This Week's Story
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Kobe and Shaq: Two superstars who had feuded and made basketball art, led their team to three NBA Championships.
This Week’s Story relives American history and the Bible through brief inspiring stories presented on mp3 audio recordings and text for reading.
Kobe Moves through Hurdles for Winning and Team-building,
part three
Kobe Bryant excites conversations today. He continues to be a cultural icon. Say his name and you easily can get a response. Nine years ago he retired from playing on the Lakers’ basketball team. Five years ago he and his daughter died in the crash of a helicopter in California. Kobe was forty-one years old. Ask people, “What did Kobe Bryant want most when he played on the Lakers’ team in the National Basketball Association?”
One guy declared, “To win! That was his first priority!”
Another person spoke thoughtfully, “He was passionate about basketball. He loved the game. Look at some of his games. Watch him spin in the air when he sank the basketball. Were all his moves essential? Did he master basketball gymnastics? In those nanoseconds the game consumed him. He was winning, plus expressing his identity!”
Shaquille O’Neal, a Laker teammate, said, “Kobe was show-boating.”
Perhaps Shaq didn’t understand Kobe’s energy and ferocious drive.
“Kobe was a complex person. I think the winning-only-fans see just parts of him. What Kobe did on the floor often was a mixture of split-second decisions and physical skills. His playing was based on thousands of hours of practice and experience with people.
“Often, he went into solo plays like a champion from Mt. Olympus. Then there were times when he was acutely aware of his team and the opponents. As he passed from his early years in the NBA he began to think more as a team member. He would attempt to cooperate with team strategies for winning even if he felt he had a superior alternative. He would help create opportunities for teammates.
“In his late twenties his assists per game averaged about 4.5. By age thirty-four his assists per game were averaging 6.0. He relied less on scoring, though he was a magnificent shooter. He kept less to himself and mentored younger players.
That was a big pivot from how teammates initially described him. They first knew him as the first NBA player to go straight from high school to the first round of the NBA draft. He was seventeen.
The Lakers’ team had a reputation for spending time together after games or practices. The team perceived Kobe as a loner for several years. Sometimes he was considered arrogant. The feud he and teammate Shaquille O’Neal had for several years increased that perception.
Both were superstars on the Lakers’ team, but drastically different in lifestyle. Shaq was six years older than Kobe and expected to be the team leader. He was generally good-humored and more relaxed than Kobe, who was all-business about playing, practice, and staying in shape. Shaq standing at seven feet and one inch was a powerhouse of skill. He and Kobe could make the basketball floor sing with the fusion of their moves. They also could be at odds, especially if Kobe thought Shaq should be working harder and staying in shape.
Together with their teammates and Coach Phil Jackson they won three NBA national championships in consecutive years.
Join us soon for the conclusion of our series at thisweeksstory.com.
Our team this week is Gwen Crawford, Nathan Thomas, Todd Warren, Carlos Gamez, and Barbara Steiner.
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