Kobe seats alone atop the Lakers scoring plateau and this has lead to a tsunami of chatter on the internet, water coolers and the ever re-inventive mass media about he’s place in Lakers’ history books.

It was a monumental achievement in an organization where greatness is an expectation, and there are more championship rings than fingers. It was a third-quarter fastbreak dunk that provided first an exclamation point, then a question.

Does this make Kobe Bryant the greatest Laker ever?

This is a very subjective question and one that’s even tougher to answer with an active player.

In my article – Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James: Is Bryant Better Overall? I wrote; I believe in comparing athletes on finished products. A good example of finished product comparison would be Jordan v Magic, Hakeem v David Robinson or even Wilt Chamberlin v Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

Kobe still has a couple of years (maybe 4 or 5!) on those legs of he’s before he calls it a career.

He might never win another championship, he might win 3 more, till then is going to be hard to tell where exactly he’s career is going to rank amongst the Lakers greats. But for the sake of argument how does one decide what makes a player greatest of all time of a franchise or even in the game?

I would think this will be a combination of individual performances, championships, leadership, clutch play, toughness, resiliency and many other variables are a part of the “best ever” equation.

However, the question is how much weight do you give to each variable?  This is where subjectivity and allegiances take over.  And that’s not even factoring in the challenge that comparing across eras presents.

Let’s be sincere here, Bryant is without question the best basketball player in the world (if anyone knows of someone better in Europe or anywhere else, please do share) today when considering all factors.  Say what you want about the physical talent of Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James, the undeniable ability of Miami HEAT guard Dwyane Wade, and the intensity of Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett; all are great players, but none are as accomplished in all areas as Bryant is at this very moment.

Many of you are in love with stats and the stats in this case are irrefutable – Kobe Bryant holds the Lakers record for scoring in a career, single season, and for one game. He also leads the Lakers in career three-point field goals made. Bryant is a 12-time all star, 2-time scoring champion, 7-time all-NBA first team selection, and 7-time all-NBA defensive team selection. He has also won 4 NBA Championships, and been named both Finals MVP and regular season MVP….

Even with all those super human stats, if he decided to call it a quits today he will not even be considered the best player in he’s generation. We’re still having heated conversations on Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James: who is better? And some have even pointed out that the only reason Kobe is overhyped (Yes, Kobe is Called Overhyped) is because he got lucky and was drafted into one of the most respected franchises in American sports.

So why is there so much hatred on Kobe? Because as beloved as the Lakers are by their fans, they are equally despised by virtually everyone else and Kobe in recent times have become the face of the franchise resulting in a hatred of Bryant that runs deep for many non-Lakers fans.

What’s there to like about a guy who always seems to bury your favorite team and does so with the sense of downright ruthlessness that Bryant always seems to!

Is there anyone in the NBA who scares you more with the ball in his hands late in a basketball game than Kobe?

But we all know the hatred of Kobe is not subjected to he’s play on the court alone but more towards he’s on court antics towards refs during games, years of been known as a bad team mate, ball hug, allegations of tanking games in the 2004 NBA Finals, troubles with Shaq and Phil (and Phil Jackson’s book really didn’t help) and let’s not forget he’s escapades in the mile high city.

Even the press (who are known to hold grudges long enough to last two lifetime) who for years never liked him found a way to make the grand moment (passing West to become the Lakers all time point leader) a point of controversy.

“I’m proud of him, I congratulate him,” Pau Gasol said. “Now we can focus on winning games again.”

Gasol was just getting started.

“Obviously we’re not making a conscious effort on pounding the ball inside,” Gasol said. “So we settled a little bit too much.”

A day later, with Bryant not available for comment, both Gasol and Derek Fisher reiterated the idea that sometimes even the greats can try to be too great.

Gasol talked about getting more players involved, and Fisher even invoked exact statistics from the previous night, saying that one player taking 38% of the shots is just too much.

“This is a tough one for me, guys,” Fisher said. “But winning is what it comes down to.”

This was an ESPN.com report about the milestone.

This was complete inappropriate coverage of a milestone.

All I can say to Kobe’s Lakers teammates; you want the rings? You want him to have the energy and attention required to make those last-second shots? Then you put up with all the earlier ones too.

Kobe probably might be the only NBA star who is equally loved and hated at the same time by he’s club’s fans and as it might seem; teammates.

While it seems like he has completely reinvented himself to become the model athlete, he now faces allegations of being a phony.

