How many "Kobe Stoppers" have there been?

[ZenMaster]

i dont believe that u can Make someone miss shots. you can make them more difficult but at the end of the day its still up to whether or not the guy simply makes the shots. ive seen kobe have games where he misses everything by a mile and the next game dominate against perfect defense.

Sure you can make someone miss shots. You can make guys less effective by playing the right type of defense for the right situation.

Like in the old Battier efficiency article. Shane had stats saying that Kobe was 50/50 in going right or left, but he was less effective going to his left.
There are also different spots on the floor guys are less effective from, you need to know these spots and get them there and contest the shot. That's what good defense is about.

This year Kobe is shooting 41% from 16-23 feet compared to 50% from 10-15 feet. When you know those stats, are you going to tell me a guy who gets Kobe to shoot from 16-23ft is not playing better defense and making him miss shots than if he where to let him get within 10-15ft?

[Diesel J]

elite scorers are always gong to get their points, the job is to make them get them on low eff.

[The Magic Man]

Batum and Sefalosha are doing better guarding Kobe than anyone I've ever seen, especially Batum, who is 6'8 and just as quick as Kobe and much stronger and bullies him around I've never seen any defender do that to Kobe.

But that could also be because these are guys in their athletic prime and ATHLETICALLY atleast Kobe is on the decline.


Tayshaun also is one of the few legit Kobe stoppers who still guards Kobe well every time they play

I don't know about Sefalosha, I think it's more Kobe than him. But Batum? Man, that guy get's in Kobe's shirt!

[HylianNightmare]

dwight

[LA_Showtime]

Kobe's scored against all of those guys, and crushed their teams at one time or another. Kobe's broken finger is the only force that can really stop him.

His ego can too.

[TennesseeFan]

How is Shaq a Kobe stopper?

[O.J A 6'4Mamba]

His ego can too.

Yeah Kobe very rare, there isn't a single guy that could shut kobe down. Did he have bad shooting nights against a few of them yes. he got them in one point or another. Right now just father time is gradually stopping Kobe. He still dropped 39 last night.

[LA_Showtime]

Yeah Kobe very rare, there isn't a single guy that could shut kobe down. Did he have bad shooting nights against a few of them yes. he got them in one point or another. Right now just father time is gradually stopping Kobe. He still dropped 39 last night.

I think a lot of it has to due with injury, although his decreased athleticism made him a target for getting his shot blocked. He got blocked like 8 times last night.

I defended Kobe in the first half. I thought he was just trying to break out of his slump. However, I didn't know Phil Jackson told him before the game to cool it. Basically going against your coach is selfish and stupid, and his antics caused the Lakers to struggle. I don't care if he supposedly eats first, you aren't eating at all if you continue to shoot 30 percent. Kobe shot 43% last night and people consider that good? Get outta here.

[iDunk]

Vince Carter, Kobe averages like 24 points against him.

[phoenix18]

Battier.

[Rake2204]

Big fan of the Tayshaun Prince love I'm seeing here.

I do believe great defense can make players miss shots. If we had to break it down further, it's not just the matter of a player missing a shot because he's being guarded by someone good. But it's a matter of that defender perhaps forcing the offensive player to speed up his own game, dribble into areas he's not comfortable, shooting quickly (as to avoid the defender), taking shots within the very limited amount of time in which a great defender may provide a clean look, awkwardly falling away, etc.

I can't speak directly toward Tayshaun's defense in '04 and it's overall effect, but it surely did appear Kobe was trying to meet some sort of shot quota that series. It seemed like he was attempting shots not because it was the right shot, but because he just liked the idea of himself shooting.

In regards to the original "Kobe Stopper", I don't remember Ruben Patterson having that much success. However, I do remember watching NBA Inside Stuff or a Sportscenter segment showing the Trail Blazers pregame, and a teammate playfully punching Patterson in the chest whispering, "Kobe Stopper, Kobe Stopper, Kobe Stopper!" Ridiculous.

[TennesseeFan]

Oh, its Patterson all the way here.

Kobe didn't mess with Ruben.

[King Lebron LBJ]

True the defense Tay Prince played on Kobe in 2004 was great D, played right into his hands.

[Diesel J]

Bowen vs Kobe reg season

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=bowenbr01


Kobe Bryant vs. Tayshaun Prince

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=princta01

Kobe Bryant vs. Ruben Patterson

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=patteru01

Kobe Bryant vs. James Posey

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=poseyja01

Kobe Bryant vs. Ron Artest

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=artesro01

Kobe Bryant vs. Shane Battier

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...1&p2=battish01

[G.O.A.T.]

...

In regards to the original "Kobe Stopper", I don't remember Ruben Patterson having that much success. However, I do remember watching NBA Inside Stuff or a Sportscenter segment showing the Trail Blazers pregame, and a teammate playfully punching Patterson in the chest whispering, "Kobe Stopper, Kobe Stopper, Kobe Stopper!" Ridiculous.

That was Shawn Kemp lol