Kobe's revealing interview about Smush & Kwame

You guys bought that one pretty nicely.

Smush quit against Phoenix the 2nd time we played them. Flat out quit.

Kobe got a team that started Kwame, Odom, Luke, and Smush to a game 7 against Phoenix. Kobe averaged 35. No one else in that starting lineup ever scored 35 in a NBA game. Not even once. Kobe had to average it to squeak into the playoffs. And he wasn't MVP?

Smush has a bad attitude, but Kobe has got to let it go man, who cares about Smush? Why is Kobe still talking about him?

GoldenKnight wrote:Smush has a bad attitude, but Kobe has got to let it go man, who cares about Smush? Why is Kobe still talking about him?

Read the interview. Someone asked him about the MVPs that Steve Nash won and he gave an honest answer: he was playing with garbage while Nash had a good team. Kobe put up great numbers and got his team into the playoffs. Nash had great numbers too, but his team was much better.

That's Kobe's argument anyway.

therealdeal wrote:

GoldenKnight wrote:Smush has a bad attitude, but Kobe has got to let it go man, who cares about Smush? Why is Kobe still talking about him?

Read the interview. Someone asked him about the MVPs that Steve Nash won and he gave an honest answer: he was playing with garbage while Nash had a good team. Kobe put up great numbers and got his team into the playoffs. Nash had great numbers too, but his team was much better.

That's Kobe's argument anyway.

Better answer would have been..."Well Steve had better talent around him than I did at the time"

Kobe is absolutely right and what he said was not out of line. William Parker is playing overseas for a reason... the dude fricken sucks. In fact most of that team Kobe played with is out of the league. I have argued myself that Kwame Brown was one of the best big men defenders in the game, period. He was craptastic on offense. So much so that even Kwame admitted it. Kobe probably wouldn't have gone hard at Parker had Parker not came out talking crap after he left LA about Kobe and org.

Kobe may not admit it, but he probably isn't happy that 3 seasons of his prime were wasted playing with guys like Smush and Kwame. The one season in his prime that he spent with an adequate roster was the only season he won an MVP award.

He'll probably be griping about those 3 seasons (2004-2005, 2005-2006, and 2006-2007) long after he retires.

GoldenKnight wrote:

therealdeal wrote:

GoldenKnight wrote:Smush has a bad attitude, but Kobe has got to let it go man, who cares about Smush? Why is Kobe still talking about him?

Read the interview. Someone asked him about the MVPs that Steve Nash won and he gave an honest answer: he was playing with garbage while Nash had a good team. Kobe put up great numbers and got his team into the playoffs. Nash had great numbers too, but his team was much better.

That's Kobe's argument anyway.

Better answer would have been..."Well Steve had better talent around him than I did at the time"

An even better answer would have been... "Nash deserved the MVP because by-golly he was the best in the NBA at the time. The voters got it 100% correct and I am honored to play with a 2-time MVP."

revgen wrote:Kobe may not admit it, but he probably isn't happy that 3 seasons of his prime were wasted playing with guys like Smush and Kwame. The one season in his prime that he spent with an adequate roster was the only season he won an MVP award.

He'll probably be griping about those 3 seasons (2004-2005, 2005-2006, and 2006-2007) long after he retires.

Not just his prime. The prime of his prime! The pinnacle of his game was wasted. Imagine if he had a great team around him when he was capable of going for 50 any (every) night.

Vasashi17 wrote:Kobe is absolutely right in saying that he deserved the MVP with that group instead of Nash getting it with the group he had in Phoenix. If you take Kobe off that team, we don't even make the playoffs. Without Nash, Phoenix had at least some talent to at least make the postseason.

But to me, the MVP award is really tainted and I can care less about who wins it. The fact that Kobe only has 1 MVP in his illustrious career speaks volumes about the legitimacy of the MVP award.

Yeah, and to think he was one or two losses away from losing that MVP award.

I feel bad for Kobe. Yes, he's played with some incredible players -- Shaq, Pau, Drew, Malone & GP (even though that didn't work out), and now D12 & Nash. But he's also had to deal with the who's who of the NBA rejects. The D-League wouldn't even accept half of that garbage today. No superstar should have to endure the likes of Smush, Tierre, Atkins, Mihm, Walker, Kwame, Samake, Slava, Cook, Luke, Knight, Morrison, Madsen, and Gump

^^I guess I can see that to some respect..... but in the history of the NBA there have been some really great players that have played with no-one.... EVER! Kobe will have played with several other hall of famers.... How many did Pete Maravich play with?

