Jerry West calls Kobe Bryant a top 10 player of all-time

[Ca$H]

http://lakers.247sports.com/Bolt/WATCH-Jerry-West-calls-Kobe-Bryant-a-top-10-player-of-all-time-42846392

[J Shuttlesworth]

1/9


but realy though... even this Lakers site recognizes that calling him 10th is "high praise"

With West being one of the league's all-time greats in his own right, this is truly some high praise for Kobe as he continues his victory lap through the NBA.

[Ca$H]

1/9

He didn't call himself a top 10 GOAT. :confusedshrug:

[warriorfan]

Considering Jerry West has forgotten more than anyone on ISH will ever know regarding basketball; it's official

[Ca$H]

1/9


but realy though... even this Lakers site recognizes that calling him 10th is "high praise"

As you can see from the video clip above, West stated that Bryant was, at worst, one of the 10 best players that the league has ever seen with all that he's accomplished over the course of his storied career.

10th at worse. Not 10th.

[Ca$H]

Considering Jerry West has forgotten more than anyone on ISH will ever know regarding basketball; it's official

Yes. KBlaze(a Bran stan) said in another thread that Jerry West's opinion holds more weight than stats, analytics, etc.

[warriorfan]

Yes. KBlaze(a Bran stan) said in another thread that Jerry West's opinion holds more weight than stats, analytics, etc.

Yes, that is the truth.

[Mr Feeny]

Jerry West as far back as 2008:

"LEBRON is better than any version of Kobe and has already surpassed him as a player"

:banana:

[warriorfan]

Jerry West as far back as 2008:

"LEBRON is better than any version of Kobe and has already surpassed him as a player"

:banana:

That was before the collusion and assuming LeBron was going to continue his career arc. Back in 2008/2009 I thought LeBron was going to be better than Kobe as well. The next few years changed that drastically however

[Mr Feeny]

That was before the collusion and assuming LeBron was going to continue his career arc. Back in 2008/2009 I thought LeBron was going to be better than Kobe as well. The next few years changed that drastically however

This was before Lebron got 3 fmvps (more than Kobe did in 20 years!:eek: )??

That settles this then :banana:

[feyki]

Jerry West as far back as 2008:

"LEBRON is better than any version of Kobe and has already surpassed him as a player"

:banana:

It was after Lebron got the mvp . For 2009 and he meant peak .

He was right . Peak wise , 2009 Lebron better than Kobe's any year .

Jerry West and Bird are really genius of the game .

[warriorfan]

This was before Lebron got 3 fmvps (more than Kobe did in 20 years!:eek: )??

That settles this then :banana:

2011 Finals

[Ca$H]

Jerry West as far back as 2008:

"LEBRON is better than any version of Kobe and has already surpassed him as a player"

:banana:

So that proves West is objective. So Jerry West(arguably the GOAT GM in NBA history) objectively said that Kobe is at worst the 10th best player of all time. :banana:

[Mr Feeny]

So that proves West is objective. So Jerry West(arguably the GOAT GM in NBA history) objectively said that Kobe is at worst the 10th best player of all time. :banana:

As long as we agree that by 2009, Lebron had already surpassed your hero on the all time list :banana:

[Hey Yo]

That was before the collusion and assuming LeBron was going to continue his career arc. Back in 2008/2009 I thought LeBron was going to be better than Kobe as well. The next few years changed that drastically however
West 2mos ago.


"He's carried teams on his shoulders," said West, now an executive board member and consultant with the Warriors, who lead the rematch 1-0 heading into Game 2 on Sunday. "They've been to the Finals six straight times. How many times have they been the favorite? None. Zero. Ok? Grossly unfair to him.

"I don't want to sound like Donald Trump, but it's hard for me to believe that someone doesn't recognize his greatness. It's hard for me to believe. This guy does everything. He's like a Swiss Army knife. He does everything. And he's competitive as hell. And frankly, I wish people would leave him alone."

