(Best E Casino) - The time has finally arrived for NBA MVP Kobe Bryant to rid himself of the label that he can't win without Shaquille O'Neal by his side.
Bryant has the Los Angeles Lakers on the brink of their first NBA Finals berth since 2004, when they were stunned in five games by the Detroit Pistons in O'Neal's final season in Tinsel Town. Kobe and Shaq won three titles together (2000-2002), and appeared in four NBA Finals as teammates.
O'Neal was dealt to Miami in a blockbuster trade on July 14, 2004. L.A. didn't qualify for the playoffs the next year, and was knocked out in the first round of the postseason by Phoenix in the following two campaigns. Meanwhile, O'Neal teamed with Dwyane Wade to lead the Heat to their first championship in 2006.
As O'Neal's fortunes soared, Bryant openly discussed his frustrations with his own franchise. The perennial All-Star begged the Lakers to get him help, and they finally delivered on February 1 with the acquisition of big man Pau Gasol in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies.
Gasol is the low-post scorer L.A needed to help it compete against the elite in the tough Western Conference. After three seasons that ended nowhere in the proximity of the NBA title, Bryant has the missing piece to a supporting cast that could help him get the Lakers back to the glory days of not so long ago.
There are those who say that Bryant needed Gasol to get the Lakers over the hump, but the dynamic is different than it was with Shaq. This is Kobe's team, while those Lakers squads that won three straight titles from 2000-02 belonged to O'Neal.
When the Lakers sent O'Neal packing, they became a team that was foolishly trying to win based almost solely on the skills of a 6-6 shooting guard. Shaq had help, and there was no reason to think Bryant was going be able to take a one-man show to the promised land.
With the presence of Gasol to take the pressure off, a more confident Kobe has effectively put the Lakers on his back in the postseason. He led them to impressive wins over the Denver Nuggets in round one and the Utah Jazz in the semis. The 29-year-old Bryant is averaging 31.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists in this year's playoffs, while shooting 50.7 percent from the floor and over 80 percent at the charity stripe. He has hit big shot after big shot, made timely defensive plays, and has clearly been the floor leader for his team. What's more, Los Angeles currently owns a commanding 3-1 advantage over the defending NBA champion Spurs.
Bryant's swagger is evident. He looks like a player who is daring the opposition to try and stop him. The confidence he has in his teammates is also showing, as Gasol, veteran guard Derek Fisher, and forward Lamar Odom have delivered when their superstar teammate has dished them the ball in crucial times of big games.
If the Lakers can finish off San Antonio and go on to win the NBA title, Kobe will have written another vital chapter to his storybook career.
There is no doubt that Bryant belongs in the discussion of the top two or three most talented players in the game today. Comparisons with Cleveland's LeBron James, who has played in one NBA Finals in his young career, are often made.
Who deserves to come out on top in the Bryant-James debate?
Let's face it, winning championships is the main basis upon which great players are remembered, and unlike Bryant, James has yet to reach those heights. Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan are arguably among the top five players in NBA history. Individually, they were spectacular, but their legacies revolve around the multiple championships that each won during their careers.
Highlight-reel dunks and buzzer-beating shots are great, but in the end, the individuals seem to be remembered most for what championship team they were a part of.
In that regard, James can currently be likened to Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, whose only Finals appearance was a six-game defeat for his Suns to Jordan's Bulls in 1993. As great as Barkley was, he will always have the fact that he never won a championship attached to him.
James needs to hope that his career follows a different path, like the one traveled by another former Sixers great, Julius Erving. Erving carried the label of not being able to win a title until Philadelphia swept the Lakers in the 1983 NBA Finals. With Erving leading the way, the Sixers had lost in the championship round to Portland in 1977, and to L.A. in 1980 and 1982.
Then, Philly acquired Moses Malone prior to the 1982-83 campaign, and the championship monkey was finally off Erving's back. James needs the Cleveland organization to find his Malone (or at least his Gasol) in order to jettison the "best player never to win a title" tag.
Which brings us back to Bryant, who even with three rings, has not seen universal respect come his way for some odd reason. Perhaps he is so good that the so-called experts need to see him be the top dog on a championship team.
Bryant, who played in all 82 regular-season games and averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists during an electrifying MVP season, has already proven himself. The superstar guard has been on a personal mission this year, and is nearing the successful completion.
Even if the Lakers don't capture the 2008 NBA crown, Kobe will always be a winner, and is showing during this postseason run that he is one of the best to ever lace up the sneakers.
