best Player on the Planet

[wickerhd]

After listening to Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy contnually talk about Kobe Bryant as the best player on the planet, I thought it was appropriate to bring the question here. No, I'm not a Kobe hater, but I just don't see how he has elevated himself past everyone else in the league.

For my money, the honor has to go to Lebron James. He's not as deadly on the perimeter but is just overpowering with his driving ability. Both of them were saddled with substandard supporting casts, but LBJ was the guy I was most frightened of down the stretch in a close game.

Five years ago, Shaq was the best player on the planet, and five years from now it might well be Dwight Howard. For now, I'll go with LBJ

[Malinhion]

Kobe passed the reins to LBJ by being so passive in the finals this year.

He can ony take them back by winning a ring.

[C'mon Cavs]

LeBron.

Get him a real supporting cast and it will be painfully obvious. Kobe is amazing, but LeBron was just made to be a b-ball beast.

I'd say...

1. LeBron
2. Kobe
3. Duncan

[CB4MiamiHeat]

Lebron....

[The Main Event]

Lebron is the the prince until kobe retires. Pound for pound Kobe is the most skilled player on the planet right now. I would go stat hunting but im at work. I'm a big Lebron fan and honestly believe that he willgo down as one of the greats but as of right now i don't see anybody being as good as Kobe.
Say what you want about his finals performance, the fact of the matter is that no matter how you look at it, he led his team to a better regular season record than Lebron did as well as leading them to the finals.
Lebron needs to work on his mid range J and then he will be arguably the best player on the planet, even if Kobe is still around.

[magicfan4life05]

I think Kobe Bryant is the most skilled NBA Player but at times he may not the best player because his effectiveness can be limited by other teams.

The hardest player to limit his effectiveness IMO is Lebron James.


But honestly this type of stuff changes all the time. Just last year everyone was down on Lebron for what the spurs did to him and how they limited him.

Other times it's Tim Duncan who can dominate w/o scoring IMO.

It alternates between those 3 all the time.

[Iggyemu]

If Kobe can lose that status in the Finals then Paul Pierce certainly can gain that status. Right now it Pierce.

[The Main Event]

If Kobe can lose that status in the Finals then Paul Pierce certainly can gain that status. Right now it Pierce.

Come on, jump on the Pierce bandwagon why dont you? When you have KG and Ray spreading the defence it's not hard for any allstar to do what Pierce did.
Pierce is the equivalent of Michael Redd - Garbage team with him as the lone star. Give Redd KG and Ray and you'll b calling him the G.O.A.T.

[Basileus777]

If Kobe can lose that status in the Finals then Paul Pierce certainly can gain that status. Right now it Pierce.

Pierce isn't even a top 8 player. He didn't have a Dwade type finals. He isn't even the best player on his team.

[guy1]

I dont know. I've thought Kobe has been the best player since 2006, but now I'm actually kind of torn between him and Lebron. I mean, I'm not sure if replacing Kobe with Lebron on the Lakers would've won them a title, cause the Lakers would still lack defense, but if you replaced Ilgauskas and Wallace with Gasol and Odom on the Cavs, meaning they'd be under a more strict defensive system, I'd guess the Cavs would've beaten the Celtics in 6 games and end up winning the title. But then again, Kobe is a better scorer and defender so I don't know.

[JordansBulls]

If Kobe can lose that status in the Finals then Paul Pierce certainly can gain that status. Right now it Pierce.

Come on, jump on the Pierce bandwagon why dont you? When you have KG and Ray spreading the defence it's not hard for any allstar to do what Pierce did.
Pierce is the equivalent of Michael Redd - Garbage team with him as the lone star.

Didnt nearly every analyst and Vegas pick the Lakers to win? So now if they don't it is because the Celtics have the superior cast?


NOTE: I'm not saying Pierce is the best, but to make it as if Boston had the superior cast all along then why would even most fans acros the nation pick the Lakers over Boston. On ESPN out of 300,000 votes over 58% said the Lakers and nearly every analyst did as well.

[L&H_05]

LeBron had Boston on tilt... They were worried about LeBron much more so than Kobe, and evidence of that came during game 5 when Kobe was allowed to go one on one vs Ray Allen...

Boston was throwing 2 guys or trying to pack it in every time at the top vs LBJ, and yet they allowed Kobe to operate one on one at the end of a game ???

I bet you every Celtic, and even their fans could admit that LBJ was much more of a challenge than Kobe, and they were more worried that LBJ could find away to beat them over Kobe...Boston never looked like they sweated Kobe..

