Blasphemy

As unbelievable as it might sound, I have come to a conclusion that I myself hate to make. I like Kobe Bryant more than I like Lebron James. It's not just that I respect him more, I actually like him more. By the way, the world "like" is used loosely here. Very, very loosely. But before you start searching for the video of Kobe elbowing Sasha Vujacic so you can send me it or making 4,124 rape jokes about Bryant to me, let me explain my case.

-Kobe doesn't put on that bullshit, and let me repeat that, bullshit, act of being loved by all and being everyone's best friend. Yeah, Kobe is terrible to his teammates on the floor. He bitches at them, sometimes physically abuses them and generally belittles and degrades them for 48 whole minutes. But he's forthright about it. With Kobe, what you see is what you get. You see a horrible teammate and person, and that's exactly what he is. Once in a while he'll try to cover up the true relationship between him and his teammates by telling you how he speaks Italian so Sasha Vujacic, but for the most part it's nothing compared to what Lebron does. Lebron puts on his whole humble, friendly guy-show but then tells us how if the Cavaliers could just clone him (second paragraph) they'd be fine. He refuses to throw Cleveland fans a bone and say that he's planning on staying in Cleveland so they can let out their collective breath before the summer of 2010. And my favorite, he says how he doesn't want to talk about himself before his MVP acceptance speech, and then goes on to talk about himself for 25-30 minutes. He acts like he's all for the team but when they lose he throws them under the bus, leaving them to face the wolves while he doesn't say a single word to the media.

-Lebron's whole "winner" complex or insecurity or whatever the hell you want to call it. It was honestly embarrassing that he walked off the court without so much as a congratulatory nod at any player on the Magic. No matter how many titles you've won, no matter how good you are, no self-respecting basketball player will ignore the other team after losing a series. Yes, Isiah Thomas and some of the Pistons walked off the court without shaking hands with the Bulls when they lost to them for the first time. Those Pistons were also hated by everyone outside of Detroit. I agree, Lebron is probably competitive. You think Kobe isn't competitive? What about Nash? Duncan? Nowitzki? Garnett? Every time I watch one of those guys lose a series, they're paying their respects to the victor, no matter how grudgingly it may be. The funny part is, Lebron actually hasn't won anything. He's got the same number of NBA Championships I do. In fact, he's won the same number of games in the NBA Finals that I have. So what gives him the right to bitch and moan and throw a tantrum akin to something you'd see from a five year old girl?

So even though this might have been an exaggeration (I don't think it's possible to actually "like" Kobe Bryant) I just wanted to get this off my chest. Lebron has an air of entitlement that puts me off, and his recent bitch-fit did so more than ever. Yeah, he's a great basketball player. Yeah, there's a good chance he'll go down as the best ever. No, that doesn't give him the right to act like a complete tool just because he lost a series. That Jordan fellow was supposed to be pretty competitive and I don't think he ever refused to congratulate the winning team he lost. Despite Lebron trying to convince us otherwise, Kobe Bryant is the most competitive man on the planet, and you bet your ass he'll be shaking hands with the other team after an elimination game, no matter how reluctantly. So Lebron, grow up. Stop acting like a petulant child. You haven't won anything. And even if/when you do, you don't have the right to act like you're above everyone else. Even if you may be. Don't make us root against you. I want to like you. I want to embrace the idea that there can actually be an NBA player who is loved by his teammates and his opponents alike and still manages to win. Don't ruin that for me. Don't ruin that for every single NBA fan who's going to get the chance to watch you play. And if you do, I hope you have to spend many more summers sitting on your ass while Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, Yao Ming, Kevin Durant (Yes, Kevin Durant. OKC Thunder, your 2012 NBA Champions. Book it now) and every other NBA star you can think of is playing for a title. And now that I've actually published this, I'll probably start looking for a rock to live under until I can just die from the shame of saying what I just said.