Why do some fans rank Kobe Bryant ahead of Tim Duncan?

[creepingdeath]

I have Kobe above Duncan. Why because Parker was clearly the best player on the Spurs for the last two Championships that they won.

It is what it is...

[rmt]

I've also seen Manu. He's the 2nd best player on the team, not Duncan ;)

Some of you Kobe fans must have started watching the Spurs in the OKC series. Y'all missed the whole regular season and the first 2 rounds.

As far as Parker being the best player on the past TWO championships - bite your tongue. Unlike Kobe, who was the man on 2 championships, Duncan was THE MAN on all four championships.

[Blue&Orange]

2001, 2002, 2004, 2008.

I get it, 4 Kobe finals, with finals MVP's being Shaq twice, Billups and Pierce.

GOAT without a doubt.


Oh you were trying to use a TEAM achievement against Duncan? Double fail i guess.

[Deuce Bigalow]

I get it, 4 Kobe finals, with finals MVP's being Shaq twice, Billups and Pierce.

GOAT without a doubt.


Oh you were trying to use a TEAM achievement against Duncan? Double fail i guess.

Tell me, who was the 2nd best team in '01?

[NumberSix]

Yeah, Kobe Bryant is by far the most popular player. Who would even argue that? Of course he's gonna win a online poll.

[NumberSix]

I have Kobe above Duncan. Why because Parker was clearly the best player on the Spurs for the last two Championships that they won.

It is what it is...

This is beyond hilarious. You MUST have done this on purpose.

[StateOfMind12]

It's understandable to rank Kobe above Duncan but I probably have Duncan ranked ahead of Kobe in the all-time list. They're neck and neck in my opinion but I would give Duncan the slight edge.

I'm assuming the main reason why people rank Kobe ahead of Duncan is because of how much better Kobe was offensively than Duncan. Duncan was better than Kobe at every other aspect of the game though.

Duncan has the intangibles advantage over Kobe as well.

I always find it funny when Kobe fans argue that Kobe is this loyal guy that isn't a locker room problem when this guy was begging for a trade in 2007 and 2008 before Gasol came to LA.

[ShaqAttack3234]

I have Duncan over Kobe, most in the media would disagree, and I can see a bit of a case for Kobe, even though Kobe's true prime was from '03-'09, imo, he was already pretty comprable to a prime Duncan in '01, and to a lesser extent '02.

Yup. Plus Kobe was every bit as much as the man as Shaq in the 4th quarters of the '01 and '02 championships.
He led the Lakers in 4th quarter points those two postseasons

Well, 4th quarters weren't really a big factor in the '01 playoffs, neither did anything special in the 4th during that run because neither had to. Kobe did step up and have great 4th quarters in the '02 run, though, and it was important because Shaq struggled in the 4th during a good chunk of that run, especially the '02 series where he was the MVP of a series featuring the 2 best players in the league(Shaq and Duncan), and had great 4th quarters, while both Shaq and Duncan struggled offensively in the 4th.

The one difference about Kobe in '01 and '02 compared to his recent runs, or Duncan's runs, is that Kobe usually faced single coverage and wasn't the primary focus of opposing team's defenses. But his production and status in the league at the time(top 3) makes it difficult to write off as simply a "sidekick" ring.

Same with others like McHale in '86(25/8/3, 2.4 bpg, 58 FG%, + great defensive, especially on Nique).

[Yao Ming's Foot]

It's understandable to rank Kobe above Duncan but I probably have Duncan ranked ahead of Kobe in the all-time list. They're neck and neck in my opinion but I would give Duncan the slight edge.

I'm assuming the main reason why people rank Kobe ahead of Duncan is because of how much better Kobe was offensively than Duncan. Duncan was better than Kobe at every other aspect of the game though.

Duncan has the intangibles advantage over Kobe as well.

I always find it funny when Kobe fans argue that Kobe is this loyal guy that isn't a locker room problem when this guy was begging for a trade in 2007 and 2008 before Gasol came to LA.

He is a locker room problem because he created the pressure that resulted in trading for Gasol which led to 2 more championships?

If Kobe had Duncan's demeanor the Lakers would probably still be trotting out Smush Parker and Kwame Brown.

[The Choken One]

Top 10 ranks are heavily influenced by opinion and what accomplishments are most important to someone...

I personally have Kobe>Duncan>Shaq just to name those 3. Duncan is great... but in my eyes what Kobe does and has been doing for so long simply amazes me.

[CavaliersFTW]

ROFL the goof troop is out in full brigade.

They mad.

"Duncan is better than Kobe"



Majority of ISH:





















Outspoken Kobe fan with dozens of accounts:

[General]

I rank Kobe ahead of Duncan. Duncan won one of his championships in a 50 game season, hardly impressive and it definitely hurts his rank for me. He's about to win one as a third option

[StateOfMind12]

He is a locker room problem because he created the pressure that resulted in trading for Gasol which led to 2 more championships?

If Kobe had Duncan's demeanor the Lakers would probably still be trotting out Smush Parker and Kwame Brown.

You are right. I'm sure if Kobe didn't request for a trade to the Lakers, the Lakers wouldn't have made the Kwame Brown for Pau Gasol deal. I'm sure they would have kept Kwame Brown instead but because of that pressure Kobe gave them with his trade request, the Lakers were forced to agree.

/sarcasm.

[oolalaa]

I have Duncan over Kobe, most in the media would disagree, and I can see a bit of a case for Kobe, even though Kobe's true prime was from '03-'09, imo, he was already pretty comprable to a prime Duncan in '01, and to a lesser extent '02.



Well, 4th quarters weren't really a big factor in the '01 playoffs, neither did anything special in the 4th during that run because neither had to. Kobe did step up and have great 4th quarters in the '02 run, though, and it was important because Shaq struggled in the 4th during a good chunk of that run, especially the '02 series where he was the MVP of a series featuring the 2 best players in the league(Shaq and Duncan), and had great 4th quarters, while both Shaq and Duncan struggled offensively in the 4th.

The one difference about Kobe in '01 and '02 compared to his recent runs, or Duncan's runs, is that Kobe usually faced single coverage and wasn't the primary focus of opposing team's defenses. But his production and status in the league at the time(top 3) makes it difficult to write off as simply a "sidekick" ring.

Same with others like McHale in '86(25/8/3, 2.4 bpg, 58 FG%, + great defensive, especially on Nique).

Agreed with everything but I'll just nitpick the bolded.

McHale was definitely a "sidekick". We can never know for sure, but I'm convinced Bird's all time great playmaking/passing added 2 or 3 points to his ppg totals as well as 3/4 percent on top of his already great FG%. I know that McHale often lauded Bird's ability to find him under the hoop for wide open layups/dunks, particuarly during the '86 playoffs.

The difference between his '88 and '89 seasons gives you an idea. His ppg stayed the same but his FG% dropped by almost 6%! And in the 1st round vs Detroit, with him being the focus of Boston's offense, he only managed 19ppg on a measly 49% shooting, compared to 27ppg on 56% in the ECFs the pervious year.


McHale was very good but it was Bird who turned him into a borderline superstar.

[andgar923]

I rank Kobe ahead of Duncan. [COLOR="Red"]Duncan won one of his championships in a 50 game season, hardly impressive[/COLOR] and it definitely hurts his rank for me. He's about to win one as a third option

Kobe didn't win it tho, you mad?