I find it absolutely hilarious how people are ripping Kobe's cast, when LBJ could dominate with half that talent...

One decent teammate that teams have to account for, and LeBron will win a few titles in the near future...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jVwNL6qy2M

[Tesla]

Oh come on, some of the stuff that is floating around the boards & media is flat out disgusting...

Let me get this straight... If the Lakers were elimanted to the Spurs in 7 in the WCF, Kobe didn't have a subpar series in that sense, and didn't take his team to the finals... then he would be considered better then he is right now. Kobe had a VERY good playoffs. He had 3 excellent series, and one subpar/poor series. He averaged 30/6/6/2 on 48% in the playoffs (for 4 series). Those are great numbers. Over and over we have heard how Kobe needed team success as the man, he did this year, this was the first year he could. The Lakers obviously failed in the final series, but they were right there. They were outmatched by the Celtics.

The Laker team had less of an answer for Pierce, then the Celtic team had for Kobe. The Laker team couldn't rotate, could stay in front of their guys, and couldn't cover shooters, it resulted in the Celtics going on giant runs. On offense, they were stagnant, and other than Game 3, the role players really didn't make the Celtics pay for trapping Kobe inside the paint. The results are there. Its like saying Tony Parker is better than Lebron James because of match-up issues in the SAS-CLE series. Its complete garbage.

That said, Kobe had a poor series, we should expect better from a player his caliber. He still put up 26/5/5/3 on 40%. The shooting is poor, but the rest of the numbers are there. Paul Pierce by contrast put up 22/6/5 on 43%. The difference is the rally Pierce led in game 4, resulted in a flurry by Posey, and a late flurry by KG to seal the deal in the comeback, where as the rally Kobe led in game 2 fell short. Ray Allen was nearly as good as Paul Pierce in that series, the guy shot 53% from 3 and averaged 20points. The Celtic team was just better.

Lebron James is now better than Kobe because he put up worse playoff numbers, only got to the second round, and similarly struggled against Boston? Lebron shot 35% against Boston, they went to a game 7 because Ray Allen lost his marbles for a week or so and thought he was a scrub.

I never heard of a player having as good of a playoffs, and because of it their clout is diminished. Ray Allen should never had a job in the NBA if his play was judged off of one series, luckly the team pulled through, and proved his worth in series there after. Its a team game, always has been.

Is Kobe the best player in the league? If you thought so before the playoffs, you certainly should think so know. Its clear, and has been clear for some time now, that we don't have a clear best player in the league for several years now. Is Paul Pierce the best player in the league now? No, unless your plain stupid.

/end rant.

[Basileus777]

LeBron has awful offensive teammates, but you can't act like Cleveland's dominant rebounding and great defense wasn't the reason they gave Boston such a hard time. His supporting cast isn't worthless.

[The Main Event]

If Kobe can lose that status in the Finals then Paul Pierce certainly can gain that status. Right now it Pierce.

Come on, jump on the Pierce bandwagon why dont you? When you have KG and Ray spreading the defence it's not hard for any allstar to do what Pierce did.
Pierce is the equivalent of Michael Redd - Garbage team with him as the lone star.

Didnt nearly every analyst and Vegas pick the Lakers to win? So now if they don't it is because the Celtics have the superior cast?


NOTE: I'm not saying Pierce is the best, but to make it as if Boston had the superior cast all along then why would even most fans acros the nation pick the Lakers over Boston. On ESPN out of 300,000 votes over 58% said the Lakers and nearly every analyst did as well.

You're absolutely right. I can honestly say that I picked the Celts to win it; however that's not my point. The person that I quoted was saying the Paul Pierce is the best player on the planet right now. I refuted his argument by pointing out the fact that by having KG and Ray alongside him he was able to play man to man against lesser defenders.

[fanofthegreats]

LeBron had Boston on tilt... They were worried about LeBron much more so than Kobe, and evidence of that came during game 5 when Kobe was allowed to go one on one vs Ray Allen...

Boston was throwing 2 guys or trying to pack it in every time at the top vs LBJ, and yet they allowed Kobe to operate one on one at the end of a game ???

I bet you every Celtic, and even their fans could admit that LBJ was much more of a challenge than Kobe, and they were more worried that LBJ could find away to beat them over Kobe...Boston never looked like they sweated Kobe..

I find it absolutely hilarious how people are ripping Kobe's cast, when LBJ could dominate with half that talent...

One decent teammate that teams have to account for, and LeBron will win a few titles in the near future...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jVwNL6qy2M

Fail....

