Quote:We could but I'd like to hear why you'd pick Kobe. Do the Lakers get to the Finals those three years with only Kobe? Nope. Do they get to the finals with only Shaq? Yep most likely.

 

I am not understanding your logic because Kobe got the Lakers to the finals two years without Shaq and won.

 

Once again, I am not taking anything away from Shaq because he was one of the last true centers the NBA has had and I feel lucky having gotten to watch him live in Orlando all those years when he was still breaking rims.

 

Having said that, if you use the old "if you were starting a team from scratch, who would you build around" argument, small forward/shooting guard is way more essential to a teams success than center play, so in their primes, I am going Kobe all day over Shaq.

 

During his prime years, I never even liked Kobe, but respected his game. Outside MJ, I have never seen a guy who could create his own shot better than Kobe. He hardly ever relied on complicated offensive sets and 5 pick and rolls to get his shot. A rarity in today's NBA.

---