Kobe Bryant Character Traits

First, a list of his accomplishments. Kobe was drafted out of highschool at the age of seventeen, broke into the league by winning the Slam Dunk contest in his rookie season, and by age of twenty-five he was a three time world champion. He was the youngest person to be named a NBA All-Star at the age of nineteen. The combination of his talents with the talents of Shaquille O’Neal was the greatest “one-two punch” of all time. That is an objective fact. Shaq himself has even admitted that had the duo stayed together after the 2004 season, they most certainly would have gone on to win additional world championships, but Kobe didn’t need Shaq. When it was all said and done, Kobe ended up with five rings to his name to O’Neals four - all five with the Lakers I might add.

This just proves he is the best by beating Kobe Bryant who is considered also as one of the best players of all time.

Have you ever wondered who truly was the greatest NBA player of all time was? There are very many players that could be selected for this title. Some names that you would be likely to see when discussing this topic are: Bill Russell, Kobe Bryant, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, LeBron James, and Michael Jordan (Top 10 Players in NBA History). Most people can recognize most of these names but one of these people may be the most well known people in all of sports. The reason for this is because he is you doubtfully the best person to every play the game of basketball. This man is Michael Jordan and he was the greatest player to ever be apart of the NBA because of his accomplishments in basketball, his impact on

Yelling “KOBE” while throwing a crumpled paper ball into the trashcan is something every sports fan in the world have done at one point of their life. After winning five time NBA championships, voted two time NBA Final MVP, two time scoring champion, his accomplishments speaks for his greatness, and that is Kobe Bryant. Bryant is now a retired professional basketball player who played in Los Angeles Lakers for 20 years. Throughout his remarkable career, Bryant developed a heroic figure as he pursued Michael Jordan’s footsteps and overcoming him toward the end of his career. He is considered a hero because he has the trait of being determined, fearless, and inspirational.

Karl Malone also known as the “ mailman” grew up on a small family farm in Summerfield, Louisiana. He faced many challenges like his father committing suicide when he was only three years old. He worked very hard to help make up for his father's absence. Karl started to play basketball at a very early age and he was good at it. He struggled to get good grades but his mother told him “grades before basketball”. After he improved his school work he lead Summerfield High School to three consecutive state titles. When he finished his successful time In high school It was time for collage.

Throughout basketball history, there have been many amazing players to be a part of the NBA. The NBA, also known as the National Basketball Association, is not only the foremost men’s professional basketball league in North America, but is also widely considered to be the top-ranking men’s professional basketball league in the world. One of the most controversial topics in the history of NBA today is whether Michael Jordan or LeBron James is the best player to ever be a part of this association. James began his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers and currently plays for the Miami Heat. Jordan played for the Chicago Bulls for most of his career; however, he played for the Washington Wizard’s from age 38 to 40. According to the New York Times, Jordan announced his retirement in Chicago on January 13th of 1999 (D8). Although LeBron James is one of the best players to be currently active in the league, Michael Jordan is known to be the best player in NBA history. Both player, without a doubt, have left a mark in the history of NBA, Michael Jordan, indisputably, is the best player to ever play in the NBA with his unstoppable defensive and offensive ability along with the determination and leadership he provided for his team.

Instead now, fans look in and establish relationships with players, who become icons. Jordan, of course is the perfect example. Not only was he successful in the NBA, Jordan won two gold medals in the Olympics, the global games and even retired from basketball to pursue a baseball career in the minor leagues affiliated with the Chicago White Sox (49, 126). These brought more and more fans outside of the NBA and the country to Michael Jordan and the brand he had become, establishing this relationship on multiple

As the core player in their team, they are always responsible to take the last chance to score that will determine the results of games, which is called Game-Winning shot. According to a statistic by ESPN, Kobe has made 36 Game-Winning shots in his career while both Lebron and Tim have made 23 Game-Winning shots (Abbott, 2011). It is not difficult to conclude that Kobe has the dominance to determine the result of games, especially during the last few minutes. Therefore, Michael Jordan, who has been called “the god of basketball”, claimed that he loved watching Kobe’s game and Kobe is the only one deserved to be compared with himself (Freeman, 2012). It definitely shows that Kobe is the greatest in 21st century because of the praise from “the god of