[k0kakw0rld]

That was before the collusion and assuming LeBron was going to continue his career arc. Back in 2008/2009 I thought LeBron was going to be better than Kobe as well. The next few years changed that drastically however
3/7 without a dominant big man >>>>>> 3/8 with prime Shaq

Accolades = LeBron
Stats = LeBron
IQ = LeBron
Money = LeBron

There is not a single category Kobe winning vs LeBron except maybe greatest rapist of the past decade :confusedshrug:

[AirBonner]

Jerry west is a biased raging alcoholic. Not surprising.

[Mr Feeny]

3/7 without a dominant big man >>>>>> 3/8 with prime Shaq

Accolades = LeBron
Stats = LeBron
IQ = LeBron
Money = LeBron

There is not a single category Kobe winning vs LeBron except maybe greatest rapist of the past decade :confusedshrug:

Oh. My. Goodness!

[Ca$H]

3/7 without a dominant big man >>>>>> 3/8 with prime Shaq

Accolades = LeBron
Stats = LeBron
IQ = LeBron
Money = LeBron

There is not a single category Kobe winning vs LeBron except maybe greatest rapist of the past decade :confusedshrug:

Basketball IQ- yes. Actual IQ- hell no. Bran scored a 870 on his SAT. Kobe scored a 1080 (out of 1600). Also Bran is one of the ugliest human beings on the planet while young Kobe had male model level looks. So basically if Bran and Kobe weren't basketball players Bran would be homeless while Kobe would still be a handsome college graduate.

http://www.si.com/sites/default/files/2013/06/lebron-james-sports-illustrated-cover-nba-finals.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/f3/40/ef/f340ef362d7ea0b10b3ae1de1c4d4937.jpg

[tpols]

Basketball IQ- yes. Actual IQ- hell no. Bran scored a 870 on his SAT. Kobe scored a 1080 (out of 1600).

jesus.. dont you get like 500 points for filling your name in.. haha. That iq doe.

[Ca$H]

jesus.. dont you get like 500 points for filling your name in.. haha. That iq doe.

Yeah. 870 is really embarrassing. So Bran stans like to stan a guy who is stupid and ugly. I guess living vicariously through him gives them hope that they too can become successful despite being ugly and stupid.

[tpols]

Yeah. 870 is really embarrassing. So Bran stans like to stan a guy who is stupid and ugly. I guess living vicariously through him gives them hope that they too can become successful despite being ugly and stupid.

idk if hes legit dumb or if he was so pampered that he never had to open a book

[Big164]

Basketball IQ- yes. Actual IQ- hell no. Bran scored a 870 on his SAT. Kobe scored a 1080 (out of 1600). Also Bran is one of the ugliest human beings on the planet while young Kobe had male model level looks. So basically if Bran and Kobe weren't basketball players Bran would be homeless while Kobe would still be a handsome college graduate.

http://www.si.com/sites/default/files/2013/06/lebron-james-sports-illustrated-cover-nba-finals.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/f3/40/ef/f340ef362d7ea0b10b3ae1de1c4d4937.jpg
Im older than Lebron and I have zero grays in my beard. No way in hell he is 31... more like a 38 year old hopped up on HGH

[J Shuttlesworth]

Kobe fans have gotten so desperate that they are trying to use SAT scores and looks to downplay LeBron as a top 3-5 player all time :roll:

[Ca$H]

Kobe fans have gotten so desperate that they are trying to use SAT scores and looks to downplay LeBron as a top 3-5 player all time :roll:

I was responding to a post. I never said that Bran isn't better all time than Kobe.

[AirBonner]

Kobe's bball iq is pathetic tho. Otherwise he would have gotten better looks and fg %

[Mr Feeny]

I was responding to a post. I never said that Bran isn't better all time than Kobe.

That's right little boy. He's much better:lol
Say it!
:lol

[Ca$H]

Kobe's bball iq is pathetic tho. Otherwise he would have gotten better looks and fg %

Kobe took too many long 2s and fadeaway 3s. :facepalm I think having a legit facilitator like Pippen or even an Iggy would have raised his FG%. He really should have posted up more often than he did.

