To many, Bryant’s place at seventh is a travesty, an insult, an absolute joke.
Let’s be honest. Did Bryant truly have as good a season as the players ahead of him, and is he still capable of contributing to the Lakers as much as the players ahead of him can contribute to their respective teams?
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade had monster regular seasons and they made it to the NBA Finals.
Dwight Howard is the biggest defensive force in the NBA, as well as the one of the most dominant offensive players. Chris Paul is the purest point guard in the league and he single-handedly led the New Orleans Hornets into the NBA playoffs where they challenged the Los Angeles Lakers.
Dirk Nowitzki had one of the most remarkable regular seasons and postseasons of all-time, as he carried the Dallas Mavericks to their first NBA title, and Kevin Durant led the league in scoring once again and made it to the Western Conference Finals with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant had a good regular season, but failed to carry his team in the playoffs because of his obvious physical deterioration.
But, does all of this really matter, especially at this point in Bryant’s NBA career?
No.
Everyone must understand that ESPN’s list is based on who is the best today, not five years ago, but today; any subjective list of today’s best players doesn’t matter because it cannot successfully undermine Bryant’s achievement of greatness.
Take a step back and look at what Bryant ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
