forever be known as Shaq's sidekick.

Group #3: NBA/Nike

Up until 2003 Kobe did have on thing going for him: he was the beneficiary of favorable NBA politics and coverage. The NBA had picked Kobe as their post Jordan standard bearer and thus he would get praised in the media, showcased in ads and tv shows, promoted to all star games, ect. However, that all changed after the incident in Colorado. Once that happened the NBA began to back off from Kobe to a degree and he lost that favorable coverage and treatment. He lost the NBA push that other all time greats have received which usually results in extra accolades like MVPs. At this same time there was a new guy coming into the league whom the NBA decided put their brand and resources behind. That guy was named Lebron James. And it wasn't just the NBA but also Nike and other corporations. This would also grow to include social groups as well all working together to build Lebron James up as the best in the world and eventually of all time. Thus as early as 2005 and 2006 Kobe was beginning to get pushed aside in the media and by casual fans in favor of Lebron.

Group #4: Lebron James fans

Along with Jordan fans Lebron's are also extremely cult like, religious, and aggressive. Similar to how Jordan fans were raised on marketing campaigns telling them to "Be Like Mike" Lebron fans were raised on marketing campaigns telling them to "Be A Witness" to "the Chosen One". Therefore it didn't take long for Lebron's James infamous fan base to grow to a point where they began to aggressively try and establish Lebron as #1. The one guy who challenged that narrative at the time was Kobe Bryant. Therefore Lebron fans began to join in with Jordan fans, Shaq fans, and media pundits in discrediting Kobe's accomplishments.

Group #5: Analytic Culture

And finally we have the analytic culture and the "stat nerds". What used to just be Lebron fans obsessing over statistics has turned into an entire generation of NBA fans that do nothing but look at box scores and advanced metrics. The problem with this approach is that it typically ignores context and all the intangible aspects to the game. A player like Kobe Bryant exposes the holes in this philosophy. Despite allegedly being an "inefficient chucker" he somehow managed to actually win while building one of the best basketball resumes in NBA history. He managed to beat other more "efficient" players and teams consistently. In order to deal with this apparent contradiction the analytics crowd consistently downplays his career by treating his accomplishments like some kind of fluke. They elevate Pau Gasol to Shaq's level, treat Lamar Odom like Scottie Pippen, pretend Kobe didn't deserve the 2010 FMVP, and try to give CP3 his MVP award. And of course Shaq carred Kobe in 00-02.


So there you have it. You have 5 major groups all pushing narratives and agendas of which Kobe is caught in the middle of. Over the years these groups have successfully established the narrative that Kobe is overrated for various reasons. However, the truth his that Kobe Bryant's legacy requires probably the most context out of anyone's legacy in order to view it properly. Once you add context to Kobe's career you'll see that some areas of his legacy take a hit while others get bump. Kobe's career considered objectively, within context, and in it's totality reveals that Kobe's deserved and justified all time ranking is right in line with where most people instinctively put him: somewhere between #6 and #10.


Kobe Bryant's Basketball Resume

5 NBA Championships
7 NBA W. Conference Championships
1 NBA MVP
2 NBA Finals MVPs
18 All Star Selections
15 All NBA Selections
12x All Defensive Selections(9x 1st team)
2 Scoring Titles
4 All Star Game MVPs
2 Olympic Gold Medals

This is an undisputed Top 10 player of all time ladies and gentlemen. If you think otherwise you either belong to one of the groups above are you are being influenced by them.

Thoughts?

[PaulieWal]

Locking this thread given what has transpired.....not the time and place for it.