2006 NBA Champions: Kobe Bryant

Kobe! Kobe! He's our man! If he can't do it, nobody can!

You know I never was a fan of Kobe...

Maybe it was because of his school-boy nature or his shiny veneer, but throughout the first 4 - 5 seasons of his career he was a non-sequitur. He was a decent player on a great team, but to me he was a nobody. Even moreso because of his incessant quest to fill the shoes of MJ as the best player in the NBA while still dissassociating himself and his success from MJ in public opinion.

But then it happened...

No not that fateless day in Montana, or was it Colorado (I get them mixed up you know?). It was after the '01 - '02 and the Lakers won their third straight title with Shaq and Kobe (Kobe & Shaq) and people knew, though they still hadn't admitted it that Kobe was good. In fact he was better than good he was the best. Now that is an arguable statement but you had the bandwagooneers ready to travel across country on the 'Shaq Train', but everyone knew in the back of their heads could Shaq have done this by himself? The answer was no.

Now Kobe as a personality was no where near as likeable as Shaq -- and I know it seems as if I am rambling but bear with me, it a blog -- with his over-confident 'my daddy got me into the league' attitude and a 'sport-boy' demeanor to boot. You soon saw Kobe fall into a swagger fueled by self-confidence, and a hidden drive that made me start this blog. That drive is what I like to characterize as 'The True Point Guard'.

You see, Kobe hadn't fallen into the bullsh!t that most ballers fall into believing in the team to carry you over the hump, even my boy AI had been deceived, falling in love with Larry Brown while continuing down a self-destructive path that will most likely leave him without a championship. Kobe had begun to shine a light similar to Michael Jordan -- minus the self-deprecation -- the 'True Point Guard' mentality; where he actually believed and knew that he could take the whole struggle on his back with or without a 7'1" 350 lb center.

But the point of this post is: Is Kobe the last True Point Guard in the league? Shaq has never been the one who felt he could do it himself slothfully deferring to his teammates instead of focusing his skills to excel to a level no player has risen to. McGrady, who will shut down quicker that a '81 Yugo isn't even in question. Kevin Garnett, soon to be the quintessential dullard of the league may never figure it out. Iverson who seems to be content with being another passing superstar of the likes of Barkley, Ewing, and Wilkins. Duncan who may have what it takes but will he actually do what is necessary to dominate the sport. And then there is good ole LeBron who may just be the next candidate for a TPG position, but may be more coddled than any player in the league (he's in Cleveland, the kid got a Hummer while he was still in high-school).

But we have Kobe. He has taken the steps to not only put himself in the position to become the sole leader of a team likely to win something, anything, but at the same time be made a pariah if he wins nothing.

And I think Kobe is fine with that, and so am I.

Ladies and gentlemen! Your 2006 NBA Champions: Kobe Bryant!

Free Agency: The Run Down

With signing day less than 12 hours away I felt it necessary to go ahead a give my personal run down of the Top 20 NBA ballers on the auction block this summer. Whether it be the good ole equal swap, sign and trade, or "I want off this damn team!" I'm going to give you the skinny.

20. Steve Francis - OMG, I used to watch this guy during his tenure in Houston. And his last season with the Rockets show me that this kid is really a conundrum wrapper inside of enigma. He's like that mole on your back that you don't like to show at the pool that likes to shoot 30' jumpers instead of passing to the 7'6" big man under the paint, even though it is Ming Yao.

19. Larry Hughes - I always liked this kid. On NBA Live 2003 I saw that he play the point effectively enough to get the damn ball to a dessicated Jordan. And as it turns out he could do it in real life. I'd like to see him with LeBron.

18. Shareef Abdur-Rahim - Talk about a guy who takes all the shots on a team and is probably overrated. I hear he's going to the Nets, which is good because Kidd has always played well with overrated players.

17. Vince Carter - Another one of Kidd's juves. Is this guy good or is he good? Who knows but I know he likes to shoot 30' jumpers down the stretch during playoff games which is a minus.