[warriorfan]

Kobe fans have gotten so desperate that they are trying to use SAT scores and looks to downplay LeBron as a top 3-5 player all time :roll:
Referring to rape accusations and the death of a player's father is fine...

Don't talk about LeBron's lack of education and intelligence though!

(lol)

[LAZERUSS]

As long as we agree that by 2009, Lebron had already surpassed your hero on the all time list :banana:

:roll: :roll: :roll:

http://www.nba.com/alldecade/vote13/

Kobe with 54%...next best, your boy 3" LeChoke with 17%.

Kobe was considered, BY FAR, the best player on the planet in the decade of the 00's.

Then...

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2016/5/26/11790088/la-lakers-kobe-bryant-news-award-athlete-of-decade

and even the clowns at ESPN...

http://www.espn.com/nba/dailydime/_/page/dime-091119-20/weekend-dime-picking-decade-best

[Mr Feeny]

:roll: :roll: :roll:

http://www.nba.com/alldecade/vote13/

Kobe with 54%...next best, your boy 3" LeChoke with 17%.

Kobe was considered, BY FAR, the best player on the planet in the decade of the 00's.

Then...

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2016/5/26/11790088/la-lakers-kobe-bryant-news-award-athlete-of-decade

and even the clowns at ESPN...

http://www.espn.com/nba/dailydime/_/page/dime-091119-20/weekend-dime-picking-decade-best

Way back in 2010:eek:

Shame. In 2016 it's Jordan jabbar and James.
The three J's:rockon:

Stay crying.

[LAZERUSS]

Way back in 2010:eek:

Shame. In 2016 it's Jordan jabbar and James.
The three J's:rockon:

Stay crying.

YOU, the known LIAR on this forum,...

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?p=12426030&posted=1#post12426030

claimed that Lebron was considered a greater player by 2009. He was NOT. He was well behind Kobe by the end of 2009 in virtually every type of balloting. NO ONE had Lebron ahead of Kobe on any type of career list in 2009. NO ONE. Lebron probably wasn't even considered a Top-25 player all-time in 2009.

BTW, I found your challenge listed above comical. I recall how you were claiming that Chokurry would surpass Kobe...and you never even mentoned Lebron. Why? Because you had witnessed LeChoke "leading" his Cavs to a 3-1 series deficit, and had all but written him off as destined for a "2-7" title. It was only after Chokurry puked all over the floor in unquestionably the worst Finals ever by an MVP, that you jumped back to 3"'s bandwagon.

Now, you don't mention No Impact Curry at all. How come?

[Dray n Klay]

Laz, who do you have ranked higher Kobe or LeBron?

[LAZERUSS]

Laz, who do you have ranked higher Kobe or LeBron?

Lebron is anywhere from 6th to 8th...with Shaq and Duncan.

Kobe is anywhere between 9th to 12th (with Dr. J, Bird, Moses, and Hakeem.)

BTW, Lebron may end much higher. But as of now, his resume is no better than 6th...and more likely 8th.

[RRR3]

LeBron grew up poor and he is African American. You idiots think he actually received a quality education in this racist country? :lol

[tpols]

LeBron grew up poor and he is African American. You idiots think he actually received a quality education in this racist country? :lol

guy was driving a hummer in high school. gtfo lol..

bron could've tried harder at school.. there are countless stories of black players going back to school to finish their education.. vince carter, shaq, etc. He had all the opportunity in the world to hit the books but realized he was going to make 1000x more dribbling a ball from the time he was a pre teen.. so he didnt pursue it. Stop blaming everything on whitey.

[warriorfan]

LeBron's mom is getting plowed by Da Real Lambo, I don't think intelligence runs in the family

[scuzzy]

LeBron's mom is getting plowed by Da Real Lambo, I don't think intelligence runs in the family
http://i1380.photobucket.com/albums/ah163/lambruh/VbKMU_zpsjxjuthbq.gif

[Mr Feeny]

YOU, the known LIAR on this forum,...

