Kobe Bryant: The Greatest NBA Player Ever - Essay Sample

Introduction

The NBA has seen some amazing talent take center stage in various basketball courts around the country. Some of the super talented players to grace the NBA scene have left fans yearning for more due to the skills and zeal that they brought to the games, especially against high ranking opponents. This speech commemorates Kobe Bryant as the best NBA player ever.

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One pointer to the greatness of Kobe Bryant as a basketball player is the fact that he entered into the NBA scene straight out of high school. As if that is not enough, he went on to feature for the Los Angeles Lakers' teams of star-studded players year after year for a duration of 20 years. Maintaining such a lengthy streak at a franchise club like the Lakers for as long as Kobe did is a true legacy of the man and his contribution to the game of basketball. The icon of the game has been retired well in two seasons but he still hits the headlines with the current generation of basketball players being compared to him (Bieler). He has managed two finals most valued player awards among his many other accolades. He has also won the NBA championship title five times.

Kobe Bryant has been included in the NBA All-Star team 18 times, has won the Olympic Gold medal, and is also a two-time scoring champion. By the time of his retiring, Bryant had the third most aggregate pints in the history of the NBA with a total of 33,643 points, more than the legendary Michael Jordan (Schwadron). Numerous other accomplishments by Kobe Bryant that deserve a mention include his nods in nine NBA All-Defensive First Teams. His achievements with the Los Angeles Lakers have not gone unnoticed as the franchise has retired not one but two numbers in his honor. Prior to that, his initial burst into the limelight involved a Slam Dunk title that he won as a rookie (Schwadron). Throughout the seasons, Kobe has recorded impressive statistics like the nine consecutive games that he went banging 40 points in the 2002-2003 season that saw him stand tied with Michael Jordan for that accolade.

Irrespective of reservations about his legacy, there is enough compelling evidence to place Kobe Bryant at the highest pedestal of NBA. The recently retired basketball icon has put in high level performances at the highest level of the game for two decades to earn himself the title of the best ever player in NBA history. Bryant has proven himself to be the vital cog that helps every teammate around him to shine in an orchestrated style of play that brought out the best of others.

References

Bieler, Des. "Michael Jordan has five reasons he still ranks Kobe Bryant ahead of LeBron James." The Washington Post 2 August 2017. Online.

Bryant, K., Gasol, P., Jackson, P., & Bernstein, A. D. (2018). The mamba mentality: How I play. New York: MCD, Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux, 2018. Print.

Deveney, S. Facing Kobe Bryant: Players, coaches, and broadcasters recall the greatest basketball player of his generation. New York: Sports Publishing, 2016. Print.

Schwadron, Abe. "SLAM's Top 100 Players Of All-Time: Kobe Bryant, No. 5." Slam 03 May 2018.