What if Kobe Gets to Seven?

The NBA's greatest player of all time is pretty much undisputed. If you know what a basketball looks like you probably know it is Michael Jordan. His biography on NBA.com states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time."

There's no use getting into his stats; we already know what kind of player he was and how he revolutionized the game of basketball. And he won six titles.

1991. 1992. 1993. 1996. 1997. 1998. Michael Jordan's Bulls, supported by Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and others, achieved basketball dynasty status. Jordan, as any avid NBA fan would know, won the Finals MVP all six times.

Would Jordan still be regarded as the best ever had he only won, say, two titles? No doubt he would still be considered in the class of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, and others. But would he be regarded as the singular greatest ever, in a category he shares with himself?

Probably not. Actually, definitely not.

Of course, Michael Jordan was as great a regular season player as anyone. But what defined him was his performances in the Finals: the 1997 "Flu Game," the 1993 Finals where he averaged a record 41 a game against Charles Barkley and the Suns....and so on.

So what am I getting at? Well, here is Kobe Bryant, who many consider the closest this generation will ever come to watching another Michael Jordan, sitting at five titles (one less than MJ), with three or so years left in the league on an always competitive Lakers team.

Don't mistake this as me calling Kobe Jordan's equal. What I am saying, though, is if Kobe can find a way to win another title (or two), his already legendary legacy would take a jump into Jordan's range.

But they would never be equals. Of Kobe Bryant's five championships, he has won the MVP Award in two of them. The other three were won by a fellow by the name of Shaquille O'Neal, who you might've heard of.

Jordan, with Scottie Pippen as Robin, won the Bill Russell Finals MVP Award all six times. That alone should anoint MJ untouchable status in basketball history.

Kobe may be statistically comparable for his career. Jordan does have the edge by a margin, but Kobe is up there. And in terms of revolutionizing the game, MJ beat the Black Mamba to it.

Let's just put it this way though. If Kobe finishes his career with five championships, (the way things are looking right now), that would be perfect regarding his comparison with Jordan. The way it should be.

Lakers Get Their Man

One of the most prized franchises in sports, the Los Angeles Lakers, are set to hire a castoff to replace Phil Jackson. Do not let the word "castoff" sway your opinion of the move, as Mike Brown is most definitely a certified NBA head coach. 

Cleveland got rid of him last year, and the Lakers have taken advantage by hiring the defensive-minded coach. Perhaps he is the jolt the Lakers, who at times looked lazy defensively, need to get over the hump next year.

Brown is also experienced with coaching a superstar, as he piloted the Cavaliers during LeBron James' tenure with the team. While he is not one of the three potential candidates for the job originally endorsed by Kobe Bryant, according to reports he has the Black Mamba's "full support."

He is the winningest coach in Cavaliers history, and took them to the Finals in 2007. In five years with the club, he posted a 272-138 record.

Brown will become a rich man as a result of the Lakers contract, an impressive four year, $18.25 million deal. An ESPN analyst this past season, Brown is now at basketball's coaching plateau.

Confidence Absent in L.A.

"This team can beat us. It's clear," Kobe Bryant said of the Mavericks after his Lakers fell 96-94 at the hands of Dallas in Game 1. This was following a game in which the heavy favorite Lakers led by sixteen in the second half, only to open the door for the aging Mavs to erase the deficit and win the game.

The Lakers went to none other than Kobe on the final play of the game, only to have a last-second three that would have won the game clank off the rim. Along with the miss came wavering confidence for L.A.  Rather than declaring a trophy like LeBron and the Heat, words like "I'm highly concerned" are used, which also came out of Kobe's mouth after Game 1.

Reassuringly enough, if anything, the Lakers also fell in Game 1 to the New Orleans Hornets, but came back to win that series fairly easily. But the Mavs are far more experienced than the Fighting Chris Pauls, and should put up more of a fight. "We're not happy right now. We're not satisfied," vet guard Jason Terry said, "We didn't play our best basketball. When we watch the film, we'll realize what we did out there wasn't that great." Terry's attitude, though, certainly sounds more confident than Kobe's does. Terry seems more convinced that his team can win the series.

Kentucky Preparatory

Seniors are hard to come by on a Kentucky Wildcats basketball team. There is only one this year, a forward named Josh Harrellson, who is far from a household name.

