Let's face facts, folks. Kobe is a legendary player who has been synonymous with the NBA for over a decade and a half.
He's a 5-time champion who has arguably been the best or 2nd best player of his generation along with another 5-time champion in Timmy Duncan.
An absolutely dynamic player, who at his best was an unstoppable offensive force with a seemingly unparallelled set of skills; and on defense he could just as easily take the opposing team's biggest threat right out of the game.
Did he take too many shots at times? Absolutely, but he was also a very talented playmaker who could leave a crowd's collective mouth agape with some of his passing exhibitions.
He's certainly a polarizing figure in the media and has his flaws as a player, but he's without question a top 10 player of all-time.
We only have a few years left of enjoying of one the game's all-time greats (albeit on a sad Lakers squad
), let's not let stans on either side of the spectrum sully the experience.