True Value of Kobe Bryant vs. Lebron James

The definition of value: relative worth, merit, or importance

It's the main argument that has been going on for the last 2-3 years in the NBA.  It's the Manning vs. Brady argument of basketball.  Kobe (Brady) has had the perfect formula (coach, superstars, role players, experience) while Lebron was screwed with a team that just ended the longest losing streak in all of sports history a year after he left.  The only athlete I can compare his surrounding talent in his early years would be Dan Marino.  We might be able to settle this argument come June, now that Lebron has joined a team that compares to the other powerhouses of the NBA.  Just for fun and for the idiots that follow the NBA, let's go over Lebrons supporting cast last year vs. Kobe's supporting cast

Lebrons team
C: Shaquille O'neal (under achieved on the cavaliers, but there is a reason he has now been on 5 teams over the last 5 or 6 years, if he were on the lakers, he would be there 7th or 8th man)
PF: Antwan Jamison (One of those guys that puts up good numbers on bad teams, I can guarantee no team will even call the Cavs this year to try and trade for him, he would've been Lakers 7th man coming off the bench)
SF: Lebron
SG: Anthony Parker (WOULD NOT START ON ANY TEAM IN THE NBA OTHER THEN THE CAVS, he would not make the Lakers team)
PG: MO Williams (Another one of those guys that put up good Numbers for a bad team while he was on Milwaukee, Cleveland ended up overpaying for a guy that can shoot 3's, also a shoot first PG, and can play defense just as good as Eddie house, would probably start at PG, but Fisher would be the closer)
6th man: Anderson Verejao (solid role player, does all the dirty work, makes put backs, grabs rebounds and takes charges... oh and BTW he gets paid 11 million dollars a year, WAY TO GO DANNY FERRY)

Kobe's team
C: Andrew Bynum (When healthy is a top 5 true center in the NBA, played well against the Celtics with only one healthy knee
PF: Pau Gasol (offensively is the best power forward in the game, great in the low post, smart passer, good jumpshooter)
SF: Artest (still arguably the best one on one defender in the NBA, and for anyone that thinks he lost a step, tell me why he led his Rockets to a game 7 against this same Lakers team the year before)
SG: Kobe
PG: Derek Fisher (good 3 pt shooter, defender, flopper, clutch, and plays very physical... oh and did I mention he has 5 championships and is a potential hall of famer)
6th man: Lamar Odom (how could you be the second or third most important player on team USA and not start on your own team, hmmmmm, only the Los Angeles Lakers could manage that)

Anyone that used the "how many championships does Lebron have" argument, your IQ must be equal to Antonio Cromartie (and that's me being nice), because as Rudy Tomjanovic says "your only as good as the team around you".  If you look deeper into the value to there teams this season, Kobe Bryant is 5th on his star stutted team in +/- this season while Lebron is 1st in the whole league.  In case your wondering, plus minus is a stat that shows how many points your team wins or loses by, only when you are in the game.  Find me another superstar that is not 1st or 2nd on his team in +/- and I will be your slave for a month.

Value is determined by how much you mean to your respected teams.  If you take Kobe off of the Lakers they are still a playoff team... When we took out Lebron from the Cavs, they went from first to last, and lost about 38 out of 39 games (it started getting so high, I kept losing count of the exact number).  Kobe has been on the team with the most talent, the highest payroll, and the best coach for the last 3-4 years, and Lebron just found out how it feels to play with an all star on his same team.

I don't want to take anything away from Kobe, he takes full advantage of all the blessings he has had  throughout his whole career.  He has 5 championships (Lebron would have 9 if he played with shaq), only wins when his team is favored to win it all (true statement), has never beaten a team with more talent then his, or when he was the underdog (another fact), has as many or less game winners in the playoffs as he does championships (but everyone seems to call him clutch), but his drive to win is higher then every other players (whatever that means).

I'm not saying Lebron is better then Kobe, or Kobe is better then lebron... All I'm saying is we FINALLY get to end this argument this coming June.  If lebron can't get by the Celtics, then I will give the crown to the Black Mamba, and lose all my respect for the King. I will call Kobe the best player of this generation, by default of course.  There teams are finally about equal in talent, Kobe still has a year or 2 left in his prime, and if were lucky, we will see these 2 megastars go at it in June.  If everything works out we will find out who has more relative worth, merit, and importance to there team and to the league!

The Next Bill Simmons
Jobz (special thanks to Stefan Kallabat for getting me started)