No Time for Losing….

               You gotta love it.I haven’t always rooted for the Lakers. Some years back, when the Laker’s had the Shaq-Kobe duo…I couldn’t do it. I was raised in the Southern California area, so I support the Lakers, Clippers, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, Dodgers, Angles…shit, I support the Kings and Ducks if they make a run, but it just wasn’t fair. I’m a fan of the game of basketball, and the whole Kobe-Shaq story revolved around a lot of shit that had nothing to do with basketball. Add in all the bogus LA fans, and I just wasn’t interested. I was happy when “Sheed got his championship over Shaq, Kobe, and two sell outs who couldn’t get a championship on their own teams. I was more interested in Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles. When it all fell down, and all the fake fans shook, I wondered…what the hell will Kobe do now?

               I was a fan of the Lakers in the Nick Van Excel, Eddie Jones period. They probably didn’t have a chance at a championship, but they were interesting. After Shaq’s departure, the Lakers seemed to be in a similar situation, except now, they had Kobe Bryant. Kobe caught the all the blame for the breakup of the Shaq and Kobe bromance ( I hate that word). Add in the Boulder Colorado situation, and he began losing the support of the NBA and his sponsors. Kobe Bryant was the NBA’s public enemy number 1…yet he still showed up. He trained harder than anyone. He played the most minutes, he scored the most points, he did everything he could.  He gave his all to the game of basketball, and when he got the opportunity to leave to another team that may give him a better chance to win the title, the Lakers organization promised him they were gonna give him a team that would make it to the top of the mountain.

               After some first round exits and no significant off-season acquisitions, Kobe made his displeasure with the Lakers organization public. Kobe demanded a trade, yet the Lakers refused to give in. As the season approached, Kobe decided it was in his best interest to shut up and ball. During that season, the Lakers made a key move, trading one of Jordan’s many mistakes, Kwame Brown, for Pau Gasol. Kobe took the NBA MVP, and the Lakers ran through the Western Conference to get to the Finals. In the Finals the Lakers met their long-time rivals, the Celtics, and we all saw who wanted it more.

               Look at where we are now. One gold medal and an All-Star MVP later, Kobe Bryant is once again a champion. Through all the drama, all the problems, all the hate, Kobe continued to work to get back to the top of the mountain, and now he’s there. How can you not love that? How can you not appreciate someone so passionate about what they do? Kobe has the passion of Kanye, and the skill of Jay-Z and Eminem combined. Fuck anything that happened off the court that’s not basketball related, you have to appreciate what this man has done.  Nobody in the past three decades of the game of basketball has been hated as much as Kobe Bryant, but he still worked hard, and now he’s taken his team back to the top. Jordan repeatedly squashed championship hopes of several cities, yet he still didn’t get hated as much as Kobe. The hate couldn’t stop him. The triumph in the face of hate/jealousy is inspirational.

               Kobe probably won’t get the props he deserves until years after he retires. However, whether he’s hated or loved, as long as he’s playing basketball, you can expect him to continue to work hard, and show up night in and night out.  You have to give props to the Rocket’s for putting up the fight they put up, you have to give the Nuggets the props the deserve for making it to the Western Conference Finals, you definately have to give the Magic the props they deserve, for making the HUGE leap they made this year, but most importantly, you have to give props to the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, and THE best player in basketball, Kobe Bryant.