Dominique Wilkins: Kobe Bryant in his prime better all around player than Lebron

[QUOTE=pauk]Imagine a much bigger, stronger, faster Kobe with better vision & passing ability.... which essentially helps aid him to get more rebounds, assists, score more efficiently and make him one of the most versatile 2-way players in NBA history being able to play AND guard basically any position on both ends... wouldnt you say that Kobe is now a more prominent all-round player than his regular self? No?[/QUOTE]
but a kobe with no heart, needs a stacked team to win, front runner, disappears in the 4th is not a better Kobe.

[QUOTE=MavsSuperFan]This is why when people make the argument that fans cant disagree with players I :facepalm.[/QUOTE]

Exactly, players have different opinions anyway, so either way, a fan is gonna be disagreeing with a professional player.

I read it as Kobe in his prime is better than the best Lebron so far, but Kobe's old now so obviously current Lebron is better than current Kobe.

[QUOTE=pauk]Imagine a much bigger, stronger, faster Kobe [/QUOTE]
Then there would be no discussion, Kobe would shit on Lebron. Pretty obvious.

[QUOTE=riseagainst]I read it as Kobe in his prime is better than the best Lebron so far, but Kobe's old now so obviously current Lebron is better than current Kobe.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Seems like to me he is saying that when Kobe was in his prime, he was the better all around player which is obvious because Lebron was not in his prime yet. Then he's saying now Lebron is the better overall player because he is in HIS prime which is obvious because Kobe is not in his prime anymore. So at the end of the day, it sounds like he's just using common sense and not really committing to a concrete answer[/QUOTE]

He didn't say either was better than the other at ALL...I don't see how any non-biased fan does not understand what he said. He didn't even have to say all of that to give a PC answer but he did for whatever reason.

:Edit-actually, re-reading your post, we are pretty much saying the same thing...I thought the way you worded it was tricky but upon reading it again, you're saying the same thing I'm saying. If was the "best Lebron" that I had a problem with at first but you added the "so far" which makes it basically the same thing I was saying, lol.

Kobe was definitively the better player until the 2009 season. That's when LeBron grabbed a hold of the best player title and hasn't let it go since. Kobe's longevity is super impressive, but peak for peak, LeBron is probably better.

Another way he could have worded it was "AT THAT POINT in their careers, Kobe was better than Lebron because Kobe was in his prime and Lebron wasn't yet...AT THIS POINT Lebron is better because he's in his prime and Kobe isn't anymore." Thats exactly what he said and I don't see how he's saying one's prime was better than the other at all. If he meant that, he would have said that. He would've said, "Lebron's prime was better than Kobe's', or "Lebron was better in his prime that Kobe was in his", or something to that effect.

Instead, he chose to be completely non-committal, like most dudes are, lol..Thats why we have commitment issues in general, lol

Only delusional Kobe haters would take "Kobe in his prime is the better all around player" to be implicitly excluding present-day LeBron. Like he's saying "prime Kobe is better than LeBron, except for 2013 LeBron!" :facepalm

[QUOTE=SamuraiSWISH]Kobe was definitively the better player until the 2009 season. That's when LeBron grabbed a hold of the best player title and hasn't let it go since. Kobe's longevity is super impressive, but peak for peak, LeBron is probably better.[/QUOTE]


Kobe was never DEFINITIVELY better than LeBron like how LeBron is DEFINITIVELY better than Kobe is the past 3-4 years.

[QUOTE=Solefade]Kobe was never DEFINITIVELY better than LeBron like how LeBron is DEFINITIVELY better than Kobe is the past 3-4 years.[/QUOTE]

Kobe was definitively better than LeBron from 04-06. I would also say he was probably better from 07-08. LeBron took over 09.

Peak-wise, LeBron is unquestionably better IMO. He just more dominant in all facets of the game, except for scoring and man defense.

