When one looks at the debate of who is the greatest player in the history of the NBA, two main names come up: Michael Jordan and LeBron James. While the majority of people still give Jordan the nod, James has been gaining more support in this debate over the years.
But one man who keeps getting disrespected in the greatest of all time (G.O.A.T.) debates is late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. A significant number of people would take Bryant over James, and he eventually transcended basketball later into his career to become an athletic and cultural icon.
His “Mamba Mentality” is something that continues to inspire people, even people who don’t love the game of basketball that much.
Prominent NBA insider Shams Charania was asked who is his G.O.A.T., and he strongly implied that it is Bryant (h/t The Cold Wire).
Shams says Kobe Bryant is his GOAT 👀
(🎥 @theOGsShow / https://t.co/s3iCTBCIJJ) pic.twitter.com/MOLhKKMLnA
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 30, 2024
“I feel like the greatest of all time is an experience,” Charania said. “For me growing up, Kobe was someone that I watched very closely and like, the Mamba mentality and killer instinct. I feel like some of those attributes … I feel like I can apply some of that in my daily life.”
Bryant’s accomplishments speak for themselves: five NBA championships, two NBA Finals MVP awards, two scoring titles, two Olympic gold medals and numerous individual statistical milestones.
Bryant may not objectively be the greatest basketball player ever, but he is absolutely in the same pantheon as men such as Jordan, James, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Sometimes, who one picks as the G.O.A.T. comes down to one’s personal experience, as Charania pointed out, as well as the attributes one values over others, rather than any objective analysis.
