[WideRight05]

^ It's impossible to have a role on the team offensively because Kobe is not getting them involved. Kobe is putting up tremendous numbers. Not unexpected either! What is completely unexpected and is the complete downfall to any logic of saying those three guys need to figure out their role is when the LEADER is not LEADING! Everyone wanted to jump on Lebron's case for choking, but they guys is not about HIMSELF. Kobe is, and when you have Kobe dictating the points, unlike Lebron, then you have a team of misfits!

Michael got points. he got rediculous points, but his role when the team became a championship caliber team was to involve EVERY player on the team. MJ got his points only when needed and after he set the rest of his teammates up to have the confidence to contribute! MJ did not always hit the game winning shot. But his teammates would never had been able to make those game winning shots had it not been for MJ involving them throughout the game and instilling in them confidence that they COULD DO IT when called upon. Honestly, when has Kobe EVER done that? At the critical time of his career, he sure never learned any leadership qualities that MJ grew into! Kobe can go down in history as an assasin, but he will never be considered as a team leader.

You make an excellent assessment about MJ. I have not seen Kobe play this year, but I would seriously doubt much has changed from the past few seasons in that he still lacks the ability to make good shot selections. The only shots that are usually shown by MJ on commercials or TV are the difficult shots he hit. In reality, 85% of the shots MJ hit were simple mid-range jumpers or lay-ups. He knew when to try to take control of a game, and when to rely on his teammates. That is what a great leader does. Kobe does not have that ability, as evidenced by the fact that he takes a lot of difficult, contested shots when he doesn't need to. Sure, he hits some of them, but if he played his cards right and took better shots I believe he could have shooting percentage well into the low 50s. Kobe is an amazing spot-up shooter, but very rarely do you see him take kick-outs from his big men. Five titles is very impressive, but with the talent Kobe has been given in LA over the years, he should have 7-8 titles.