Kobe Bryant: William Wallace (Braveheart)
“Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you’ll live… at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willin’ to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and fight?”
A young William Wallace once told his dad, “I can fight”. A proud father looked down at his son and responded with the words of wisdom only a father can provide: “I know. I know you can fight. But it’s our wits that make us men.”
Before the craziness that was his Malibu DUI and The Passion of the Christ, Mel Gibson was a bad ass. And at no point was he a bigger bad ass then when he portrayed William Wallace in Braveheart. The man was responsible for uniting the Scottish Army and leading the charge for freedom against a superior military super power.
Wallace was the ultimate leader, a man who could inspire his men to fight with him and fight for him. He knew he couldn’t do it on his own, so he was forced to instill his men with the same confidence he had and lead them into battle. He was so fixated on one thing, he was willing to sacrifice anything to achieve that goal.
We all know Kobe Bryant can fight. It’s his wits that have worried us over the years.
Tonight, Kobe Bryant must do the same thing William Wallace did in Braveheart. For years it was argued that “Kobe doesn’t make his teammates better”. For years people have pointed to Game 7 in Phoenix as the ultimate trump card in the KB v MJ debate. For years people have doubted Kobe’s ability to lead his team to victory.
Tonight, Kobe Bryant has the chance to build not only a legacy but a legend. In the NBA, stars shine brightest on the biggest stages. Secretly the Boston Celtics are hoping that Kobe wants to win so badly that he alienates his teammates and tries to do it all by himself. If this were 2004 Kobe, I’d say there was a 95% chance that happens. But 2010 Kobe is a little older and, more importantly, a little wiser. He has learned from his past mistakes and knows he is much more valuable when he is building his teammates up, and not icing them out. At this point it his career Kobe Bryant wants to win, and he is willing to sacrifice anything to make it happen.
Tonight, Kobe Bryant wins his 5th NBA Championship ring.
You think anything will prevent that from happening?
Me neither.