This is why is going to be difficult for him to scale the mount Rushmore-like figures of the Lakers land (Magic and West), Bryant will never be completely embraced like Magic, or completely revered like West, because what makes him so great is what makes everyone else so unnerved.

His killer instinct can be unsettling. His serious demeanor can be intimidating which is bad for he’s opponents and makes him a force to reckon with, but his past will always define him.

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Greatest Lakers of all time (A-List Edition)

We all know who the Lakers greats are; Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain and more, the question now is where does Kobe Bryant rank amongst these giants? The A-List team breaks down the careers of the Greatest Lakers of all time and ranks them. (Click here for more)

Kobe Bryant, greatest Laker ever? Not even close? is a post from: AroDrive

With Kobe Bryant becoming the All-Time Lakers point leader the question of the greatest Laker of All-Time arises.

Greatest of All-Time?

How does one determine who should be the greatest of all-time? I wrote in my article – Kobe Bryant, greatest Laker ever? Not even close?: I would think this will be a combination of individual performances, championships, leadership, clutch play, toughness, resiliency and many other variables are a part of the “best ever” equation.

I believe the above criteria should be key to determining the answer to this question. Many people are trying to use other factors i.e. contribution to the teams community, likability, pretty much everything but performance on the court.

I believe off the court activities should be considered too but shouldn’t hold much weight, these are athletes and we are picking who was the greatest and not who was more like mother Teresa.

We all know who the Lakers greats are; Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain and more, the question now is where does Kobe Bryant rank amongst these giants?

Here at A-List we have decided to judge Kobe Bryant 14 year’s stats as he’s final body of work as I only believe in comparing finished products. So Kobe might actually rise on this list when it’s all said and done.

And just to reiterate, our ranking is based on a combination of individual performances, championships, leadership, clutch play, toughness, resiliency and many other variables. But above all else, we are only considering their career when they were Lakers.

Here are the top 5 Lakers of All-Time (A-List Edition)

Before we start with the top five I have to mention these two Legends who couldn’t make the list but were amazing ball player. i added the reason these two legends were not in the top five.

Wilt Chamberlain – (Only played five seasons with the Lakers towards the end of he’s career and is responsible for bringing the first NBA Title to the Franchise. In my book the best center in NBA history)

Though Wilt “the Stilt” Chamberlain is best known for his time as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, this most dominant of all NBA big men spent the final 5 seasons of his legendary career with the Los Angeles Lakers, and his accomplishments while he was there were enough to earn him a spot as one of the top 10 greatest L.A. Lakers. Though his numbers weren’t quite as impressive as those he put up earlier in his career, Chamberlain was still putting points on the board, and he led the NBA in rebounding in 4 of the 5 seasons he was there. He captured his 2nd career NBA championship with the club in 1972, the first for the L.A. Lakers, with Chamberlain taking home NBA Finals MVP honors that season.

Elgin Baylor – (One of the greatest scorers in NBA history, but was unable to bring a title to the franchise but will rank above Chamberlain in any Lakers list as Elgin Baylor personified what it meant to be a for many years)

This Lakers’ legend was around before the team even arrived in Los Angeles, drafted by the Minneapolis Lakers with the number 1 pick in the 1958 draft. He wasted no time justifying his high drafting, averaging 24.9 points and 15 rebounds a game in his rookie campaign. He also poured in 55 points in a single game that year, the 3rd highest total in NBA history at that point. These achievements made him a no-brainer for rookie of the year that season, but he was just getting started.

He averaged well over 30 points a game for the next 3 seasons, including 38.3 ppg in the 1961-62 season, the highest season scoring average in history by anyone not named Wilt Chamberlain. He upped his 55 single game point mark with an incredible 71 point performance in 1960, setting an NBA record in the process, and his 61 point performance in the 1962 NBA finals remains the greatest single game total in NBA finals history.

Over his career he scored more than 23,000 points and pulled down over 11,000 rebounds, and those numbers might have been much higher had his career not been derailed by injuries. Sadly for Baylor he never achieved NBA championship glory, as the Lakers finally won it all the same season Baylor retired. Though he has that hole on his resume, his other achievements earn him a deserving spot at number 4 on the list of the top 10 Los Angeles Lakers of all time.

Our top 5

5 – Jerry West

This Los Angeles Laker legend is an automatic for a high spot on the list of the top 5 Los Angeles Lakers of all time. When the Lakers moved to Los Angeles in 1960, West was their first ever draft pick, taken 2nd overall that year, and his career numbers give testament that the team made a wise choice in selecting him that year. West is the 2^nd leading scorer  in the L.A. Lakers’ franchise  with 25,192 career points .