Boston's strategy was designed around stopping Kobe. Playing a box and 1 and shadowing hsi every drive points to that very fact. See Boston bringing that trap whenever Kobe was going off (game 3 particular, 4th quarter), they knew it was Kobe and only Kobe who could beat them.


Fact is Cleveland's D allowed that series to be close despite 'Bron shooting under 30% for much of the series.

[Tesla]

LeBron had Boston on tilt... They were worried about LeBron much more so than Kobe, and evidence of that came during game 5 when Kobe was allowed to go one on one vs Ray Allen...

Boston was throwing 2 guys or trying to pack it in every time at the top vs LBJ, and yet they allowed Kobe to operate one on one at the end of a game ???

I bet you every Celtic, and even their fans could admit that LBJ was much more of a challenge than Kobe, and they were more worried that LBJ could find away to beat them over Kobe...Boston never looked like they sweated Kobe..

I find it absolutely hilarious how people are ripping Kobe's cast, when LBJ could dominate with half that talent...

One decent teammate that teams have to account for, and LeBron will win a few titles in the near future...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jVwNL6qy2M

What the hell are you talking about?

They were doubling Kobe at the halfcourt line every time down the court in the 4th quarter in Game 3, but the Laker role players made them pay with made three point shots, and baskets. So, Boston layed off and went one on one, then Kobe made them pay. If the team didn't make the shots, there would be NO baskets from Kobe, or anyone you want to put there.

If Ray Allen played anywhere near to the level he played against the Lakers, Cleveland would have been over in 5-6games, just as the Lakers. Yeah I really would sweat a 35% shooter, with 75% FT shooting. Thats utter domination, those are just scary numbers by Lebron. Boston did there job well on both Lebron and Kobe, difference is, the rest of Boston clicked very well against the Lakers in the finals, where as Ray Allen was Jon Barry out of retirement right now -like against Cleveland.

[tnayrbrocks]

L&H_05 wrote:LeBron had Boston on tilt... They were worried about LeBron much more so than Kobe, and evidence of that came during game 5 when Kobe was allowed to go one on one vs Ray Allen...

Boston was throwing 2 guys or trying to pack it in every time at the top vs LBJ, and yet they allowed Kobe to operate one on one at the end of a game ???

I bet you every Celtic, and even their fans could admit that LBJ was much more of a challenge than Kobe, and they were more worried that LBJ could find away to beat them over Kobe...Boston never looked like they sweated Kobe..

I find it absolutely hilarious how people are ripping Kobe's cast, when LBJ could dominate with half that talent...

One decent teammate that teams have to account for, and LeBron will win a few titles in the near future...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jVwNL6qy2M

lol, wow. Doc throwing 2 guys at Lebron and not Kobe has more to do with the respective systems that they play in rather than how good Lebron and Kobe are. If Doc threw 2 guys at Kobe on every play the triangle would have found the open man every single time down. I'm sure that that Doc was willing to take the risk of Ben Wallace knocking down the shot.

Because Kobe didn't immediately get 2 guys on him every time he touched the ball doesn't mean that he wasn't getting respect from the celtics D. Everytime Kobe took it down the lane there were four or even 5 celtic defenders surrounding him, yes they took him that seriously.

Kobe was definitely sub par for the series but the coaching staff didn't do a very good job to maximize kobe's ability against the celtics defense. It looked like they threw him a ball and told him to do w.e. the hell he wanted, or listened to the media and took it to the lane against the collapsing defense.

[tnayrbrocks]

What the hell are you talking about?

They were doubling Kobe at the halfcourt line every time down the court in the 4th quarter in Game 3, but the Laker role players made them pay with made three point shots, and baskets. So, Boston layed off and went one on one, then Kobe made them pay. If the team didn't make the shots, there would be NO baskets from Kobe, or anyone you want to put there.

If Ray Allen played anywhere near to the level he played against the Lakers, Cleveland would have been over in 5-6games, just as the Lakers. Yeah I really would sweat a 35% shooter, with 75% FT shooting. Thats utter domination, those are just scary numbers by Lebron. Boston did there job well on both Lebron and Kobe, difference is, the rest of Boston clicked very well against the Lakers in the finals, where as Ray Allen was Jon Barry out of retirement right now -like against Cleveland.

lol

[Basileus777]

Boston clicked well against LA and not Cleveland for a reason. The Cavs played great defense that series, particularly on Allen. They were doubling Allen off of screens. The Cavs killed them on the boards too.