Did Shaq make Kobe better?
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SDLakersFan
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:55 am    Post subject:

They both made life pretty easy for each other. Which is why there's no excuse for them to not have won 5 rings together.

But if I had to choose I'd say Kobe. You didn't want Shaq slamming it all night but you couldn't double him because Kobe was deadly from EVERY where on the court.

Kobe will be the last player we see like that. A guy that focuses on footwork, post moves, fadeaways, midrange, 3-pointers, everything. Which is why it always cracked me up when people said Wade/Lebron were better. We saw what happened to Wade when his athleticism went away.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:58 am    Post subject:

They were both great players who had success together and success apart. Neither was the ideal complement to the other but each was so great that don't really matter

Last edited by activeverb on Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:59 am; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:58 am    Post subject:

SDLakersFan wrote:
They both made life pretty easy for each other. Which is why there's no excuse for them to not have won 5 rings together.

But if I had to choose I'd say Kobe. You didn't want Shaq slamming it all night but you couldn't double him because Kobe was deadly from EVERY where on the court.

Kobe will be the last player we see like that. A guy that focuses on footwork, post moves, fadeaways, midrange, 3-pointers, everything. Which is why it always cracked me up when people said Wade/Lebron were better. We saw what happened to Wade when his athleticism went away.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 8:20 am    Post subject:

According to Kobe, he claims he was forced to sacrifice certain aspects of his game during the 3 peat years.

But obviously they both help each other in the sense that their man can never leave to help w/out paying a price.

Shaq was the main focus of the offense, and Kobe was the facilitator/finisher. It was a fun time to be a fan.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 2:52 pm    Post subject:

ReaListik wrote:
Kobe's life was easier because of the open looks Shaq provided because he demanded so much defensive attention from players that tried to stop him.


Kobe had open looks back then? I certainly don't remember them.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 3:26 pm    Post subject:

venturalakersfan wrote:
Shaq was a top player in the game before Kobe was in the league.


Yeah and Shaq didn't win anything until Kobe was elite and unleashed. Shaq didn't do anything to make Kobe better. He was simply a guy being dominant. He didn't create thing for Kobe. I can remember at the time reading a basketball magazine and Kobe was actually ranked 3rd SG behind I believe AI and VC. Kobe had his most Dominant years without the diesel. Kobe was the one who dictated the game and created for others.

As someone else pointed out before, everyone knows back then the WCF was more of a challenge than the Finals and it was Kobe in the fourth closing games and making the big shots. So while I don't think either necessarily made the other better players (they're both going to be dominant regardless), I think it was Kobe who effected Shaq more than the alternative.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 3:41 pm    Post subject:

Let's not get confused;


Shaq was a great player

Kobe was a great player


Bad news, they had no idea what they actually had going.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 4:16 pm    Post subject:

Ask the Spurs.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 4:48 pm    Post subject:

shaq and kobe "coexisted" like lebron and kyrie. i don't think they made each other better.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 4:49 pm    Post subject:

Luminous8 wrote:
venturalakersfan wrote:
Shaq was a top player in the game before Kobe was in the league.


Yeah and Shaq didn't win anything until Kobe was elite and unleashed. Shaq didn't do anything to make Kobe better. He was simply a guy being dominant. He didn't create thing for Kobe. I can remember at the time reading a basketball magazine and Kobe was actually ranked 3rd SG behind I believe AI and VC. Kobe had his most Dominant years without the diesel. Kobe was the one who dictated the game and created for others.

As someone else pointed out before, everyone knows back then the WCF was more of a challenge than the Finals and it was Kobe in the fourth closing games and making the big shots. So while I don't think either necessarily made the other better players (they're both going to be dominant regardless), I think it was Kobe who effected Shaq more than the alternative.


I wouldn't call going to the Finals not winning anything. I agree that Shaq was dominant and the double- and triple-teams did open up the floor for his teammates. And I agree that the WCFs were tougher than the Finals in 2000-2002. Shaq battled Dunca and Robinson at the same time and he battled Vlade and Webber at the same time. That was why Horace Grant was a big pickup, teams had to battle our PF too. Nothing against Kobe, it just wasn't his time, that came later.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 5:04 pm    Post subject:

I doubt a 19/20 yr old Kobe was making a prime Shaq better. Cmon guys.

In the latter part of their time together, their presence was closer to mutually beneficial but for the majority of the time, Shaq was primary offensive option for a reason.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 5:21 pm    Post subject:

Even at that age Kobe was good at getting Shaq going. He knew how to feed the big dog.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 5:41 pm    Post subject:

venturalakersfan wrote:
Even at that age Kobe was good at getting Shaq going. He knew how to feed the big dog.


That's the point I'm making. When it came to actually making them better, I think.kobe knew how to do things directly for Shaq that made him better whereas Shaq battled great players as well, but didn't directly make Kobe better. The double and triple teams were huge all together, but they weren't directly making Kobe better, he still caught doubles himself. I know what you're saying, Shaqs play DID make Kobe better, but to me, Kobe like you said, just knew how to get Shaq rolling. Heck, Shaq himself has stated this on numerous occasions .