His incredible 27.0 points-per-game career scoring average is 4th best in NBA history, and he was even more clutch in the playoffs with a 29.1 career ppg average, second all time behind some guy named Michael Jordan. He made the All-star game in all 14 of the seasons he played, won an NBA championship, and has an NBA Finals MVP award on his resume as well.

Truly one of the greatest L.A. Lakers ever, the Logo: Jerry West.

Kobe v West – They both managed to score 25,000 points in their 14th seasons with the Lakers, but Bryant has three more titles than West, in addition to winning an MVP award, something West was never able to accomplish.

4 – Shaquille O’Neal

Shaq made no secret of the fact that he wanted to be remembered as the most dominant big man in the history of the NBA and I will place him in a close 2^nd or 3^rd behind  Wilt “the Stilt” Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Every team Shaq went immediate became contenders and the Lakers were no different as he arrived in town coincidentally with the arrival of Kobe Bryant and the rest is history.

Shaq and his Lakers teammates would enjoy great regular season success for the next few years, but it took a few years for these gifted athletes to mesh together, but when they finally got it figured out, the Lakers led by Shaq’s dominant presence at center, achieved the rare Three-peat, winning back-to-back-to-back championships between 2000 & 2002. O’Neal finished his time in L.A. as one of the leading scorers in franchise history, amassing almost 14,000 points, very few of them from free throws, in his 8 seasons with the club.

3 – Kobe Bryant

Sorry Shaq fans, but Kobe has done more for LA Lakers. Bryant and O’Neal arrived in L.A. at the same time, and for a while there it looked as though Shaq would be remembered as the more dominant of the two, but while Shaq’s star is fading fast Kobe is just reaching his peak, leading his young Lakers’ team to another NBA Championship.

Kobe Bryant holds the Lakers record for scoring in a career, single season, and for one game. He also leads the Lakers in career three-point field goals made. Bryant is a 12-time all star, 2-time scoring champion, 7-time all-NBA first team selection, and 7-time all-NBA defensive team selection. He has also won 4 NBA Championships, and been named both Finals MVP and regular season MVP….

Even with all those super human stats, if he decided to call it a quits today he will not even be considered the best player in he’s generation. (Click here to read more)

2 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

This towering, lanky center is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, and a huge reason the Lakers won 5 NBA Championships in the 1980s. Teamed with Magic Johnson, Kareem was simply unstoppable, pouring in huge points with his signature skyhook shot.

He had an immediate impact when he arrived in Los Angeles in the 1975-76 seasons, leading the team in scoring that year, and for the 10 seasons following as well. He was also defensive presence in the center for almost 20 seasons with the Lakers as he ranks 2nd in NBA history in blocked shots and 4th all time in rebounds, his 6 NBA MVP awards are the most in league history.

It’s next to impossible for Kobe to ever surpass this giant in any NBA ranking.

1 – Magic Johnson

Few players in the history of any sport have been more adept at making their teammates better than Magic Johnson. His incredible creativity, athleticism and vision on the court were truly a marvel to behold as he routinely “Went Globetrotter” on his opponents setting up his teammates with circus-style plays.

He was the key component in the Lakers offense during their dynastic years in the 1980s, leading the NBA in assists 5 times during that span. He had 24 assists in a single game on 3 separate occasions, including once in a playoff game (an NBA record). He won 3 MVP awards and 5 NBA Championships, and added over 17,000 points and 10,000 assists during his career.

These numbers would have been much higher if he didn’t retire at the prime of he’s career because of he’s discovery he was HIV. He was called Magic for a reason. He is simply the greatest Los Angeles Laker of all time.

Kobe v Magic – Magic reigns supreme in the championship department, trumping Kobe’s ring total by one, and truthfully, even if Bryant were able to surpass Magic in the title category he would probably still not be recognized as Lakers numero uno.

Magic may be the most complete player the game has ever seen, he was able to competently play all five positions on the court, and he was instrumental in helping to save the game during its bleakest hours.

His duel with Larry Bird’s Boston Celtics renewed interest in a game which had failed to connect with its fans, and was considered an inferior product compared to other professional sports.

His revolutionizing of the assist changed basketball, and his leadership in community business development has changed several inner cities. All this while serving as a worthy pioneer in the battle against the former stigma and shame associated with HIV.

In my personal opinion, Magic Johnson might actually be the greatest player to ever grace an NBA court.

Greatest Lakers of all time (A-List Edition) is a post from: AroDrive