Feb 17, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Eastern Conference forward LeBron James (6) of the Miami Heat and Western Conference guard Kobe Bryant (24) of the Los Angeles Lakers laugh during the second half of the 2013 NBA All-Star Game at the Toyota Center. The Western Conference won 143-138. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Kobe Bryant & LeBron James are the most powerful brands in basketball.
Each entered the league at a different times, so they never faced one another in their prime, but what if they adopted the other’s game? How would that affect their legacy?
Juxtaposition is defined as: the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.
Would Kobe have more rings if he got his teammates more involved?
Would LeBron have more rings if he were more aggressive on offense?
The pair has always been linked purely on their contrasting styles and the answer to the questions above is unknown because their individual games have defined their careers. There’s always the possibility of the maturation factor, yet similar to most people, as we get older we become more stuck in our ways. An athlete’s game is more pliable earlier in their career. As veterans, Bryant and James are content to do things their own way.
Imagine Bryant dishing out assists in triple-double fashion (23 points, 15 assists, 11 rebounds vs. the Wizards) on a nightly basis like he did in 2002 at the ripe age of 23.
Imagine James closing out games like he did against the Pistons in 2007 when he scored 29 of his team’s final 30 points as a 22-year-old phenom.
As the two most powerful brands in the NBA, we as fans we can dream about how they will evolve, but ultimately they decide according to their egos.
Kobe Bryant and LeBron James will go down as two of the best basketball players of all time and they’ll do it on their own terms.