I'd say Kobe is very fortunate to have a chance to endure through three separate incarnations of the Lakers and could win titles with all 3.... Magic didn't make it that far..... neither did Kareem....

kobe's career is odd in the sense that he won titles before he reached his prime, and then towards the later stages of his career. never in his prime. i just imagine what it would have been like if he had been surrounded by decent players during his prime

432J wrote:kobe's career is odd in the sense that he won titles before he reached his prime, and then towards the later stages of his career. never in his prime. i just imagine what it would have been like if he had been surrounded by decent players during his prime

Maybe I am just wrong, but I think that's why he is going to be The Mamba.
With talented players around him, he may looked good, but not GOAT good.

Thanks to those garbage D-League ballers that I can review the 81 pts game over and over again.

The shooting gawd KB speaking that networth yell™

puffyusaf#2 wrote:

GoldenKnight wrote:

therealdeal wrote:

GoldenKnight wrote:Smush has a bad attitude, but Kobe has got to let it go man, who cares about Smush? Why is Kobe still talking about him?

Read the interview. Someone asked him about the MVPs that Steve Nash won and he gave an honest answer: he was playing with garbage while Nash had a good team. Kobe put up great numbers and got his team into the playoffs. Nash had great numbers too, but his team was much better.

That's Kobe's argument anyway.

Better answer would have been..."Well Steve had better talent around him than I did at the time"

An even better answer would have been... "Nash deserved the MVP because by-golly he was the best in the NBA at the time. The voters got it 100% correct and I am honored to play with a 2-time MVP."

How can you be the best when you only play one side of the ball? Are you kidding me. Everybody knew Kobe was the greatest at the time. Yell™

ben_ready wrote:How can you be the best when you only play one side of the ball? Are you kidding me. Everybody knew Kobe was the greatest at the time. Yell™

Did you ever come across the term "sarcasm" Yellwhatever?

I see it this way.

Kobe truly has had a great career but it is weird in the fact that he in his peak years, lets just call them that had no shot at all at a ring with a roster the d league wouldn't run out beside him and Lamar.

He won young before he peaked and old after he had peaked and had had his knee operated on twice, ankle, and shoulder too on top of the arthritic hand. Jordan, Shaq, Lebron now, Bird, Magic all got to play for a title at their absolute best basketball and physical wise. Kobe has won, done a hell of a lot, but it will forever eat at him that he never got the chance to be the best Kobe he could be while winning or competing for the title. It may seem petty, but its the competitor in him that will never accept that he was robbed of that because its what he grew up watching the legends before in the top 10 list have a chance to do sans Wilt and Bill. He'll always hold that against Buss, Mitch, and the scrub talent tbh

Magic Skywalker wrote:"Just got one more than Mike. And you can take that to the bank"

I cannot imagine the world of asshurt that Kobe will bestow to the Jordan fans and Kobe haters.

Hell, that might even drive Jordan to pay off some team to let him play!

kray28 wrote:Smush was trash....he had talent, but no humility, and his fat ego thought he was on Kobe's level (or something).

Is ego the only thing that's fat about Smush's existence these days?

OX1947 wrote:Kwame Brown was 10 times worse then Smush.

How? Kwame is actually a good man to man defender in the low post that's why he will always have a job in the NBA. Smush? There is a reason why he has not played in the NBA in years and no GM wants him on their team.

Kwame tried his best and gave it 100% when he was with the Lakers unlike Smush who was a cancer on the team. When multiple players and personnel have a problem with a player then you know something is wrong. Smush only cared about himself and not the team. Smush burned way too many bridges after his first year in LA.

Usually when guys are at peace with their decision to retire, they become more open towards the end of their career and are not afraid to speak their mind.

OX1947 wrote:Kwame Brown was 10 times worse then Smush.

Umm....no.

i still think kobe should have kept his mouth shut about smush though

why keep bringing it up? it's been 5 years since he last played for the lakers. there comes a time to let things go. kobe should say to himself "yeah he's said some things about me but ignoring him would make him look like even more of a loser"