Ever the polarizing on-court player and off-court personality, Kobe Bryant has long divided NBA fanatics around the globe. Some, of course, relish every spinning move No. 24 makes, but many others have derided him as a selfish, ball-hogging hurler who always put himself before everyone else.
That divide has held true in the wake of his retirement reveal. While ticket prices for Lakers games have jumped since the announcement, as fans hope to savor every last moment we have with No. 24, many NBA fans and journalists who cover the league seem all too ready to push Kobe out of the Staples Center door.
But look at the people who actually work for and play in the NBA, and you'll be hard-pressed to find many Kobe naysayers, ignoring Dwight Howard, of course. In fact, despite the no-one-wants-to-play-with-Kobe diatribe we hear so often, the NBA family’s response to Kobe’s retirement has been one of almost universal sadness and respect. Throughout the league, notable names have celebrated Kobe's two-decade career and expressed anger at the way he has been treated by some as he heads toward the end of the tunnel.
Indiana Pacers star Paul George began the dialogue just minutes after he took on Bryant Sunday night, detailing what Bryant meant to him as a kid with a dream, growing up near LA.
“Kobe was my Jordan,” George told reporters. “Watching him win championships, I remember being at home just watching the games with my mom, my grandma and my dad and just idolizing him … In my eyes, he’s still one of the greatest players to play this game.”
George's sentiments were reiterated by dozens of past and present NBA figures, who came out of the woodwork to express their admiration for Bryant. Adam Silver, Pau Gasol, Damian Lillard, Mark Jackson, Nick Young, Jermaine O'Neal, Jamal Crawford, Nate Robinson and Shane Battier are only a few of the NBA veterans who took the time to tip their caps to No. 24 in the past 40-odd hours -- on Tuesday morning, LeBron James stated that he "wanted to be just like" Kobe, modeling his own work ethic after Bryant's:
Kevin Durant went further. Facing the media on Monday, the Oklahoma City small forward traded his usual amiability for verbal acidity when reporters brought up Bryant’s retirement.
I did idolize Kobe Bryant. I studied him, wanted to be like him. He was our Michael Jordan. I watched Michael toward the end of his career with the Wizards and I seen that’s what Kobe emerged as the guy for us. I’ve been disappointed this year because you guys [the media] treated him like shit. He’s a legend and all I hear is about how bad he’s playing, how bad he’s shooting, time for him to hang it up. You guys treated one of our legends like shit and I didn’t really like it.
Hopefully now you can start being nice to him now that he decided to retire after this year. It was sad the way he was getting treated. He had just an amazing career, a guy who changed the game for me as a player mentally and physically. Means so much to the game of basketball. Someone I’m always gonna look to advice for anything. Just a brilliant, brilliant, intelligent man …
These people, these players, are the ones we should really be listening to when dissecting Kobe's legacy. They are the people who are actually trying to do what Kobe has done, who really know what it takes to be great. They are the ones who truly understand how impressive Bryant was over the years, how significant of an impact he has had on the sport for the past 20 years.
Not the media, and not fans, but the players.
Kobe’s play is a case study in meticulous footwork and mental strength -- it’s a melding of basketball fundamentals and personal flourish. Anyone that has grown up watching him -- like Durant, like George, like so many of this next generation of NBA s