11/05/24
June 04, 2009
Kobe Bryant, No Mere God of Destruction (from True Hoop): A slightly different take on the biggest star in this year's NBA finals.
posted by apoch to basketball at 09:14 PM - 10 comments
The Lakers crushed the Magic tonight. Making Howard earn all of his points from the stripe puts Orlando in a completely different rhythm. As a Magic fan I have concerns.
posted by rcade at 12:53 AM on June 05, 2009
Very interesting article for me, but for that odd, out of place bit about the Russian roulette
Abso-freakin'-lutely...where the hell did that little tidbit come from and why even put it in there? Pretty good article but that last portion distracted me to the point that I'm also thinking of playing "multiple rounds of Russian Roulette"....er, nevermind, I think not!
posted by BornIcon at 07:57 AM on June 05, 2009
This article couldv'e been written by Kobe. Not that it can't be true or that Truehoop is gushing about Kobe but that this feels like the image that Kobe wants us to see. It may very well be an accurate portrayal but it's so hard to tell with Kobe what's real and what's put on.
posted by tron7 at 10:25 AM on June 05, 2009
Except it was written by Henry Abbot and not Kobe Bryant.
Not that I can blame Kobe for wanting to be seen like this instead of his usual image. It's much more flattering.
posted by apoch at 02:06 PM on June 05, 2009
it's so hard to tell with Kobe what's real and what's put on.
What is Bryant's real image?
He was born in Philly, but he really grew up in Italy. His parents moved there when he was 6. He's fluent in Italian and Spanish. His idol growing up was the current Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni, who was Olimpio Milano's all time leading scorer (D'Antoni is from WVA but has dual citizenship).
During his early career with the Lakers, Bryant chose to wear number 8, D'Antoni's old jersey number with Milan. He's a big soccer fan. He loves AC Milan and FC Barcelona.
Does the U.S. media ever talk about Kobe's real roots? Or would that take away from this phony "gangsta" or "street" image he's managed to cultivate in order to fit in with the "dumbed-down" image the NBA has now taken on in order to gain mass American appeal?
posted by The_Special_Juan at 10:33 PM on June 07, 2009
Does the U.S. media ever talk about Kobe's real roots? Or would that take away from this phony "gangsta" or "street" image he's managed to cultivate in order to fit in with the "dumbed-down" image the NBA has now taken on in order to gain mass American appeal?
Firstly, the media has in fact spoken about about Kobe's "real roots" about being born in Philly and raised in Italy. They have in fact spoken about how Kobe is fluent in Italian & Spanish. They have also spoke about his love for the game of soccer and also being a huge Mike D'Antoni fan which is why he wore the #8 early in his career.
How do I know this? Because I saw it on television countless & countless of times.
Secondly, when has Kobe ever been a "phony gangsta" or have a "street image"? I've never seen what you're talking about, the kid is just great basketball player with ice running thru his veins. I personally never found Kobe to have "dumbed-down" his image for anyone.
When Kobe was dealing with the Colorado rape case, he sat in front of the media and handled it like a man. He sat in front of all the media outlets with his wife siting next to him and spoke eloquently and intelligently. He apologized profusely to her for his mistakes and did so with his head held high because he knew that he did not do what he was being accused of. He acted like a man and took the heat for his misdeeds and now the very same man has taken his team to the NBA Finals and is two games in to winning his 4th NBA Championship.
Now tell me, what's "phony" about that?
posted by BornIcon at 12:36 PM on June 09, 2009
He sat in front of all the media outlets with his wife siting next to him and spoke eloquently and intelligently. He apologized profusely to her for his mistakes and did so with his head held high because he knew that he did not do what he was being accused of.
In his statement that was part of the agreement to drop the criminal charges, Bryant said, "Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. ... I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter."
I'm all for judging Bryant today by how he's acted the past several years, but let's not celebrate the guy for having a sexual encounter with an emotionally troubled woman that might or might not have been rape. Any eloquence he may have exhibited at the time was crafted by his legal counsel.
posted by rcade at 02:51 PM on June 09, 2009
Ok, but a woman that's an (as you put it) "emotionally troubled" has no bearings on Kobe. If the girl had the 'deer-in-the-headlights'-look when she first saw Kobe and she threw herself at the man, how would anyone consider that to be not consensual?
I'm actually sorry that I even brought up the Kobe rape case but the man wasn't found guilty of anything. Even if it was a prepared speech that he gave that day, he still had to sit up there in front of the whole world basically, and plead his innocence. Remember, after it was all said & done, he still had to go home with the same woman that sat up there hearing Kobe talk about having sexual relations with someone other than her.
/Glad it wasn't me
posted by BornIcon at 03:20 PM on June 09, 2009
If the girl had the 'deer-in-the-headlights'-look when she first saw Kobe and she threw herself at the man, how would anyone consider that to be not consensual?
Consent can be withdrawn at any time. The difficulties inherent in the subject are one reason not to have sex with total strangers immediately upon meeting them at an out-of-town hotel. Another is the fact that you're having sex with everyone they've had sex with, STD speaking, and you've already proven they are promiscuous.
Your reasons for feeling sorry for Bryant are falling on deaf ears here. Even under the most charitable interpretation of the facts, he still showed an incredible lack of judgment, broke his marriage vows and has no one else to blame for what followed.
posted by rcade at 09:35 PM on June 09, 2009
Very interesting article for me, but for that odd, out of place bit about the Russian roulette.
If the basis is legit, I look forward to seeing him as a head coach after his playing days.