Veteran NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith is known for his controversial takes every now and then, so his latest opinion doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Regardless, however, it is sure to be something that enrages fans of the Black Mamba. In one of the more recent episodes of the Stephen A. Smith Show, the 56-year-old TV persona stated, “Kobe Bryant is not the second-best player in NBA history. It’s just not true.”
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Stephen A. Smith compared Kobe Bryant’s career stats and his athleticism with LeBron James’ and talked about how ‘The King’ has surpassed him in every statistic apart from the number of rings. Even there, Smith went on to emphasize how Bryant had Shaquille O’Neal’s help in winning his first three rings.
He did mention the All-Star players that LeBron James played with to win championships. But Smith’s emphasis was on the fact that James did not have a prime Shaquille O’Neal helping him out on the floor.
Stephen A’s harsh take drew the reaction of former NBA player, Matt Barnes. Barnes had the opportunity to play with Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers for two years during his 14-year-long career. Barnes dropped a comment on Stephen A. Smith’s official Instagram account. He said, “This is all opinion based.. but there’s a reason a lot of former Players rank Kob [Kobe Bryant] so high.”
While playing alongside Kobe, Matt Barnes won his first and only NBA championship back in 2010. But that isn’t the sole reason why Barnes disagreed with Stephen A. Smith’s take regarding the five-time NBA champion.
Even after the departure of Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant went on to lead the league in scoring in back-to-back years from 2005 to 2007. He then went on to win the MVP award in 2008. And most importantly, went to three straight NBA Finals, winning back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010.
And if Bryant’s accolades do not support the argument well enough then the players’ opinions who came into the league looking up to Kobe do speak volumes. Players like Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum, DeMar DeRozan, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are just some of the players who grew up watching Bryant play and idolize his game. So, while LeBron James is indeed the favorite for the #2 spot in the GOAT conversation, Kobe Bryant is at the very least a contender too.
How Kobe Bryant recruited Matt Barnes
During his career, Matt Barnes and Kobe Bryant locked horns on numerous occasions. One of the most iconic moments was Barnes’ pump faking the ball in Bryant’s face, something that made Bryant recruit Barnes to the Lakers. According to Bryant, anybody who was crazy enough to ‘mess’ with him was crazy enough to play with him.
Now, even though Barnes may have a soft spot for Bryant, he surely gave LeBron James his flowers for his longevity over the years in the league. Barnes was all praises about The King and even coined the term ‘Bron-gevity’ to honor his dominance over the years. In awe of James’ consistency even in his 22nd year in the league, Barnes predicted that the world may not see another LBJ.
However, in the end, Barnes will always have Bryant higher on the GOAT list than James.
