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No reason to think Kobe won't win another title
Jordan ended up winning six titles with the Bulls, and will go to his grave believing he would have won at least seven if the franchise had not imploded.
Kobe Bryant is 30 years old. He now has four titles to his credit. And there is every reason to believe that before he retires, he will pick up at least one more.
Why shouldn't the Lakers be favored next year? You can come up with reasons, but they will surely apply more to another contender.
Are they getting old? The Celtics' top three players are all older. Do you still question Kobe's supporting cast? LeBron's is much worse. Could they lose Lamar Odom or Trevor Ariza to free agency? Possibly, but Orlando could lose Hedo Turkoglu. Besides, as good as Ariza has been in this postseason, are you really going to downgrade the Lakers' chances if he leaves?
Here is a number that should scare the rest of the NBA: 17.4. That's how many minutes Andrew Bynum averaged in the playoffs. If Bynum is healthy next year, he can be a highly efficient 16-point, 10-rebound 7-footer. He is only 21. He isn't Shaq, but in a league where Dwight Howard is a premier center despite having no apparent post moves, Bynum should develop into an All-Star.
Unless Odom departs, the only reason to bet against the Lakers is fatigue. They will be shooting for their third straight Finals appearance, and Bryant did Olympic duty during one of his breaks. That takes a mental and physical toll.
And yet, love Bryant or hate him, understand this: the more he gets, the more he wants. The man's methods have been in question, but his desire never has. He has been selfish at times in the past. That is well-documented. But if you didn't know that, you never would have guessed it this postseason.
Kobe Bryant has grown up. But his desire — what separates him from somebody like Vince Carter — is still insatiable. On the ABC broadcast, Jeff Van Gundy called him Machiavellian. Van Gundy actually meant it as a compliment, which either says something awful about the world of sports in 2009, or something even worse about the English language in 2009.
Maybe both.
Inside the NBA
Nonetheless you know, just know that Bryant and the Lakers will be hungry next spring. It is all Bryant knows. This was the root of his rift with Shaq: the big guy thought the summer was for eating and the regular season was for getting in shape, and Bryant just couldn't play second fiddle to a guy like that.
Bryant's legacy is secure. But he can still enhance it. I believe LeBron James is a superior talent — bigger, a better passer, a more unstoppable overall package — but the margin between them is tiny. And until James gets better players around him, or Bryant declines (or both), Bryant's team will have the edge.
Kobe has been compared to LeBron a lot lately (hey, I just did it again — I think I'm addicted or something) and he has been compared to Jordan since his rookie season. But in terms of playoff career arc, Bryant most resembles another Laker legend, Magic Johnson.
Magic won five titles and played in an astounding nine NBA Finals. Kobe has won four titles and played in six finals.
When Magic won his first three titles, he benefited from having one of the best centers in NBA history, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. But by the time Magic won his fourth and fifth titles, in 1987 and 1988, Kareem was an aging star, averaging less than 18 points and eight rebounds per game. Magic, meanwhile, was winning MVP awards.
When Kobe won his first three titles, he benefited from having one of the best centers in NBA history, Shaquille O'Neal. But by the time he won No. 4, Shaq was gone.
This is Bryant's team — and his title, more than anybody else's. But Kobe Bryant wants more. As he looked around the locker room Sunday night, I bet he was already thinking about it.
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