[QUOTE=SamuraiSWISH]Kobe was definitively the better player until the 2009 season. That's when LeBron grabbed a hold of the best player title and hasn't let it go since. Kobe's longevity is super impressive, but peak for peak, LeBron is probably better.[/QUOTE]

Well said!! The way Bron's game has evolved, I think peak for peak I would lean to Bron. And for me, it's due to Bron's versatility on both sides of the ball as the biggest factor. Kobe is a versatile as a 6'6 perimeter player can be. Great scorer, great passer, great defender, and great rebounder for a guard capable of playing and defending PG, SG, and SF. But Bron is frankly something we have never seen before. It's like combining Big O (ability to get 30 points while being a pass first player, triple double threat), Magic ( triple double threat ,size and passing ability)Dr.J (freak athletic ability, unstoppable scorer) and Scottie Pippen (point forward who can play and defend four positions) into the body of Karl Malone! Lebron flat out redefined the sport while Kobe didn't really redefine the sport, even though he's clearly an immortal top 7 GOAT kind of talent. Bean was just so similar to MJ and u can't out MJ MJ.

[QUOTE=K Xerxes]Kobe was definitively better than LeBron from 04-06. I would also say he was probably better from 07-08. LeBron took over 09.

Peak-wise, LeBron is unquestionably better IMO. He just more dominant in all facets of the game, except for scoring and man defense.[/QUOTE]

I agree with all points! If anything u can't teach Bron's size and skillset. I also agree with your timeline when Bron took the mantle. The interesting thing is that MJ was better than Magic and Bird due to his mainly athletic ability and defense. All three could take the game by throat scoring in different ways. But the clear separation was MJ's athletic ability and defense. But what if Magic or Bird had close to MJ's athletic ability or defense. Then I feel those two would likely have the edge on MJ. Because just like Bron, both were the size of many PF's back in their day. So they would have a versatility on both sides of the ball over MJ. Instead of having JUST the offensive versatility on MJ like they had already. Plus they would have the athletic ability to just overwhelm opponents if anything else. That's why Bron, MJ, and Kobe standout to me above the rest in a sense. The total package on both sides of the ball AND freak athletes! But Bron took it to the ultimate level being the size of Karl Malone!!

[QUOTE=bizil]Well said!! The way Bron's game has evolved, I think peak for peak I would lean to Bron. And for me, it's due to Bron's versatility on both sides of the ball as the biggest factor. Kobe is a versatile as a 6'6 perimeter player can be. Great scorer, great passer, great defender, and great rebounder for a guard capable of playing and defending PG, SG, and SF. But Bron is frankly something we have never seen before. It's like combining Big O (ability to get 30 points while being a pass first player, triple double threat), Magic ( triple double threat ,size and passing ability)Dr.J (freak athletic ability, unstoppable scorer) and Scottie Pippen (point forward who can play and defend four positions) into the body of Karl Malone! Lebron flat out redefined the sport while Kobe didn't really redefine the sport, even though he's clearly an immortal top 7 GOAT kind of talent. Bean was just so similar to MJ and u can't out MJ MJ.[/QUOTE]
This was a great post...repped

I think you might get the same kind of shit performance from Kobe in a big game as you would from Bron, it would just be for a different reason.

Gotta say Bron, too. To whoever said "it's really close." It's close, but considering you are comparing two close-to-if-not top 10 players of all time, the gap is significant enough to say it's not.

Obviously most teams in NBA history would trade their best player for either, but Lebron is a clear choice.

-Smak

[QUOTE=bizil]Well said!! The way Bron's game has evolved, I think peak for peak I would lean to Bron. And for me, it's due to Bron's versatility on both sides of the ball as the biggest factor. Kobe is a versatile as a 6'6 perimeter player can be. Great scorer, great passer, great defender, and great rebounder for a guard capable of playing and defending PG, SG, and SF. But Bron is frankly something we have never seen before. It's like combining Big O (ability to get 30 points while being a pass first player, triple double threat), Magic ( triple double threat ,size and passing ability)Dr.J (freak athletic ability, unstoppable scorer) and Scottie Pippen (point forward who can play and defend four positions) into the body of Karl Malone! Lebron flat out redefined the sport while Kobe didn't really redefine the sport, even though he's clearly an immortal top 7 GOAT kind of talent. Bean was just so similar to MJ and u can't out MJ MJ.[/QUOTE]
You keep forgetting that Lebron has done nothing without having 2 all stars in his team. Absolutely nothing. For all of Kobe's 5 rings, all he's had is another all star center.