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?p=12426030&posted=1#post12426030

claimed that Lebron was considered a greater player by 2009. He was NOT. He was well behind Kobe by the end of 2009 in virtually every type of balloting. NO ONE had Lebron ahead of Kobe on any type of career list in 2009. NO ONE. Lebron probably wasn't even considered a Top-25 player all-time in 2009.

BTW, I found your challenge listed above comical. I recall how you were claiming that Chokurry would surpass Kobe...and you never even mentoned Lebron. Why? Because you had witnessed LeChoke "leading" his Cavs to a 3-1 series deficit, and had all but written him off as destined for a "2-7" title. It was only after Chokurry puked all over the floor in unquestionably the worst Finals ever by an MVP, that you jumped back to 3"'s bandwagon.

Now, you don't mention No Impact Curry at all. How come?
But he was better by 2009 :lebronamazed:
West said he was :lebronamazed:

And now the difference is only greater!

Curry is great and better than any version of Kobe but unfortunately lebron put up the greatest performance in nba finals history in June :(
Led both teams in every category. He automatically becomes top 3 in any credible list.
I'm not concerned with anyone below 3:(

Jordan, Jabbar, James and the rest aren't even on the same patch :banana:

LeBron is just too great to not respect as a top 3 player unfortunately. He's that much better than Wilt and Kobe :D

[RoseCity07]

How is he top 10 when I'd take 15 players over him to start a franchise.

[GrapeApe]

I know the trolls love to joke about the 12th thing, but the truth of the matter is a lot of people have Kobe in the top 10. It's certainly arguable.

[Overdrive]

West 2mos ago.

His team was the runaway fav in '11. He simply wasn't trusted anymore after that.

[Mr Feeny]

I know the trolls love to joke about the 12th thing, but the truth of the matter is a lot of people have Kobe in the top 10. It's certainly arguable.

Sure it is. It's arguable either way and certainly isn't insane. But the majority have him outside the top 10. That's about it. And these Kobe fanboys are melting down whenever someone suggests that their idol isn't a top 10 player.

That's what's funny about this.

[GimmeThat]

just tell me where would Magic Johnson be ranked if he hadn't gone to a team where Kareem was there already

[Mr Feeny]

How is he top 10 when I'd take 15 players over him to start a franchise.

Based on impact, he isn't.
His 12th position factors team success into the ranking. If we're focusing solely on individual play, Kobe is much lower and is comfortably out of the top 15.

[LAZERUSS]

But he was better by 2009 :lebronamazed:
West said he was :lebronamazed:

And now the difference is only greater!

Curry is great and better than any version of Kobe but unfortunately lebron put up the greatest performance in nba finals history in June :(
Led both teams in every category. He automatically becomes top 3 in any credible list.
I'm not concerned with anyone below 3:(

Jordan, Jabbar, James and the rest aren't even on the same patch :banana:

LeBron is just too great to not respect as a top 3 player unfortunately. He's that much better than Wilt and Kobe :D

Let's revisit 2009 shall we?

Kobe wins his 4th ring, and first as the main man (and his first FMVP.) BUT, he was the Lakers BEST player that eliminated Duncan's Spurs in the playoffs in '01, '02, '04, and by far in '08. Without Kobe, Shaq is down two rings.

And Lebron had just won his first MVP, which would equal Kobe's.

Move to 2010.

Kobe wins his second ring and second FMVP.

Lebron? Wins an MVP, BUT, then QUITS on his team in the Boston series. In fact, his OWNER claimed that he QUIT in games 2, 4, 5, and 6.

http://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=5365793


"He quit," Gilbert said. "Not just in Game 5, but in Games 2, 4 and 6. Watch the tape. The Boston series was unlike anything in the history of sports for a superstar."

So, NO, Lebron was NOT a greater player in 2009, 2010, and not even in 2011, when he colluded to join the Heat, and then meekly deferred to D-Wade in the Finals...which ultimately cost that team a title.

By 2011, Kobe was MILES ahead of Lebron in ANY career balloting.