Why is this? Like many of the other big-time schools, players at Kentucky leave early for the NBA. A prime example is last season, when UK lost four freshman to the NBA: DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton, and John Wall. This was likely because of the fairly recent NBA rule that states in order to be eligible for the NBA, a player must have at least a year of college experience (or professionally in other countries).

With these four players, it seems all coach John Calipari and Kentucky did in the 2009-10 season was prepare these players for the NBA. A national championship would be nice for them, but not their prime focus.

This is the argument against the one-year college rule: that the players play in college simply because they have to, rather than going to the NBA straight from high school, devaluing the college game.

And let's face it: with the exception of John Wall, these players all left too early in the first place. All prized draft picks, only one is playing especially successful basketball, and one has not played at all. They certainly could have benefited from more time at Kentucky under Calipari's tutelage. 

Take a look at Daniel Orton. He hardly played last year at Kentucky as a freshman, and was a first round draft pick simply because of potential. He was stuck in the rotation all year behind Cousins and Patrick Patterson. This year, he'd have started. Instead, he's riding the pine on the Orlando Magic, not having seen a minute of court time in the NBA.

Eric Bledsoe was hidden in John Wall's shadows last season at UK, but started alongside him and showed NBA-caliber skills. The starring role would've been his this year, and he, like Orton, would have greatly benefited at Kentucky had he stayed. Instead, he's backing up Baron Davis on the Clippers, but his situation is far better than Orton's: he's getting some PT, putting up decent rookie numbers, and looks like the apparent heir to Davis at PG.

DeMarcus Cousins is starting to look solid in the NBA, and it seems as if he will be for years to come. The one thing separating him from immediate stardom is the fact he left so early.

John Wall was said to be NBA-ready the second he joined UK's roster. He would have been a guy who, like Kobe and LeBron, took the leap from high school to the pros. With a little more maturity in his game, he could be an all-time great.

But the question is, did all four of these guys come to Kentucky simply because it's the required gateway to the pros? Or because of the desire to play college basketball that many of the other guys at that level have? Most likely the former. Which is why the one-year college rule needs to be reconsidered.

Christmas Showdowns

On the day I'm going to be eating Chinese for dinner, the NBA has its annual Christmas marquee matchups planned. Tomorrow's slate includes the Bulls at the Knicks, Boston at Orlando, Miami at the Lakers, the Nuggets at the Thunder, and Portland playing in Golden State. But the one everyone is really looking at is the Heat going to LA. The Big 3 of LeBron, D-Wade and Bosh going up against Kobe and his boys.

Phil Jackson and LeBron have already complained about the games on Christmas, saying how it should be a day they get to be their families, but they will be played nonetheless. Lakers point guard and vet Derek Fisher has downplayed the significance of the game, how it is still a great matchup, but doesn't determine anything in June, or whenever the NBA season finally ends.

My prediction is that tomorrow the Heat will get the best of the Lakers, 96-92. Down to the wire. The Big 3 will do most of the scoring for Miami as always, but expect either LeBron or Wade to struggle from the field. Defensive specialist Ron Artest will most likely be glued to the former King of Cleveland. But Kobe, Pau Gasol and the Lakers will be able to pull one out.

My other predictions include, Chicago slaying the Knicks, the new-look Magic taking down the Celtics and ending their 14-game win streak (gasp), Durant's boys beating Melo and the Nuggets, and who cares about the last game. Blazers will win, though. Have a Merry Christmas, 99% of the country. I'll enjoy my Chinese chicken.

Durant #1 Superstar in NBA - Over LeBron

Now that LeBron has given up some stats due to his move to Miami, and Kobe is aging, 3rd-year Thunder forward Kevin Durant will likely emerge as this season's top superstar. He is ranked highest by ESPN in fantasy auction drafts, worth $8 more than LeBron, and $4 more than Chris Paul, who is ranked 2nd to Durant. I know it's extremely early, but as of Nov. 1, James is averaging 20.5 ppg, 5.8 rpg, and 6.0 apg. These stats seem to be accurate as to what he will produce for the remainder of the season. Durant, last year's scoring champ, on the other hand, is putting up 29.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, and 1.7 apg. Now you might say LeBron's numbers are more well rounded, but the casual fan recognizes scoring more than assists if the player is not a point guard. Also, Durant is the leader of his team, while LeBron chose not to be, surrounding himself with D-Wade, and Bosh. And the way things are playing out, Miami is not even LeBron's team, but Wade's. Argue all you want, but as of right now, Durant is the NBA's cover guy.