History is meant to be used as a tool to revisit past events, situations, and timelines to gain truth, but it also could be used to rewrite and blind the people in the present to believing lies and while creating false narratives. Unfortunately, that would pertain to the late basketball great Kobe Bryant.
We are a few weeks removed from the controversial top 10 players of all time list that was released by Bleacher Report. Why is it considered controversial? Well, the same top 10 list that was released was missing Bryant's name, which he was put at number 11. This is where the fire started.
This caused a stir throughout the basketball community on where Bryant was ranked on the top 10 list. Some of the reasons that were echoed is one MVP award, analytics like +/-, and that the players ahead had past up Bryant in legacy.
Now, when it comes to these lists there are many different publications that have their top 10 lists of all time. Publication sites such as Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, and ESPN are all known. All three sites have Bryant outside of the top 10, and the disrespect has gotten out of hand. Based off of criteria points, there isn't a way to put 10 players ahead of Bryant's resume and accomplishments.
Championships
The ultimate goal for an athlete that stamps their greatness is leading their team to a championship. Looking throughout Bryant's career, winning championships is what drove him to be great. Bryant was able to capture five championships throughout NBA history; there is only a handful of All-Time great players to lead their teams to five or more titles.
Players such as Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Tim Duncan are the few to achieve this milestone. So, how could a player be apart of such an elite group be left off of major publication sites in their top 10 lists?
Here lies the problem: that is a claim which hurts Bryant. He played with Shaquille Oneal who is arguably a top ten player of All-Time. Bryant won three of his five championships with Bryant from 2000-2002. However, there is a counter to that claim. From 1999-2004 Bryant (9,892) outscored O'Neal (8,778) in total points accumulated. This stat alone proves year by year a younger Bryant was slowly becoming the face of franchise as the lead guy over O'neal.
However, if one wants to say that Bryant played with O'Neal, who is arguably a top 10 player of all time. Can the voters use that same thought process for Magic Johnson, who played with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who is arguably known as the greatest center of all time? Johnson, who is on a majority of publication sites' top five lists, has to be taken into account when ranking Bryant as well. Bryant and Johnson both have five championships.
Accomplishment/Accolades
When it comes to individual accomplishments/accolades, this speaks to a player's portfolio/resume. There are unique accomplishments which you can find in Bryant's trophy case.
Year in and year out for about a 10-15 year period Bryant was known as one of the top 5 players in the NBA. That is where the 18 All-Star selections circulate around. Looking throughout decade to decade, that level of consistency being on top for that period of time is not normal and should not be taken lightly while considering rankings.
Bryant is known as one of the greatest scorers of all time. His placement of fourth All-Time in points at 33,643 just shows how much of a lethal scorer he was on the court. There are many performances during his career that show this area of his game, but the one performance that sticks out is his 81-point performance versus the Toronto Raptors.
Aside from this, he was elite on the defensive side of the ball with 12 All-Time defensive selections. There is only one other player in NBA history that tops Bryant in All-NBA and All-Defensive team selections and that is Tim Duncan. The ability to be an elite player on both offensively and defensively is another layer of greatness when comparing to the majority of the top players who mainly affect one way of basketball.
Bryant's career is highlighted with an extended amount of individual accolades.
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Competition
The best way to see how great an athlete is to measure them against their competition. In his 20-year career, Bryant played the position as a shooting guard. From 2000-2010, there can be a case that this was the most competitive era when it came to the top level of shooting guards in NBA history.
After the retirement of Michael Jordan in 2002, the NBA was looking for the next one to carry Jordan's legacy. Dwayne Wade, Allen Iverson, Tracy Mcgrady, Ray Allen, Vince Carter, and Brandon Roy are some of the prime names that competed up against Bryant in the 2000s.
While it was an exciting era of entertainment and competitiveness, there was no discussion on who was the top dog in that decade, and that was Bryant. He dominated with winning half of the championships in the 2000s, having the better numbers of anyone at that position, and being called the best player in the NBA by his peers.
It is interesting that the lists from media pundits that leave Bryant out of the top 10 differentiate from players who won't dare to put Bryant out of the top 5.
Individual skills
This is a category that must be highlighted when speaking of the top players of All-Time. Steph Curry with his three point shooting, Isaiah Thomas with his amazing ball handling, Magic Johnson with his all world passing, or Hakeem Olajuwon with his tenacious shot blocking this all circulates around skills.
Skills are tools in a player's toolbox to get the job done; this can only be measured by watching a player play visually with your eyes. For Bryant, he had the full package which wouldn't allow one player to be able to contain him requiring a full team effort to slow the Black Mamba down.
Bryant has arguably been known as the most skilled basketball player of All-Time even ahead of the universally known best player of All-Time Michael Jordan. This may be a category that may be the hardest for a media critic to evaluate due to not being able to relate to the component of the eye test.
Conclusion
When talking about the GOAT Debate, top five, or top 10 lists, this is going to be an ongoing conversation based on changing of eras and opinions. However, when it comes to Bryant, while evaluating championships, accolades/accomplishments, skills, level of competition, and stats, there are only two players who have the edge over Bryant, and that is Jordan and Abdul-Jabbar.