Kobe Bryant has the highest plus/minus of any 3 year playoff run

[LakerLegend]

He did this on one knee too past his peak:

Read on Twitter

[Ruma85]

He did this on one knee too past his peak:

Read on Twitter

I should make some popcorn for this thread.

[LakerLegend]

No top 75 teammate either.

[NZB2323]

1. Plus/minus stats only started in 97.

2. 7 games for the first round only started in 2003.

3. The ability to score 600 points is also impacted by series going 6 or 7 games.

It’s impressive, but I think a stretch to call it arguably the greatest 3 year playoff run ever. Off the top of my head Jordan from 91-93, Jordan from 96-98, Lebron from 12-14, and Lebron from 16-18 would be better.

[Jedi32]

Haven't fact checked it but it sounds pretty good. If it is true I'll just sit back and listen to all the excuses of why it isn't as great as it sounds.

[Wigginstime]

He played 67 playoff games in that 3 year span.

This is a weird cherry picking of stats.

You could take total playoff cumulative stats in a 4/5/6 year playoff period and both Lebron and Jordan blow Kobe out of the water.
Or you could take per game playoff stats in any year and lots of players blow Kobe out of the water.

You picked a cumulative stat over a narrow window that just happens to favor Kobe because he played a lot of long series in a period where is his team went to the finals 3 years in a row.

[LakerLegend]

He played 67 playoff games in that 3 year span.

This is a weird cherry picking of stats.

You could take total playoff cumulative stats in a 4/5/6 year playoff period and both Lebron and Jordan blow Kobe out of the water.
Or you could take per game playoff stats in any year and lots of players blow Kobe out of the water.

You picked a cumulative stat over a narrow window that just happens to favor Kobe because he played a lot of long series in a period where is his team went to the finals 3 years in a row.

They are the extended playoff runs he had as the number 1 option in his prime and no, we don’t need LeBrons stats against 40 win teams while playing against super teams.

[tsherkin]

1. Plus/minus stats only started in 97.

2. 7 games for the first round only started in 2003.

3. The ability to score 600 points is also impacted by series going 6 or 7 games.

It’s impressive, but I think a stretch to call it arguably the greatest 3 year playoff run ever. Off the top of my head Jordan from 91-93, Jordan from 96-98, Lebron from 12-14, and Lebron from 16-18 would be better.

Also, Magic had better 3-year runs, and certainly MJ did. There are probably better runs from Kareem and a bunch of other guys as well. It's just a weird tweet.

[NZB2323]

Just from a quick search, Shaq has a higher on/off per 100 possessions from 2001-2003, along with 3 championships and 3 Finals MVPs.

If they’re just doing total plus/minus for when the first round was 5 rounds and the 01 Lakers lost only 1 playoff game, then Shaq has less games.

[Jedi32]

He played 67 playoff games in that 3 year span.

This is a weird cherry picking of stats.

You could take total playoff cumulative stats in a 4/5/6 year playoff period and both Lebron and Jordan blow Kobe out of the water.
Or you could take per game playoff stats in any year and lots of players blow Kobe out of the water.

You picked a cumulative stat over a narrow window that just happens to favor Kobe because he played a lot of long series in a period where is his team went to the finals 3 years in a row.

Just curious, how is 3 years of playoffs runs cherry picking?

[Mirotic12]

No top 75 teammate either.

Pau should be there.

[TheHartBreakKid]

1. Plus/minus stats only started in 97.

2. 7 games for the first round only started in 2003.

3. The ability to score 600 points is also impacted by series going 6 or 7 games.

It’s impressive, but I think a stretch to call it arguably the greatest 3 year playoff run ever. Off the top of my head Jordan from 91-93, Jordan from 96-98, Lebron from 12-14, and Lebron from 16-18 would be better.

Also, Magic had better 3-year runs, and certainly MJ did. There are probably better runs from Kareem and a bunch of other guys as well. It's just a weird tweet.

Yeah this tweet is an example of a Kobe fan trying too hard (or someone trying to hard to get likes and retweets by appealing to Kobe/Laker fans.

It could have been a cool interesting piece about how impressive that run by Kobe was (which it was), if it only focused on the +/ factor.

Even then, as NZB2323 only limits to playoff runs that started after 97, taking out the Magic and MJ runs and any runs by Kareem, Bird, etc.
And this is without mentioning the limits/flaws of the +/x stat overall.

