The Perpetual NBA Thread

**empy** · July 4th, 2005 10:05 AM

medyo luma na tong thread but after the 04-05 season, obviously Kobe has a long ways to go before he can match Jordan. they said Odom was going to be his Pippen, but they didn't even sniff the playoffs, and it was painfully obvious that his teammates really didn't want to play with him or deal with him as the season went by.

as someone who grew up in LA as a die-hard Laker fan it's painful for me to see them like this - strangled by the salary cap, not a lot of hope for the near future, and an egotistical 'superstar' that single-handedly ruined this team. and to think that before last season i was his biggest fan - i even own his white, yellow and purple jerseys :mad:

**ILuvDetailing** · July 4th, 2005 10:15 AM

Skill and Talent wise he is right up there with MJ, but his attitude towards the game is whats holding him back.

**mazdamazda** · July 4th, 2005 10:18 AM

let's just wait when the next season opens...

**empy** · July 4th, 2005 12:12 PM

btw, after rereading my post above, i realize that i'm not being totally fair to Mr. Bryant here. Mitch Kupchak is just as much to blame for the Lakers' demise. i mean, getting basically garbage for Shaq, and now taking a 17-year old project with the #10 pick? give me a break.

**espeago** · July 4th, 2005 12:25 PM

Michael Jordan is the greatest. The man is a legend. He made some bad decisions in the game - some forced by what happened in his life, some just stupid in general. But his stats are phenomenal, both defensively and offensively. You`ll note that Bulls team was HOPELESS without Jordan.

**H1Tman** · July 4th, 2005 01:58 PM

No-brainer. MJ of course!

**theveed** · July 4th, 2005 02:50 PM

MJ made the NBA popular to the masses, period...

**theveed** · July 4th, 2005 06:05 PM

Di din pala mayabang si Bogut no...

Fellow Aussie Anstey lashes back at Bogut
July 3, 2005

MELBOURNE, Australia (Ticker) - Chris Anstey has fired back at fellow Australian 7-footer Andrew Bogut.

Anstey, a former NBA center, put a formal challenge to Bogut, his teammate on the national squad and the top overall pick in last week's NBA draft who belittled the performance of some of his compatriots.

Speaking on Australian national television, the 30-year-old Anstey challenged the 20-year-old Bogut to a 1-on-1 showdown "anywhere, anytime, and I would beat him."

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Anstey said he had been upset by Bogut's comments before the draft about the showing in the NBA of Aussies such as himself, center Luc Longley and guards Andrew Gaze and Shane Heal.

"I would like to think there are three or four Aussies better than him (Bogut) right now," said Anstey, a former first-round pick who never averaged more than six points per game in the NBA.

Bogut, who has signed a multi-million dollar contract with the Milwaukee Bucks, was particularly harsh on Longley, a fellow 7-footer with perhaps the best credentials of an Australian NBA player.

Another former first-round pick, Longley won three championships and had his best seasons from 1996-98 as the starting center alongside Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen on the Chicago Bulls. That did not impress Bogut, who did not like being compared to Longley.

"I've had a better collegiate career than anyone else from Australia that came over here," Bogut said last week. "I'm not as slow as Luc Longley, I'm more athletic, I can shoot better, I am more competitive. So I think it's not even fair to bring that name up."

A clearly wounded Longley said Bogut's comments showed a lack of respect for himself and the other Aussies who had played in the NBA, including Gaze, who unlike Bogut played in the NCAA Tournament title game with Seton Hall.

"I'm disappointed for him that he has made such a clumsy start," Longley told the West Australian newspaper. "He's inexperienced and got caught out. I'd like to see him do well and if he's as good as he says he is - and I'm expecting genius - he should make it. But the signs are not good so far."

Anstey chimed in Sunday, saying Bogut had plenty to learn.

"If he reaches the potential that Luc did, with three rings, then he will have done well," Anstey said. "But it will take him (Bogut) a while to get going. He needs a lot of court time, which is something Aussies have struggled to get."