It’s finally here—The moment we’ve all been waiting for. Kobe has been named MVP! It makes me so happy as a supporter of the Kobe-Life. I never thought this day would come! Wait...back up. Why does it seem like we’ve been waiting for this for so long? Why is it unanimous that Kobe should be the Most Valuable Player? Share the saddle with me while I journey through the psyche of basketball fans and the inner-workings NBA politics.
Well, first off, let me frame this discussion be reminding everyone how much hype and anticipation has surrounded this MVP announcement. There were so many leaked reports of Kobe winning the award days in advance that the Association and sponsors decided to hold a press conference to announce the news a day early. Usually, the MVP trophy is presented at a home game for the recipient. Games 1 and 2 were at Staples Center on Sunday and Wednesday, while the press conference took place on Tuesday. So either the league waited two days since Sunday, which would’ve heightened the suspense; or they decided to give into the swirling speculation and reports, and just presented the award to its rightful owner.
Exhibit B: The Hype Itself. The first-place voting wasn’t even close! Kobe received almost three times as many first-place votes as the runner-up, Chris Paul. Why would there be so much anticipation for something that was basically unanimous? Here’s why: we’ve all been waiting for this announcement for years. Kobe Bryant has been the most skilled and, by far, the most exciting player in the NBA since 2005. It’s common knowledge that Kobe’s better than Dirk Nowitski and Steve Nash. But somehow, we allowed them to receive the award without any qualms.
The truth is….they’re goodguys, while Kobe’s been branded a badguy for a number of reasons (adultery, breaking up the Lakers dynasty, take your pick). In the back of our minds, we couldn’t let Kobe win the award because that would’ve forced us to admit that ‘bad guys’ can be the best. At his press conference, Kobe said he didn’t think he’d ever win the award. Word? He could set the record for 3-pointers in a game, score 81 points, average 34 points, and have streaks of 50+ point games; all of that and still never think he’d be MVP. Kobe knows basketball, but he knows how the game is played even better.
Part of the reason I think this is such a noteworthy MVP acknowledgement is that it symbolizes more than just the 2007-2008 season. This award finally recognizes all of Kobe’s accomplishments that we’ve turned a blind eye to for whatever reason. It recognizes all the game winning shots, all the inconceivable plays, all the milestones that have, in our minds, taken a back seat to our assessment of what type of ‘character’ he is. The lines between sports and entertainment have become so blurred for the spectator, that we’ve reduced the highest level of basketball in the world to a standard akin to late 80’s WWF wrestling. We need to see goodguys and badguys, and the Federation is only in balance when the goodguys are winning.
I tip my hat to Kobe Bryant. I don’t think this announcement means he has finally become a better player than Dirk Nowitski or Steve Nash. He was an all-star before Dirk even left Germany, and when Steve Nash was still backing up Kevin Johnson. I’m just glad that the NBA has finally made it okay for people to like Kobe again.
Well, first off, let me frame this discussion be reminding everyone how much hype and anticipation has surrounded this MVP announcement. There were so many leaked reports of Kobe winning the award days in advance that the Association and sponsors decided to hold a press conference to announce the news a day early. Usually, the MVP trophy is presented at a home game for the recipient. Games 1 and 2 were at Staples Center on Sunday and Wednesday, while the press conference took place on Tuesday. So either the league waited two days since Sunday, which would’ve heightened the suspense; or they decided to give into the swirling speculation and reports, and just presented the award to its rightful owner.
Exhibit B: The Hype Itself. The first-place voting wasn’t even close! Kobe received almost three times as many first-place votes as the runner-up, Chris Paul. Why would there be so much anticipation for something that was basically unanimous? Here’s why: we’ve all been waiting for this announcement for years. Kobe Bryant has been the most skilled and, by far, the most exciting player in the NBA since 2005. It’s common knowledge that Kobe’s better than Dirk Nowitski and Steve Nash. But somehow, we allowed them to receive the award without any qualms.
The truth is….they’re goodguys, while Kobe’s been branded a badguy for a number of reasons (adultery, breaking up the Lakers dynasty, take your pick). In the back of our minds, we couldn’t let Kobe win the award because that would’ve forced us to admit that ‘bad guys’ can be the best. At his press conference, Kobe said he didn’t think he’d ever win the award. Word? He could set the record for 3-pointers in a game, score 81 points, average 34 points, and have streaks of 50+ point games; all of that and still never think he’d be MVP. Kobe knows basketball, but he knows how the game is played even better.
Part of the reason I think this is such a noteworthy MVP acknowledgement is that it symbolizes more than just the 2007-2008 season. This award finally recognizes all of Kobe’s accomplishments that we’ve turned a blind eye to for whatever reason. It recognizes all the game winning shots, all the inconceivable plays, all the milestones that have, in our minds, taken a back seat to our assessment of what type of ‘character’ he is. The lines between sports and entertainment have become so blurred for the spectator, that we’ve reduced the highest level of basketball in the world to a standard akin to late 80’s WWF wrestling. We need to see goodguys and badguys, and the Federation is only in balance when the goodguys are winning.
I tip my hat to Kobe Bryant. I don’t think this announcement means he has finally become a better player than Dirk Nowitski or Steve Nash. He was an all-star before Dirk even left Germany, and when Steve Nash was still backing up Kevin Johnson. I’m just glad that the NBA has finally made it okay for people to like Kobe again.
Just a side note—In over 50 years of NBA Most Valuable Players, there have been only two shooting guards to win the award…Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan. Peep this photo!
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