Not as close as we thought the vote would be. Kobe received 82 1st place votes and I believe they said Chris Paul received something like 22 1st place votes, it was a landslide.

can somebody please post the video?! please

ill give the first poster of the mvp video a positive vote

Here is the video of the press conference:

http://broadband.nba.com/cc/playa.php?c ... ondClick=1

Also, there is no need to give me a positive vote.

For lo these many years Kobe Bryant has been universally celebrated as being the best player in the NBA. No ands, ifs or buts. But the MVP trophy has always eluded him — until today.

What's the difference between then and now?

For starters, during the most recent Lakers championship seasons (2000-02), Kobe shared the spotlight with Shaq. And despite Shaq's peace-making public announcements that the Lakers were "Kobe's team," there was no question that the Big Enchilada was the piece d'resistance. Simply because he was so dominant in the middle, defenses had to load up to prevent Shaq's dunkers, flip-hooks and baseline push-shots. This in-the-paint focus meant that Kobe was rarely double-teamed.

So it was that the Lakers were able to play inside-out basketball, with even the threat of Shaq's power game setting up just about everything the Lakers wanted to accomplish on offense.

Once Shaq was dealt to Miami, the Lakers were truly Kobe's team. Trouble was that they were either mediocre or sometimes even worse. And without Shaq's immense presence, Kobe ran amok — routinely breaking the offense, beating the ball to death while his teammates spectated, passing only when no shot was available, playing sometimes-defense and upon occasion, publicly denigrating the skills of his teammates.

For sure, he was still the league's premier player for several reasons:


He was a better shooter and defender than LeBron James, Allen Iverson and Dwyane Wade.

He could go get the ball and not have to wait for a first-class delivery before going to work — like Tim Duncan and Yao Ming.

He had more heart than Dirk Nowitzki.

Unlike Shaq, he wasn't on his last legs.

He was more dynamic on both ends of the court than Steve Nash.

He often talked the talk but he was also capable of walking the walk — unlike Gilbert Arenas.

Even so, the writers and broadcasters didn't take kindly to Kobe's selfishness, arrogance and petulance. He was still seen as Shaq's sidekick, who despite his on-court genius, was too big for his britches. Besides, how valuable could Kobe be if, with Shaq elsewhere, the Lakers had failed to make the playoffs once and failed to survive the first round twice?

To say nothing of Phil Jackson's opining that Kobe was "uncoachable."

Throw in all the other sideshows — the rape charge, the demand to be traded — and Kobe was deemed to be a great player but a poor teammate. Perhaps the Most Volatile Player, but definitely not the Most Valuable.

The question remains: What changed between then and now?

Since the negative publicity that was aroused by the legal proceedings in Colorado, Kobe has made an effort to maintain a positive, friendly and agreeable public persona.

The ruckus over last summer's demand to be traded was actually caused by an anonymous anti-Kobe someone in the Lakers front office trying to stir up enough trouble so that Bryant would indeed be traded.

After unsuccessfully playing the game "his way," Kobe grudgingly accepted the wisdom and the necessity of making a full commitment to the triangle offense.

The coming on-board of Derek Fisher was a critical piece in the puzzle. Even in the championship years, Fish was the only Laker who voluntarily hung with Kobe and lent a sympathetic ear, while also making sure that Kobe understood how self-defeating his selfish play really was.

The early-season blossoming of Andrew Bynum transformed the Lakers from a win-some-lose-some outfit into a legitimate contender. And this is what truly challenged Kobe's already ferocious competitive nature. Yes, this team could win it all — if only Kobe forgot about being a one-man band.

When Bynum went down for the count, Kobe's (and the Lakers') spirits were quickly revived with the arrival of Pau Gasol. Here was a guy who was happy to be an enabler, who picked up all the intricacies of the triangle with ease, who shunned the spotlight and who simply knew how to play the game.

For all of these reasons, Kobe could smell another championship, one in which he (and not Shaq) would be the prime mover. So he became the model of decorum.


Encouraging his teammates, both the veterans and the yearlings.

Keeping faith with the offense (or at least more than ever before).

Passing up what he knew were makeable shots in order to deliver a bankable dime to a teammate.

Keeping his gambling to a minimum and playing diligent defense.

Even rebounding!
For certain, Kobe is still somewhat arrogant. Count all the times he informs an opponent that nobody can guard him. "No, no," he'll say, with a wagging of his head after he's scored still another amazing bucket. And he's usually right — when his mojo is working Kobe cannot be defended. But to a certain degree, all high-profile scorers require a well-formed ego in order to do what they're supposed to do.

In the past, Kobe wanted to be a leader, but none of his teammates wanted to follow him. This season, however, he's begun to fully trust his teammates, and they've responded by fully trusting him.

So whatever "Most Valuable Player" really means, it's still an award that the players appreciate even more than the fans do. And after all these years, the best player finally deserves to be honored as the most valuable.