I will acknowledge that he JUST passed Kobe THIS YEAR, but no way in hell is a Top-3 player all-time.

As for Wilt. Had Chamberlain played in the Western Conference in his prime in the 60's...as Lebron did in the Eastern Conference his entire career...he most certainly would have played in far more Finals than he did. EVERYONE KNEW that the Celtics vs Wilt was THE title series in the 60's. My god, a prime Chamberlain accomplished as much, by himself, than a prime Baylor and West together in that same span. And when he was finally given a supporting cast that was the equal of Russell's (and healthy), he and his Sixers annihilated Russell's eight-time defending champs.

Now, had Wilt been in the Western Conference, he may still have only one won ring in the 60's. But, keep in mind that Russell built his post-season stats against the Lakers in the Finals in that decade (until Chamberlain joined them in '69...then his offense completely disappeared against Wilt.) He was putting up Finals of 23 ppg on .543 shooting, 24 ppg on .538 shooting, and even 18 ppg on .702 shooting.

Meanwhile, in the decade of the 60's, Chamberlain FEASTED on the Lakers. Season-after-season of 40+ ppg, including one full season, covering nine games, of 50 ppg. Russell put up a memorable game seven against the Lakers in the '62 Finals in which he hung a 30 pt, 40 reb. game. In that SAME season, Chamberlain plastered LA with THREE 60+ point games, including a monster 78-43 game! In the decade of the 60's, Wilt faced LA in 86 games...and had 42 40+ point games, including 19 50+ point games, 7 60+ point games, and even 2 70+ point games.

So, there is simply no question that had Chamberlain been in the Western Conference in the 60's, that he would own a ton of playoff scoring and efficiency records.

Furthermore, had he then faced Russell's Celtics in the Finals, instead of the EDF's year-after-year...he would have put up at four more Finals games of 40+ (which is what he hung on Russell in the playoffs), including a massive 50-35 "must win" game. As it was, Chamberlain had post-season series against Russell of 30 ppg, 31 ppg, and 34 ppg (as well as 28 ppg and 29 ppg.) Not to mention just crushing Russell in the '67 EDF's with a 22-32-10 .556 series. And Wilt taking a 40-40 team to a game seven, one point loss, against the heavily-favored 62-18 Celtics, and with an unfathomable 30 ppg, 31 rpg, .555 FG%, .565 TS% series was perhaps the GOAT playoff series in NBA history.

And please don't bring up this ridiculous 19 ppg career Finals scoring mark, either. He only played in one Final in his "scoring" seasons, and then would have won a FMVP while averaging 18 ppg in that Finals...in a series in which an opposing player averaged 41 ppg (Barry.) Wilt also did win a FMVP in '72 with a 19 ppg Finals. Unlike Lebron, Chamberlain could dominate playoff series without scoring.

But again, had Wilt been in the Western Division in the decade of the 60's, he most certainly would have played in more playoff games, and did far more damage on the offensive end. And his Finals scoring marks would have been dramatically different, as well.

And before someone mentions Wilt's '69 Finals, in which his COACH shackled Chamberlain, and had West and Baylor taking all the shots...don't forget that Lebron meekly deferred to Wade in the '11 Finals, as well. The difference was, Wilt's COACH stopped Wilt. Lebron was basically just a bystander in the '11 Finals.


Of course, none other than John Wooden claimed that had Russell and Wilt swapped teams (and coaches), and it would have been WILT holding all those rings.

Where would Chamberlain rank with anywhere from 7-11 rings on his resume?

[GimmeThat]

Let's revisit 2009 shall we?

Kobe wins his 4th ring, and first as the main man (and his first FMVP.) BUT, he was the Lakers BEST player that eliminated Duncan's Spurs in the playoffs in '01, '02, '04, and by far in '08. Without Kobe, Shaq is down two rings.

And Lebron had just won his first MVP, which would equal Kobe's.

Move to 2010.

Kobe wins his second ring and second FMVP.