It was not very surprising that the Cavaliers were jumping at the bit and selected LeBron (Hill 25).However, “Observers wondered how (the Cleveland Cavaliers) would handle the Heralded Rookie” (“LeBron James” 3). Playing with the Cavaliers was not bare of exhilaration events. He became the youngest person to score more than forty points and later broke his own record by scoring fifty-six (“LeBron James” 5). Yet again, a period of time passes where the Cavaliers had a multitude of decisive victories and a few defeats, and LeBron once more found himself participating in a very prestigious event. He was in the 2008 Olympics. He and his team were able to deliver a victory for the U.S. by winning the gold medal for basketball (“LeBron James” 4). Next was a staggering moment for the everybody involved with the Cavaliers. Lebron decided to leave the Cavaliers and become a free agent after the 2009-2010 season. He eventually chose to join the Miami Heat (“LeBron James” 5). Things still weren’t slowing down for LeBron, he had his first son, LeBron James Jr., on June 4, 2004 (Hill 34). Roughly 3 years later on June 11, 2007, LeBron’s second son, Bryce Maximus James, was born (Hill 42). The road that LeBron, along with the Miami Heat, took led them to competing in the NBA championship. LeBron and the Miami Heat achieved champion status by winning the event (Hill 100-101). In 2014, after a few years with the Heat, LeBron signed back on with the Cavaliers and is currently still there. Now age 29, LeBron still has a lot of life left in him which could mean many more riveting moments for the fans of LeBron, or the Basketball community in

Michael Jeffrey Jordan is known by many people as the best basketball player ever to play the game. Jordan played for the Chicago Bulls, helping them obtained six championship titles in eight years. Now remembered for being the best and the most popular athlete in the sports world. He had a great influence on the people. "Jordan was just another great legend" (Stein 2). Being a role model on and off the court Jordan showed his abilities to play the game and his kindness towards other people, especially those who admired him the most. "His widespread appeal to fans has helped keep basketball one of the world's most popular spectator sports" (Stein 1).

One of the things that inspired him was how much he loved the sport. Kobe Bryant said, "It's the enjoyment of the game and the love of it. Then it's the low hanging fruit of responding to this challenge. I mean it's right there, it's very easy to get me going" ("Kobe Bryant Best Motivational Speech"). Another factor of what inspired him was his willingness to become the greatest which encouraged him to do better each time. "That's how I would think everyone would go into it. You want to be the man, you know, not the best of the moment, but the best who ever set foot on a basketball court," said Kobe Bryant (Biography Today 54). Kobe brought out the best in people and he wanted to have a positive affect to the people around him and supported him in his life. His goal was to be one of the greatest, but he also wanted to influence people. One of the motivational things that he said was, " We realize the most important thing in life is how your career moves and touches those around you and how it carries forward to the next generation. You realize that's what makes true greatness" ("Kobe Bryant Interview"). These are the things that kept him from giving up through the obstacles that he

Lebron James and Kobe Bryant are two of the most explosive players in the NBA today. Each player has his own playing style that separates him from the rest of the league. Both players have their own career achievements, endorsements, and personal life stories behind the game. If you ask anybody, the comparison between these two players is great. It is a never ending debate between who is better because both players have something different to bring to the table. Side by side on paper, both players seem dominant and may one day end up in the basketball hall of fame. But as individuals, side by side, each has a different but similar life.

A trainer for the Team USA basketball program once described how Kobe Bryant practiced deliberately until he made 800 shots in the morning. Although his other teammates were practicing as well, Kobe practiced more hours on specific skills to become an elite player. Similarly, Malcolm Gladwell, who is the founder of the 10,000 hour rule, believes that to be an expert on something, it requires 10,000 hours. This suggests that Kobe practiced to be the best basketball player in the world. If I were to be a NBA player like Kobe, I would need to practice playing basketball for 10,000 hours along with developing teamwork and fundamental skills.

“I’m just a little kid from Akron”-LeBron James. Lebron James is one of the greatest basketball players to ever play the game and even at age thirty two he is still crushing the game. That is a big reason why he is my hero because he has always been a superstar from the start. At St.Vincent-St. Mary High School where LeBron went to highschool he led them on to win three Division III state championships. He was the first sophomore ever selected for USA Today All-USA First Team and then kept going from there to be named Parade magazine's High School Boys basketball Player of the Year and Gatorade Player of the Year in just his Junior year. He just kept getting better and better every year. His senior year he lead his team to the top national ranking and then went straight out of highschool to the NBA.

Many people think of two men when the question of who the best NBA player is of all time. Some may say Michael Jordan, and some may say Kobe Bryant. They are both insanely good and their statistics are extremely similar, but the statistics lean more towards Jordan. This is why Michael Jordan is better than Kobe in the sport they both love and care for dearly.