Honestly It doesn't matter, because neither guy k ew how to bring the complete best out in the other. Kobe didn't know how to get the best out of Shaq in keeping him away from the Krispy Kreme a and Shaq couldn't get Kobe to just wait another year or so to get the torch. While they might have been the best things for each other, they were equally the worst.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 5:48 pm    Post subject:

Luminous8 wrote:
venturalakersfan wrote:
Even at that age Kobe was good at getting Shaq going. He knew how to feed the big dog.


That's the point I'm making. When it came to actually making them better, I think.kobe knew how to do things directly for Shaq that made him better whereas Shaq battled great players as well, but didn't directly make Kobe better. The double and triple teams were huge all together, but they weren't directly making Kobe better, he still caught doubles himself. I know what you're saying, Shaqs play DID make Kobe better, but to me, Kobe like you said, just knew how to get Shaq rolling. Heck, Shaq himself has stated this on numerous occasions .

Honestly It doesn't matter, because neither guy k ew how to bring the complete best out in the other. Kobe didn't know how to get the best out of Shaq in keeping him away from the Krispy Kreme a and Shaq couldn't get Kobe to just wait another year or so to get the torch. While they might have been the best things for each other, they were equally the worst.


Feeding the big dog isn't making them better.

If that's the logic, then Shaq could never have made anyone better and we'd all have to thank Rick Fox, Derek Fisher, and Kobe (among others) for making Shaq the pkayer he was.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 5:52 pm    Post subject:

They both made each other better. But Kobe kept the motivation and work ethic, while Shaq's dropped off after winning his first ring. Had he decided to recover BEFORE "company time" and get himself fixed up he and Kobe may have had 4-5 rings.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:14 pm    Post subject:

Darth Los Angeles wrote:
Shaq couldn't close the deal with almost the identically architected team he had in Orlando. He got the same team in Los Angeles and the only difference was Kobe instead of Penny. .


I don't agree with your reasoning.

Shaq played with Hardaway for only three years -- Hardaway's rookie year when he wasn't anything special; the second year they made the finals; the third year they got beat by Jordan's 72-10 Bulls.

I wouldn't say that's an apples-to-apples comparison with the 8 years Kobe and Shaq spent together (not winning a ring til their fourth year).

Plus you are not factoring in the contribution of Phil Jackson, which I think was substantial to Shaq's improvement.

They both showed they could win without the other. But, like everyone else, they both needed talent around them (plus neither of them ever won a ring without one of the best coaches in NBA history running the team).

That said, I am not a fan of woulda-coulda-shouldsas -- especially of people who declare with absolute certainty how a hypothetical situation which can never be tested would have panned out. Replace Kobe with McGrady -- maybe the Lakers still threepeat, maybe they don't. I have no idea.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:43 pm    Post subject:

MJST wrote:
They both made each other better. But Kobe kept the motivation and work ethic, while Shaq's dropped off after winning his first ring. Had he decided to recover BEFORE "company time" and get himself fixed up he and Kobe may have had 4-5 rings.


I'd say Shaq started dropping off after the second ring, but he was still at a very high level.

The thing about Shaq was he had other interests. He wanted to cut rap songs, appear on TV shows, do his law enforcement thing and basically enjoy him. I'm not sure that if he had dedicated himself to basketball 24-7 and won another ring or two he would have enjoyed the trade. Kobe, in contrast, really had no interests outside basketball. I don't think either choice is right or wrong.

Ultimately, both came away from their careers with tremendous success, a lot of rings, and hundreds of millions of dollars. Would their lives be different today if they had won another ring or two? Probably not
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 8:01 pm    Post subject:

MJST wrote:
They both made each other better. But Kobe kept the motivation and work ethic, while Shaq's dropped off after winning his first ring. Had he decided to recover BEFORE "company time" and get himself fixed up he and Kobe may have had 4-5 rings.

I doubt if Shaq and Kobe would've won another ring had they stayed together. Shaq was declining and while he was a really good player, he wasn't dominant anymore. But more importantly, the Lakers would've been over the cap. Their supporting cast had pretty much dried up. All they had left was an 80 yr old Malone and Payton, plus Derek Fisher. They would've had huge holes at SF, backup PF/C, backup SG and maybe more. With no cap space, no real assets and low draft picks I don't know how they would've replenished that team quickly.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 8:32 pm    Post subject:

SOLakerFan wrote:
They obviously made each other better. Shaq was such a dominant force that Kobe had a ton of space to work with.


In the paint?
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 9:02 pm    Post subject:

Kobe always liked to say whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

So if stronger = better, and if Kobe was able to survive playing with Shaq, then yes Shaq made Kobe better.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 11:22 pm    Post subject:

venturalakersfan wrote:
Luminous8 wrote:
venturalakersfan wrote:
Shaq was a top player in the game before Kobe was in the league.


