Ran across this article on Kobe ....heard about this on ESPN
pretty illuminating...LOL
Ray Allen is prescient about Kobe
Posted by Frank Hughes @ 03:34:35 pm
I dont mean to be dumping on Kobe any more than he needs to be dumped on given his trade demand today, but I can only guess that Ray Allen was smiling somewhere when he heard about Bryant's statements. Remember the feud between Allen and Bryant that was ignited at the beginning of the 2004 season. Well, here is what Ray Allen said that night in Portland a night after the Sonics lost to the Lakers in Anaheim.
"He's going to be very selfish," Allen said of Bryant. "And he feels like he needs to show this league and the people in this country that he is better without Shaq. He can win championships without Shaq. So offensively, he's going to jump out and say, 'I can average 30 points. I can still carry the load on this team.'
"I think the point production is not going to be so much what people are going to look at because (Tracy) McGrady did it in Orlando, Allen (Iverson) did it in Philly. Can you win a championship? I think that's the question. Carrying guys on your back and making everybody better."
Allen was right about that, as it turns out, but get a load of Allen's crystal ball on this one.
"If Kobe doesn't see he needs two and a half good players to be a legitimate playoff contender or win a championship, in about a year or two he'll be calling out to Jerry Buss that 'We need some help in here,' or 'Trade me,' " Allen said. "And we'll all be saying, 'I told you so,' when he says that."
Man alive, that is some good stuff. He was almost exactly right. It took three seasons instead of two, but Kobe finally did exactly what Ray said he was going to do. Unbelievable.
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/soni...&c=1&tb=1&pb=1