Bet the NBA Playoffs
Over the past two seasons in the NBA regular season, the Cleveland Cavaliers have seen their superstar forward LeBron James come into his own and become arguably the best player in the league. Gifted with the ability to dominate on both sides of the floor and finally getting the supporting cast he needs in the form of Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison and Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron seemed poised to lead his Cavs to an NBA title.

Unfortunately, even though he won two straight NBA MVP awards over the past two seasons, LeBron James has failed to produce in the playoffs and as a result the Cleveland Cavaliers have gone home early in two consecutive seasons.

Not only have the Cleveland Cavaliers failed to live up the hype and self-imposed expectations over the past two years, but people are starting to question whether or not LeBron James is really as good as everyone thinks he is.

Before LeBron James burst on the scene and started becoming the dominant player we see today with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers was considered to be without a doubt the best all around player in the NBA.

Obviously, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant are completely different basketball players with completely different styles of play, but their ability to take over a game at any given time sets them apart from everyone else in the league.

There is no doubting that Kobe isn’t getting any younger and every passing game is one step closer to his last in the NBA, but not being considered the best player in the league or the world for that matter is something that needs to change.

This league loves young players and hyping them up so much for that living up to the expectations are damn near impossible at times. LeBron James is a perfect example of that as he does display the skills of the dominant force in the NBA, but has failed to get anything done in the playoffs and never seems to come through when his team needs him the most.

Kobe Bryant on the other hand, has an NBA MVP trophy, NBA Finals MVP trophy and four NBA titles to his credit during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers. By the end of this season he might have one more title and a handful of rings.

A lot of people believed that the Lakers success in the past was due to the dominance Shaquille O’Neal in the paint and that definitely had a lot to do with it, but during this time without Shaq as a running mate in Los Angeles, Kobe is shown time and time again why he is by far the best player in the NBA.

Not only can Kobe Bryant put up 40, 50, 60 or maybe even 80+ points on any given night, but in my opinion he has the smartest player in the NBA when it comes to figuring out a defense and knowing exacting dissect it. Along with is extremely high basketball IQ, Kobe also get done on the defensive end of the floor and has been the best closer in this league since the days Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls.

The MVP award is regular season award and it would be hard to argue that the Cleveland Cavaliers didn’t have the best regular-season of any team in the league led by LeBron James, but I still believe that Kobe Bryant is the best all around player in this league needs get much more consideration for being the most valuable player in the NBA.