Is Kobe better than Prime Shaq?

[KG215]

You keep emphasizing on only the 2nd option on each team, why not try to look at the entire team?

You don't really need too. In 2009 (after Garnett got hurt and missed the playoffs) and 2010, Kobe had the best second option of the other best players on legit contenders.

[ShawkFactory]

You don't really need too. In 2009 (after Garnett got hurt and missed the playoffs) and 2010, Kobe had the best second option of the other best players on legit contenders.

2nd options for elite players in 2010, for example:

Lebron- Mo Williams
Durant- 21-year-old Westbrook
Wade- Michael Beasley
Dwight- Vince Carter
Melo- Billups
Dirk- Jason Terry

These people need to stop with the revisionist history. Those Laker squads were the best in the league. Kobe didn't carry a bunch of scrubs.

[KG215]

2nd options for elite players in 2010, for example:

Lebron- Mo Williams
Durant- 21-year-old Westbrook
Wade- Michael Beasley
Dwight- Vince Carter
Melo- Billups
Dirk- Jason Terry

These people need to stop with the revisionist history. Those Laker squads were the best in the league. Kobe didn't carry a bunch of scrubs.

It's not even that, although I agree. But relative to the rest of the league, on top of having the best or second best player in the league in Kobe, the Lakers had the best second banana among the other legit contenders. Even out of all the top tier teams I think you can say only the Suns had a better second option in Stoudemire, but I don't think the Suns were on the same tier as the Lakers, Cavs, Celtics, and Magic those years.

My problem is when Kobe stans try and throw in "Kobe won two rings without a top 50 or top 100 all-time player," completely ignoring context and that LeBron's second banana was Mo Williams and Dwight's second banana was Hedo Turkoglu or Rashard Lewis. Yes, Kobe rang back-to-back with Gasol as his #2, and a good, solid supporting cast that gets badly underrated by Kobe fanboys, but the 2009 and 2010 Lakers aren't winning a championship in almost any other era in NBA history other than maybe the 1970s.

[hiphopfan777]

Kobe has more rings,81 points