Yeah and Shaq didn't win anything until Kobe was elite and unleashed. Shaq didn't do anything to make Kobe better. He was simply a guy being dominant. He didn't create thing for Kobe. I can remember at the time reading a basketball magazine and Kobe was actually ranked 3rd SG behind I believe AI and VC. Kobe had his most Dominant years without the diesel. Kobe was the one who dictated the game and created for others.

As someone else pointed out before, everyone knows back then the WCF was more of a challenge than the Finals and it was Kobe in the fourth closing games and making the big shots. So while I don't think either necessarily made the other better players (they're both going to be dominant regardless), I think it was Kobe who effected Shaq more than the alternative.


I wouldn't call going to the Finals not winning anything. I agree that Shaq was dominant and the double- and triple-teams did open up the floor for his teammates. And I agree that the WCFs were tougher than the Finals in 2000-2002. Shaq battled Dunca and Robinson at the same time and he battled Vlade and Webber at the same time. That was why Horace Grant was a big pickup, teams had to battle our PF too. Nothing against Kobe, it just wasn't his time, that came later.


Going to the finals and losing isn't winning anything, and Shaq may have opened up shots for Horry or Fisher, but he clogged the lane and post for Kobe.
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2017 2:06 am    Post subject:

Kobe allowed Shaq the room to be dominant and IMO Kobe had to tone down his game (he avg 28 pts a game despite that...which is insane!). Kobe's individual legacy took a hit because of this and why idiots speak of LeBron MORE than Kobe despite the 5 titles. Only Laker fans know how great Kobe was and Kobe despite his "selfish" label would have had insane statistics as the #1 option with a strong #2 rather than being the #2 with a dominant teammate. FWIW.
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2017 3:46 am    Post subject:

Did Phil Jackson make MJ better? Did the existence of clay make Michelangelo better? Did papyrus make Aristotle better? Shaq was an underachieving bum, who was gifted with a supreme level of talent and athleticism that even his piss-poor work ethic could not squander. This argument is D.O.A. and is borderline blasphemous to even discuss. Where was Shaq in the 4th? Where was Shaq on D? Where was Shaq when it really mattered? Shaq was a dominant, yet overrated, bully similar to Mike Tyson. Plain and simple.

Is Kobe winning less than 3 rings without Shaq? No. Put ANY (and I truly mean any) all-star on his team (including AI), and Kobe will get you 3. Kobe's previous opponents would not even dare to think they could beat him absent a stacked team (and/or with injuries). Even Pop would routinely double-team or triple-team Kobe because he feared the inevitable, incoming, incineration from the Mamba. OP's premise is not even really worthy of discussion for Lakers fans that watched this era.
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2017 10:40 am    Post subject:

BadGuy wrote:
Did Phil Jackson make MJ better? Did the existence of clay make Michelangelo better? Did papyrus make Aristotle better? Shaq was an underachieving bum, who was gifted with a supreme level of talent and athleticism that even his piss-poor work ethic could not squander. This argument is D.O.A. and is borderline blasphemous to even discuss. Where was Shaq in the 4th? Where was Shaq on D? Where was Shaq when it really mattered? Shaq was a dominant, yet overrated, bully similar to Mike Tyson. Plain and simple.

Is Kobe winning less than 3 rings without Shaq? No. Put ANY (and I truly mean any) all-star on his team (including AI), and Kobe will get you 3. Kobe's previous opponents would not even dare to think they could beat him absent a stacked team (and/or with injuries). Even Pop would routinely double-team or triple-team Kobe because he feared the inevitable, incoming, incineration from the Mamba. OP's premise is not even really worthy of discussion for Lakers fans that watched this era.


Gotta agree on the papyrus, very underrated
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 16, 2017 11:31 am    Post subject:

BadGuy wrote:
Did Phil Jackson make MJ better? Did the existence of clay make Michelangelo better? Did papyrus make Aristotle better? Shaq was an underachieving bum, who was gifted with a supreme level of talent and athleticism that even his piss-poor work ethic could not squander. This argument is D.O.A. and is borderline blasphemous to even discuss. Where was Shaq in the 4th? Where was Shaq on D? Where was Shaq when it really mattered? Shaq was a dominant, yet overrated, bully similar to Mike Tyson. Plain and simple.

Is Kobe winning less than 3 rings without Shaq? No. Put ANY (and I truly mean any) all-star on his team (including AI), and Kobe will get you 3. Kobe's previous opponents would not even dare to think they could beat him absent a stacked team (and/or with injuries). Even Pop would routinely double-team or triple-team Kobe because he feared the inevitable, incoming, incineration from the Mamba. OP's premise is not even really worthy of discussion for Lakers fans that watched this era.


Its unfortunate the incinerating Kobe had to play with a bum like Shaq.
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