16. Joe Johnson - Who?

15. Gilbert Arenas - A super hard worker. I've seen his stats steadily increase since his second round pick a few years ago. Hopefully he'll get to lead a second rate team.

14. Emeka Okafor - A no-necker of the likes of Elton Brand. Just a plain ole standup fella. He'll have a stellar career, cut the check next season.

13. Carmelo Anthony - You 13 was always my lucky number. Lets just hope it's Melo's.

12. Darius Miles - Didn't MJ say, 'I wish I had the kid'?

11. Kobe Bryant - Whoa! Put 'Skillz' on any team and you are guaranteed a scoring title, 500 thousand jerseys sold, and a ton of support in Denver.

10. Allen Iverson - You know The Answer is sick of Phila, the late nights smokin weed in your favorite club surrounded by noting but top notch hoes. I'd like to see this guy with a superstar like Kevin Garnett. The parity between the two could be proof positive for any team.

09. Kevin Garnett - Speaking of Kevin, you'd think after a season like the 2004 debacle that he'd be more proactive about who he's playing with instead of shutting down mid-season and whining about injuries.

08. Ron Artest - Yeah I got the CD. Me and Larry "Get Yo Shine On" Bird was jammin' it in the cut yesterday. WARRIOR!

07. Luc Ridnour - How the hell did he break the top 10. I guess a pure shooter who manages to stand out on a team full of 'pure shooters' deserves some credit.

06. Ben Gordon - Surprised he didn't walk away with a ROTY plaque, but hey he only plays ball because he's nice.

05. Paul Pierce - I've never seen someone get 21/6/4 as silently as this kid. Other than the 'certified gangsta' attitude Pierce is the next best thing to Kobe.

04. Dwight Howard - Drafted #1 straight from high school: $10m, Hold down Kevin Garnett for 48 minutes: Ton of street cred, Average a double-double you rookie season: Priceless

03. Tony Parker - Okay now I know this 20 to 1 numbering is arbitrary. Do you really want a poor man's Isaiah Thomas who can't create shots for his teammates on your team? Good thing he had the Caribbean swimmer to hold down his team down the stretch in game 7.

02. Chauncy Billups - Okay, Billups did his thing last season, but Chauncey what happened?

01. Allan Houston - Didn't they create an contract bailout clause because of this guy? And to think he was overpaid a guaranteed $100m, waived and will be overpaid another veteran's minimum while still getting a check cut from his previous team. Only in America.

There you have it folks. We had a short stack to pick from this year, but I think we pulled it off. I'm certain that most of these 'killers' will remain on their original team, but hey one can only dream can't they?

Ron Artest: Freed!

Welcome to the debut of TruePointGuard.Com, or Mikey Wed Did It Again! Now you know I had kick this debacle of NBA commentary off with something real, and even though I wanted to open up with my main man Kobe "I'm the cot damn reason you in VIP!" Bryant, I had to set the tone for this blog with the best defensive baller in the league, Ron Artest.

And without further ado...

In this corner at 6'7", 24.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg, and 3.1 apg (albeit a short season), Mr. Ronald "Where's my $5m from last season?" Artest.

From what my sources say ole Ronnie ripped up the Minnesota Summer League against the scrubs and wannabes that plague the league today with a suprising 19.8 ppg and 5.3 rpg. This after missing 73 games for cold cocking the drunk sonuvabitch who through the cup at the Nov. 19 Pacers/Pistons showdown last season. Even Indiana golden boy Larry Bird had to give him his props stating, "I admire the kid" speaking about his dedication to the game.

This obviously begs the question, "Will Artest make show the world what he's made of this season?"

With a team chemistry that has to be second to none after the trials and tribulations of the previous season, coupled with a top five big man and a team defense that even Nastemare and the Suns had difficulties with during the regular season I wonder can our old pal Artest lead these Pacers to an Eastern Conference title?