For Kobe Bryant, the trophy is indeed an honor, but it's also a responsibility.

Let's see how he responds during the next few weeks.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/8111 ... -first-MVP

What makes the Lakers guard so difficult off the court is precisely what makes him so great on the court.
May 7 2008


I had to ask him.

Kobe Bryant had just accepted the most meaningful, coveted most-valuable-player award of any sport, gripping it tight amid a hotel ballroom teeming with legends and love.

But I had to ask him.

Now that he is basketball's official king of unselfishness, does he regret those times last spring when he was so selfish?

Now that he is basketball's official portrait of teamwork, does he regret those summer days when he was the Lakers' worst teammate?

"No," he said, staring coldly. "I was right the whole time."

He paused. The room fell silent.

"I'm joking!" he said suddenly with a laugh, and, filled with great and obvious relief, everyone laughed with him.

Maybe he was joking. Maybe he wasn't. The only thing certain is that those five seconds symbolized a dozen years.

Bryant can make you shake your head in sadness, then shake your head in amazement.

He can make you scream with frustration, then scream with excitement.

He can make you wish he would disappear, then pray he never leaves, all in the same 11-month period, which is exactly what has happened during this most surreal of seasons.

"It's Hollywood," Bryant said with unabashed glee. "It's a movie script."

The award, officially announced Tuesday during a news conference, appropriately paints a season that serves as a metaphor for a career.

MVP.

Most Vexing Player.

Most Valuable Player.

It is impossible to separate one from the other, if only because one feeds off the other.

What makes Bryant so difficult off the court is precisely what makes him so great on the court.

The cold blood that led him to call Lakers owner Jerry Buss an "idiot" is the same cold blood that enables him to brilliantly take, and make, every big shot.

The self-centered nature that makes him so aloof from his teammates and the community is the same self-centered nature that allows him to unflinchingly carry all of them in crunch time.

The focused drive that ultimately destroyed his relationship with Shaquille O'Neal is the same focused drive that has built this team into a potential champion.

The paradox was in full view during the first round's Game 4 in Denver.

Before tipoff, Bryant was seen ignoring all locker room small talk and niceties, glaring at everyone and stalking away.

But in the fourth quarter that night, the glare became a dagger, and the stalk became a swagger, and the Nuggets never stood a chance.

"What Kobe has is both a blessing and a curse," said Brian Shaw, the Lakers assistant who has closely watched Bryant throughout his career. "The same things that make him so good are the same things that turn everyone off."

A blessing and curse.

It would be untrue to Bryant's legacy to focus on one without the other.

We can't celebrate this week's "MVP" chants without remembering this early-season's boos.

We can't marvel at how the Denver fans cheered for him last week without remembering their Eagle-related catcalls several years ago.

We cannot marvel that both he and O'Neal have won one MVP award each without wondering why they could not have stayed together and turned them into championships.

"Sure, some people think Kobe could be more personable," Shaw said. "But that's just him being focused."

The same paradoxes that have filled his complicated life also filled his celebration day.

He acknowledged that, last spring, perhaps he should not have publicly torched three of the key figures in this season's resurgence -- Buss, Mitch Kupchak and Andrew Bynum.

"Obviously, there are a lot of things that I would have done differently," he said.

But instead of stopping there, he had to throw yet another back-handed compliment at Kupchak.

"I think what should be said -- which I don't want to say, but I'm going to say anyway -- is we have to give a lot of credit to Mitch Kupchak," he said. "He put together this great team, he's made several incredible trades, he drafted extremely well and he's helped put us into position to contend for a championship. You have to take your hats off, give credit as far as credit is due, as well as to Jerry Buss."

Asked about the first part of that comment, the eternally patient Kupchak just shrugged and smiled.

"Sounded like they had to drag it out of him," he said. "I'm happy that he's happy with the players we have brought in. But I'm even happier that we had the best record in the Western Conference."

Bryant was wonderful in talking about the award belonging to the team.

"We have done it together," he said. "This is us playing as a unit. These guys made me look better than I am."

But you have to wonder, what happens if this team stumbles during the next month? Will Bryant still publicly support them while behaving like most established stars and keeping his criticisms behind closed doors?

Will he show everyone the same respect he was shown Tuesday, when the entire team and the Buss family gathered in the ballroom to openly cheer him?

"If we don't win a championship, probably what happened last summer will happen again," Shaw said almost admiringly. "He'll watch some other team play for the title and it will get under his skin, Kobe is just that competitive."

A blessing and a curse.

On the court, it is a blessing to have watched a cocky 17-year-old grow into the kind of mature player now willing to spread his arms wide enough to embrace true greatness.

"In the last six to eight months, he's changed, he's really change," Buss said. "He's really crossed that line [to athletic maturity] and I'm really, really pleased."

But off the court, it's a curse that this journey has taken so long, and has been so awkward, and is still so uncertain.

