Born in 82, as a little kid I was obsessed with Bird. Not knowing any better, part of me was kinda happy to hear Magic Johnson was retiring. Early on, I hated the idea of Jordan, because I saw him as a threat to Larry. Of course, by the time I was really strongly aware of the NBA, Bird’s health was fucked. Still, I hated the idea of Jordan surpassing Bird on the all-time list and rooted against him.
Then in the mid 90s when Jordan returned from retirement, like everyone else, I absolutely adored Michael Jordan. Everyone loves a comeback. I couldn’t help it. Jordan was sacred. An infallible basketball god. Jordan could do no wrong. I had his poster on my wall.
When Kobe showed up, I remember a lot of people from my generation (teenagers/young adults), myself included, hated him by default. Not just because he was a Laker, but because here was some young kid that was replicating everything Jordan did. Fuck this wannabee Jordan. Years of salty Kobe haters like myself who saw him as being carried by Shaq to 3 rings, pointed out how Pau carried his ass during his 6-24 Game 7 performance, never forgot that he raped someone, and just saw him as a top 12-25 player who at his peak was at most 70% of what MJ was in his prime.
But to a generation of kids who grew up watching Kobe, Kobe was sacred. Kobe was their infallible basketball god. Kobe could do no wrong. They had his poster on their wall.
Those kids aged into teenagers/young adults You see these Kobe-stans creating memes ridiculously overrating Kobe as a Top 5 all-time player. You see them creating the absurd arguments of Kobe over LeBron. Moron Kobe fanatics like Jemele Hill wrote articles about how Kobe was better than prime Jordan.
And now you have Jayson Tatum… a guy who admitted idolized Kobe in the same way Kobe idolized Jordan. Someone who replicated a large part of his game after Kobe. They hate Tatum by default. Not just because he’s a Celtic, but because here is some young kid that was replicating everything Kobe did. Fuck this wannabee Kobe. Years of salty Tatum haters try to point out everything wrong he does and undersell every accomplishment (6 conference finals appearances, 3-straight 1st team all-nba, all-star MVP, etc)
Funny thing is, aside from not having the Shaq-infused rings, there’s a strong argument to be made that Tatum is a better player than Kobe was. Exceptional on both ends, significantly more clutch than Kobe, a better shooter than Kobe, bigger/stronger/smarter than Kobe, a better teammate than Kobe.
That’s the main driver in a legion of fans desperately rooting for Tatum to fail.
What’s interesting is that Anthony Edwards looks like the closest thing we’ve seen to young Jordan. Maybe the freshness of it and the fact he plays on Wolves have fans seeing him as non threatening. But once Edwards starts to have any real success, like winning a title, and those comparisons go from cute to real, you’ll see a shift in the haterverse.
nefnaf
Tatum was 24 for that run. Although he did also sweep Embiid and reached the ECF at 22
TheFirstExecutioner
When Ant and the Wolves lose this series and donât win a championship over the next couple years, itâll be his turn to get ripped 24/7 by the media too. Heâs just the new kid on the block for now
25DegreeD
No, to be fair the narrative on Edwards can still change. People started souring on Tatum after the Celtics lost to the bubble Heat. That was the first time Tatum was “the guy” and the first time the Celtics lost a series they were favored to win. 22 year old Tatum averaged 27-10-6 on 41/31/89 shooting in that series.
Let Ant lose to the Mavs with shooting splits like that and the media will too start changing their narrative.
Fluffy_Somewhere4305
I swept Devin Booker – any random HS kid playing pickup
6 Comments
Who cares? Just enjoy the run.
I’ve said some version of this before.
Born in 82, as a little kid I was obsessed with Bird. Not knowing any better, part of me was kinda happy to hear Magic Johnson was retiring. Early on, I hated the idea of Jordan, because I saw him as a threat to Larry. Of course, by the time I was really strongly aware of the NBA, Bird’s health was fucked. Still, I hated the idea of Jordan surpassing Bird on the all-time list and rooted against him.
Then in the mid 90s when Jordan returned from retirement, like everyone else, I absolutely adored Michael Jordan. Everyone loves a comeback. I couldn’t help it. Jordan was sacred. An infallible basketball god. Jordan could do no wrong. I had his poster on my wall.
When Kobe showed up, I remember a lot of people from my generation (teenagers/young adults), myself included, hated him by default. Not just because he was a Laker, but because here was some young kid that was replicating everything Jordan did. Fuck this wannabee Jordan. Years of salty Kobe haters like myself who saw him as being carried by Shaq to 3 rings, pointed out how Pau carried his ass during his 6-24 Game 7 performance, never forgot that he raped someone, and just saw him as a top 12-25 player who at his peak was at most 70% of what MJ was in his prime.
But to a generation of kids who grew up watching Kobe, Kobe was sacred. Kobe was their infallible basketball god. Kobe could do no wrong. They had his poster on their wall.
Those kids aged into teenagers/young adults You see these Kobe-stans creating memes ridiculously overrating Kobe as a Top 5 all-time player. You see them creating the absurd arguments of Kobe over LeBron. Moron Kobe fanatics like Jemele Hill wrote articles about how Kobe was better than prime Jordan.
And now you have Jayson Tatum… a guy who admitted idolized Kobe in the same way Kobe idolized Jordan. Someone who replicated a large part of his game after Kobe. They hate Tatum by default. Not just because he’s a Celtic, but because here is some young kid that was replicating everything Kobe did. Fuck this wannabee Kobe. Years of salty Tatum haters try to point out everything wrong he does and undersell every accomplishment (6 conference finals appearances, 3-straight 1st team all-nba, all-star MVP, etc)
Funny thing is, aside from not having the Shaq-infused rings, there’s a strong argument to be made that Tatum is a better player than Kobe was. Exceptional on both ends, significantly more clutch than Kobe, a better shooter than Kobe, bigger/stronger/smarter than Kobe, a better teammate than Kobe.
That’s the main driver in a legion of fans desperately rooting for Tatum to fail.
What’s interesting is that Anthony Edwards looks like the closest thing we’ve seen to young Jordan. Maybe the freshness of it and the fact he plays on Wolves have fans seeing him as non threatening. But once Edwards starts to have any real success, like winning a title, and those comparisons go from cute to real, you’ll see a shift in the haterverse.
Tatum was 24 for that run. Although he did also sweep Embiid and reached the ECF at 22
When Ant and the Wolves lose this series and donât win a championship over the next couple years, itâll be his turn to get ripped 24/7 by the media too. Heâs just the new kid on the block for now
No, to be fair the narrative on Edwards can still change. People started souring on Tatum after the Celtics lost to the bubble Heat. That was the first time Tatum was “the guy” and the first time the Celtics lost a series they were favored to win. 22 year old Tatum averaged 27-10-6 on 41/31/89 shooting in that series.
Let Ant lose to the Mavs with shooting splits like that and the media will too start changing their narrative.
I swept Devin Booker – any random HS kid playing pickup