For as much as Lakers fans may want to believe that Kobe could sneak away with the MVP this year in an utterly underwhelming field, the truth is there is really only one guy who could be considered the favorite to take home the award and his name is Derrick Rose.
Rose is now a legitimate superstar. He has the ability to get seemingly anywhere he wants with the ball in his hands. He is the rare combination of a guard who is both herky-jerky (Manu Ginobli) and ridiculously athletic (Russell Westbrook). When he goes to the basket he moves with irresistible power and grace and explosion. He doesn’t just score the ball, he devours the rim.
As I watch highlights and mix tapes of Rose on YouTube I think about what it would be like to see these two squads tangle in the Finals. There would be kind of a sweet symmetry to that match-up, wouldn’t there?. Epic story thread years in the making finally coming to a conclusion (or completely unraveling) and new narratives undergoing their genesis.
Imagine Kobe attempting to tie His Airness for six titles while going up against the great one’s franchise. Phil Jackson, who beat the Lakers for his first championship, plays the Bulls for (presumably) his last. Derrick Rose attempting to blast through the specter of MJ’s enormous shadow. Magic talking revenge for the ‘91 finals. Every backup point guard and center and role player who ever suited up for Phil will probably have an opinion. Ron Harper, John Salley and down the line. Even that troll of trolls Jerry Krause might crawl out of the gutter to lambaste PJ for being the real reason the Bulls dynasty broke up. It would be a media bonanza.
But is that the real reason I’m hoping this will happen?
Next: Something New