"It's been a long ride," Bryant said. "I've been through the wars in front of all these people."

It is a blessing that his fans -- who can now chant "MVP" at the top of their lungs for a dozen months -- could hear him say Tuesday he wants to be a Laker for life.

"I would like to, absolutely," he said.

It is a curse that nobody still has any idea whether he means it.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-pla ... ull.column

The Lakers were in a hurry after Tuesday's practice, giving perfunctory comments in brief interviews with reporters.

They had somewhere better to go.

A few miles away, Kobe Bryant was about to be recognized by the NBA as the league's most valuable player, an award 12 years in the making that became official at a crowded hotel ballroom a short shuttle ride from LAX.

Bryant won comfortably over third-year New Orleans guard Chris Paul, collecting 1,100 points to Paul's 894 and, more telling, 82 first-place votes to only 28 for Paul from the panel of 126 media members. Boston forward Kevin Garnett finished third (670 points, 15 first-place votes) and Cleveland forward LeBron James was fourth (438 points, one first-place vote).

Bryant was ecstatic, humorous and perhaps even relieved as he accepted the award, which will be given to him again tonight, this time by NBA Commissioner David Stern before Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals at Staples Center.

Numerous teammates, coaches and Lakers staffers attended Tuesday's ceremony, as did owner Jerry Buss, General Manager Mitch Kupchak and former general manager Jerry West.

Bryant thanked his family, his teammates and then recounted an unpredictable ride that started with wanting to leave the Lakers last May and fast-forwarded to him at a lectern, fielding questions about the feeling of winning his first MVP award.

"I get goose bumps thinking about it," he said. "It's been a long ride, coming in here at 17 years old and standing here almost 30. I'm an old man. I have tendinitis. I've been through all the wars. I'm very proud to represent this organization, to represent this city."

Bryant also said he wanted to add another award in say, mid-June.

"It's Hollywood. It's a movie script," he said. "The perfect ending would be for us to be holding that championship trophy at the end of it."

The Lakers could go up 2-0 on Utah tonight, a possibility of secondary importance Tuesday. Several voices lent the opinion that Bryant was due to win the award.

"I don't know anybody who's ever deserved this trophy more," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. "I've never known anybody that's worked as hard to accomplish what he's accomplished in this game."

West, who orchestrated the draft-day trade that brought Bryant from the then-Charlotte Hornets in 1996, said the award was a "richly deserved honor."

"I just don't think you find people this competitive who play this game," he said. "You just don't. He's always wanted to be the best, and he is the best today."

Bryant is the fourth MVP in Lakers history, joining Shaquille O'Neal (once), Magic Johnson (three times) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (three).

Bryant's scoring dipped to 28.3 points a game this season after he won back-to-back scoring titles, but he was more attentive on defense and averaged 6.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists. He rarely forced his will on games, a trait that had saddled him in the past.

Bryant and Karl Malone each won MVP awards in their 12th season, tied for the longest wait in league history. Bryant is on a maximum contract, so he does not receive a bonus for winning the award, though he won an SUV from an award sponsor and donated it to the East L.A. Boys & Girls Club.

When reporters began asking Bryant questions, Lakers forward Luke Walton and team consultant Tex Winter created lighter moments by also throwing in some queries.

Walton wondered what Bryant would be buying teammates as thank-you gifts, and Winter asked what Bryant really thought of the triangle offense. (Bryant jokingly rebuked Walton for being a "typical spoiled athlete" and spoke kindly of the triangle, a reversal from earlier in his career when he said it won championships but was boring.)

Bryant also made one more reference to that other trophy.

"There's nothing like winning a championship," he said.

Meanwhile, Utah is trying to prepare for Bryant, much less a charged-up newly anointed MVP.

"We don't have to play against the award. We have to play against [Bryant]," Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan said. "Every time I've seen him play, he's played like he's obsessed most of the time anyways. So I don't know if he can get more fired up or not."

The Lakers, for their part, are ready for more fouls from the Jazz.

"We ain't no punks," Bryant said. "It's fine by us."

------

It's still a couple of days away, but Jackson was asked about the difficulties of playing at Utah. Game 3 is Friday at Energy Solutions Arena.

"I numerated some of the things a couple years ago and was fined $50,000," he said.

He was actually fined $25,000 for criticizing referees a day after a loss in Utah in November 2006, saying the league "throws out some referee corps that you're dubious about to start with and, you know, the game ends up like that."

Jackson tried to be more diplomatic Tuesday.

"It's as noisy as any place you've ever been in," he said. "It energizes the team, intimidates referees that go in there to referee the game. It's a tough environment to win in."

He also had one more observation.

"If they get that bear [mascot] to stop blowing the exhaust from the motorcycle in front of our bench for the first two minutes of the warm-ups. . . . After they gas us, it's not so bad," he said.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/basketbal ... full.story