Kobe Bryant was accused of rape.
This fact is inescapable, haunting and will always remain.
It alienates women, men, the general public. Because Kobe Bryant is (or at least comes of as) an arrogant bastard, a fair amount of people believe he got away with it.
Full disclosure on this, I am, and have always been a Laker, and Bryant fan.
I do not pretend to know nor do I want to speculate as what happened in Colorado in the Summer of 2003. It is not the point of this column to delve into the specificity of that night.
However, it is important to acknowledge that this incident absolutely changes the perception of Kobe, almost across the board. He was at the very least guilty of infidelity. He was (and maybe still is) looked at as scum, the lowest possible being on the planet. He was married. He had children.
He was certainly no longer universally liked, and was no longer the pick so to speak to be the torch bearer of the league. At the time, it could have gone to Vince Carter, to Tracy McGrady, to Steve Nash or Dirk Nowitzky...ANYONE at this point is a better face to put on the league than Kobe.
But Kobe was still the best player. And this oxymoron had to have driven the NBA nuts, and probably still does. How to you advertise the greatness of your sport, when the best player appears to be a possible felon and apparent asshole?
Distance.
Don't give him all the calls, make a point to mention the other players surrounding him or the great players that exist on other teams. In short, the NBA let Kobe still play but marginalize his accomplishments and greatness as much as possible. The media and NBA itself gave him little room for error and from now on the standard that he could play at would be only at the highest level
Because if he was a loser, an average player, AND an alleged rapist, well who would ever take that side?
Nothing, other than championships would have done to pull Kobe Bryant's image from the abyss.
Now, almost 8 years since that July in Colorado, Kobe Bryant is one of the most polarizing figures in all of sports. His winning, his consistent incredible play on the court still makes him popular.
And this polarization, this fact that so many people still loathe and despise him is why Kobe will never be Jordan, or Magic or talked about with reverence. It's why his fine was 100k and Noah's was 50k even after Kobe had set the precedent.
I'm not saying this is wrong, or I feel sorry for Kobe or that Kobe has been vindicated. Rather, the blunt truth of the matter is that Kobe Bryant could very well win his sixth title, tying him with the immortal Michael Jordan, and the focus of the NBA season will not be on him as much as it will be on the league as a whole. We will hear far more about LeBron James and the Miami Heat, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin and any number of other things.
The NBA will always need this. Because most of America does not want an alleged rapist to be a champion.
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