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The LeBron v. Kobe Debate
To all the loyal Kobe supporters / LAist readers who commented on the Top Ten Reasons LeBron is better than Kobe:
First of all, I'm impressed that 25 people care enough about Kobe Bryant to bother defending him. I love that several of the comments were longer than the original post.
I should also say that LeBron did disappoint last night, and it's true Kobe won a ring in his first trip to the Finals, but that was on Shaq's back, and we all know that Kobe will never win an NBA title without the Diesel.
Some of you made valid points, but a lot of the those were on questions of taste (the nickname, the "Witness" marketing campaign, hair and baby names), so we can agree to disagree on those. You may think the "We Are All Witnesses" is lame. I might want to buy a "Witness" shirt. Let's not judge.
Speaking of which, I was pretty surprised that anybody defended Bryant on the rape charges. Whether or not I think he did it, I would not stand up for a guy charged with rape, who admitted cheating on his wife anyway.
It's pretty unfair at this point to compare the careers of Bryant and James, because Kobe has six more years in the league. In six years will LeBron's career outshine Kobe's? I'm betting yes.
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On the substantial questions most of our dear readers sounded shrill and defensive, which makes me think that deep down they know this: if you were to start an NBA team today and got your choice of any player in the league, you would pick LeBron over Kobe. Kobe is six years older, has a serious attitude problem, and means three times the contract commitment (LBJ makes $5.8 million, Kobe gets $17.7 million). The smart move is to start your franchise with LeBron. You're getting more production for less cash, and for more years.
I think if you all were to look inside yourselves and ask that question honestly, you would agree.
Or maybe I'm just trying to provoke more angry comments.
Either way, to answer Andrew Tseng's question, "Why does LAist never seem to have any hardcore Lakers fans posting stories. It's usually haters (which LA admittedly has tons of) or fairweather fans", let me hand over the post to LAist Editor, Tony Pierce:
Andrew, just like you can be a patriot and be against this war in Iraq, you can be a Laker fan and not be a fan of Kobe. Your question is probably "Why does LAist never seem to have any hardcore Kobe fans posting stories...." But, regardless, if you think you have a take that doesn't suck, and you want to write for LAist, send us a sample post. We don't discriminate against those who adore Mr. Bryant.
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Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
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