Lebron? Wins an MVP, BUT, then QUITS on his team in the Boston series. In fact, his OWNER claimed that he QUIT in games 2, 4, 5, and 6.

http://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=5365793



So, NO, Lebron was NOT a greater player in 2009, 2010, and not even in 2011, when he colluded to join the Heat, and then meekly deferred to D-Wade in the Finals...which ultimately cost that team a title.

By 2011, Kobe was MILES ahead of Lebron in ANY career balloting.

I will acknowledge that he JUST passed Kobe THIS YEAR, but no way in hell is a Top-3 player all-time.

As for Wilt. Had Chamberlain played in the Western Conference in his prime in the 60's...as Lebron did in the Eastern Conference his entire career...he most certainly would have played in far more Finals than he did. EVERYONE KNEW that the Celtics vs Wilt was THE title series in the 60's. My god, a prime Chamberlain accomplished as much, by himself, than a prime Baylor and West together in that same span. And when he was finally given a supporting cast that was the equal of Russell's (and healthy), he and his Sixers annihilated Russell's eight-time defending champs.

Now, had Wilt been in the Western Conference, he may still have only one won ring in the 60's. But, keep in mind that Russell built his post-season stats against the Lakers in the Finals in that decade (until Chamberlain joined them in '69...then his offense completely disappeared against Wilt.) He was putting up Finals of 23 ppg on .543 shooting, 24 ppg on .538 shooting, and even 18 ppg on .702 shooting.

Meanwhile, in the decade of the 60's, Chamberlain FEASTED on the Lakers. Season-after-season of 40+ ppg, including one full season, covering nine games, of 50 ppg. Russell put up a memorable game seven against the Lakers in the '62 Finals in which he hung a 30 pt, 40 reb. game. In that SAME season, Chamberlain plastered LA with THREE 60+ point games, including a monster 78-43 game! In the decade of the 60's, Wilt faced LA in 86 games...and had 42 40+ point games, including 19 50+ point games, 7 60+ point games, and even 2 70+ point games.

So, there is simply no question that had Chamberlain been in the Western Conference in the 60's, that he would own a ton of playoff scoring and efficiency records.

Furthermore, had he then faced Russell's Celtics in the Finals, instead of the EDF's year-after-year...he would have put up at four more Finals games of 40+ (which is what he hung on Russell in the playoffs), including a massive 50-35 "must win" game. As it was, Chamberlain had post-season series against Russell of 30 ppg, 31 ppg, and 34 ppg (as well as 28 ppg and 29 ppg.) Not to mention just crushing Russell in the '67 EDF's with a 22-32-10 .556 series. And Wilt taking a 40-40 team to a game seven, one point loss, against the heavily-favored 62-18 Celtics, and with an unfathomable 30 ppg, 31 rpg, .555 FG%, .565 TS% series was perhaps the GOAT playoff series in NBA history.

And please don't bring up this ridiculous 19 ppg career Finals scoring mark, either. He only played in one Final in his "scoring" seasons, and then would have won a FMVP while averaging 18 ppg in that Finals...in a series in which an opposing player averaged 41 ppg (Barry.) Wilt also did win a FMVP in '72 with a 19 ppg Finals. Unlike Lebron, Chamberlain could dominate playoff series without scoring.

But again, had Wilt been in the Western Division in the decade of the 60's, he most certainly would have played in more playoff games, and did far more damage on the offensive end. And his Finals scoring marks would have been dramatically different, as well.

And before someone mentions Wilt's '69 Finals, in which his COACH shackled Chamberlain, and had West and Baylor taking all the shots...don't forget that Lebron meekly deferred to Wade in the '11 Finals, as well. The difference was, Wilt's COACH stopped Wilt. Lebron was basically just a bystander in the '11 Finals.


Of course, none other than John Wooden claimed that had Russell and Wilt swapped teams (and coaches), and it would have been WILT holding all those rings.

Where would Chamberlain rank with anywhere from 7-11 rings on his resume?

intellectually, this would be similar to the argument as to what good is a soldier's skillset certainly good for during a time of peace, and in comparison to its value, during a time of actual war.