Give Kobe His Due

Heat guard Dwyane Wade was so impressive in the Beijing Olympic Games that it’s easy to crown him the MVP of the team.  LeBron James was the unquestioned leader of the squad and was consistently productive.  But please give Lakers guard Kobe Bryant his due as well.  Bryant may have had his ups and downs offensively through the Olympic Games, but he came through with his best effort when it mattered most.  Bryant took over in the fourth quarter of the United States’ gold medal game against Spain this past weekend.  Bryant scored or assisted on 17 of the final 25 U.S. points in the contest, including a clutch four-point play right after Spain had cut the lead to five points.

That was the moment when this blogger realized that these guys were not going to let it slip away.  The United States team was too focused and too motivated to be defeated.  Kobe Bryant has been one of the most clutch players of his era and showed how the greatest players raise their level of play when it matters most.  Dwyane Wade certainly was spectacular in Beijing, but without Kobe Bryant the Redeem Team may be sitting at home looking at their silver medals as a reminder of failure instead of polishing gold in all their glory.

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