To me, a tweet like:

"How good was Kobe's 3 year run from 08-10?
- Highest +/- in any 3 year run (Since =/- started being recorded in 97)
- 3 finals appearances and 2 championships
- 9-1 in series against teams that won 50+

Is this the greatest 3 year playoff run of the century? "

Would far more effectively bring attention to Kobe's great 3 year run, while starting an interesting conversation.

The argument in the revised tweet would still have a lot of obvious flaws and could easily be argued against, and I'm not saying Kobe has had the best 3 year playoff run of the century, but atleast it's an interesting discussion to me as a basketball fan. But of course, that's not how basketball social media works these days.

[tsherkin]

Yeah this tweet is an example of a Kobe fan trying too hard (or someone trying to hard to get likes and retweets by appealing to Kobe/Laker fans.

It could have been a cool interesting piece about how impressive that run by Kobe was (which it was), if it only focused on the +/ factor.

Even then, as NZB2323 only limits to playoff runs that started after 97, taking out the Magic and MJ runs and any runs by Kareem, Bird, etc.
And this is without mentioning the limits/flaws of the +/x stat overall.

To me, a tweet like:

"How good was Kobe's 3 year run from 08-10?
- Highest +/- in any 3 year run (Since =/- started being recorded in 97)
- 3 finals appearances and 2 championships
- 9-1 in series against teams that won 50+

Is this the greatest 3 year playoff run of the century? "

Would far more effectively bring attention to Kobe's great 3 year run, while starting an interesting conversation.

The argument in the revised tweet would still have a lot of obvious flaws and could easily be argued against, and I'm not saying Kobe has had the best 3 year playoff run of the century, but atleast it's an interesting discussion to me as a basketball fan. But of course, that's not how basketball social media works these days.

Yes, that's a great way to put it. That could have been a fantastic pro-Kobe post to describe the wonder of that 3-year run. Instead, it'll get buried by how lame and disingenuous the actual post was.

[Bornstellar]

It was a pretty good run, tbh

[Optms]

One of the most under appreciated runs of the last 30 years.

3 straight Finals, 2 chips against a juggernaut loaded Western conference including a win over the historically great Celtics. I think it was 2009, literally every playoff team out West was a 50 win team. Unfortunately he logged too many miles during that run which may have led to his body breaking down.

[dhsilv2]

I'll never understand why Kobe fans want to start stats arguments that will ultimately make Kobe look worse when he was a top 15 all time guy, a legit legend and seriously one of the most likable guys ever in terms of on camera with the media. These kinds of threads are just going to hurt his legend and why? Just because many of us rank Kobe 12th vs 8th or some bs all time?

[Asianiac_24]

It was a very good run, but I wouldn’t call it the greatest ever. Kobe was an elite superstar, but he simply just wasn’t LeBron/MJ/Jokic kind of level and impact. Kobe’s impact is more in the KD/Dirk level imo

[benhillboy]

No top 75 teammate either.

This is by far the gist of how historically impressive his run was. The best players running with him were Gasol, Fish, Bynum, and Odom. That’s roughly akin to winning a modern ‘ship with Kessler, Markannen, 35 yo Kyle Lowry, and Wiggins.

Granted Jokic, Steph, and Giannis have also done so since. Really the highest quality Finals MVP you can win in that case.

[LakersLegacy]

He did this on one knee too past his peak:

Read on Twitter

Had 0-12 Gasol before being traded to play with Bryant played like a man in 2008,
it would have been 3 Championships and 3 Western Conference Wins
instead of 2 Championship and 3 Western Conference Wins
(or had the 2008 opponent not been KG-Allen-Allen-Rondo-Pierce-and-the ring chasers all teamed v a missing injured starter Bynum)

[mastermixer]

Huge lakers and Kobe fan here.

The only claim that holds up is that he put up great numbers and won against mostly 50 win teams.

We really went up against legit championship contending teams in the west nearly every match up.

We had had great teams and supporting cast too.

To call Pau “not a top 75” player or to pretend like we didn’t have great players and teams during that 3 year run are insults. We had Odom, Bynum, Pau, ariza, Ron artest. D fish. Farmer was serviceable. We had so many solid and above avg players during that run.
This one actually pisses me off because those guys deserve a fair share of the credit. We had great teams and guys who played thier roles.

We also had no chance of beating the Celtics in ‘08. So to act like “if we had beaten the Celtics and 3 peated” means anything is just dumb.