So it probably goes without saying that 2016 was a weird year. With almost everyone finding something to be upset about during the year, however, 2016 has been an especially important year for the NBA. For professional American basketball, this year in many ways marks the end.
For none, the end of one of the most important careers of all time, Kobe Bryant retired this past year, marking the end of the most influential player that people my age grew up with. You can ask anyone to name two basketball players, the first two to come out are Michael Jordan and Kobe himself. Everyone has an idea of who Kobe is its why people want to copy his turnaround fade away, why basketball is popular in countries outside of the United States, and why every time you throw a paper ball into he garbage someone has to yell "Kobe". For the better part of two decades Los Angeles has revolved around what Kobe is doing. From the days of the dynamic duo of Shaq and Kobe to him pretty much being the sole reason a team as bad as the Lakers have remained relevant, we became obsessed with how good he was and love him or hate him, you had to respect him.
Now that that is out of the way, I can start this by saying I hate Kobe Bryant. Watching your team play against Kobe was basically asking for a heart attack, and as someone who's favorite team resides in the Western Conference with the Lakers we certainly saw Kobe a lot. Speaking of that team, the next end was the end of Tim Duncan's career. The old guard of the West, the San Antonio Spurs have made the playoffs the last 19 years in a row, due in large part to Tim Duncan. The Spurs-Lakers rivalry and the comparison between Bryant and Duncan were one in he same. The Spurs and Duncan were quiet never in the news until the end of a season and consistently winning. The Lakers and Kobe were everywhere in the media through the entire season but inn recent years haven't been championship caliber.
Tim Duncan will be remembered for being good at the game, he was the quintessential big man, he could pass the ball, set screens, rebound and score. Duncan was interesting because he seemed so boring. Inn a world where athletes consume so much of our news a guy who liked to read comics and play Dungeons and Dragons was unheard of. At the end of the day, Tim Duncan will go down in history for being really good at his job, and being in a Punisher comic.
To end it off, the passing of Craig Sager must be mentioned. Craig Sager is important because he was the first sideline announcer to really matter. As Shaquille O'Neal said he wasn't just some guy from CBS or TNT, he was Craig Sager. He would be on the sidelines in loud suits,, like pink with white stripes matching all the way down to the shoes, and interview players and coaches and hold their respect. That is the most important thing about Sager he was respected. Fans players, coaches, everyone respected the way he carried himself, respected him in interviews even if they did rag on his clothes and respected how he would,, when faced three times with leukemia go to treatment before games and then show up to work the same night like nothing happened. His passing marks the loss of one of the best people the NBA will know.
