It's a barroom/barbershop argument with legs. And those gams? They can really turn heads. It's the rare hypothetical worth working over. It's something worth discussing, if you'd like me to get to the point.
Kobe Bryant(notes), Tim Duncan(notes), and Shaquille O'Neal(notes) all have four NBA championship rings. With each player securely placed on a championship contender, heading into 2009-10, which star do we see getting his fifth ring first?
Each owns sound arguments in their favor.
Bryant, arguably, is on the best team. He has the best supporting unit in the game. He's a month removed from picking up that fourth ring, and despite his 30 (soon to be 31) years of age, he's hardly on the downside of his career. In fact, he's peaking, and he's got a Pau Gasol(notes) on his side. To say nothing of a Phil Jackson, and a competitive spirit that few in NBA history can match.
His former teammate, the loquacious Mr. O'Neal, is on the downside of his career. And though his new team in Cleveland can't boast the sort of depth Kobe can rely on from teammates 1-through-15, O'Neal does get to play second fiddle to the best player in the game. And Shaq, as is his custom, won't let that fact go unmentioned. Over, and over, again.
Tim Duncan, as has always been the case, takes a quieter tone. His supporting cast resembles the game he's most comfortable with. Reserved. Talented. Fundamentally-driven. Efficient. Dangerous. Title-worthy. The guy is so good, his team is so great, that we can barely get in one word before the sentence ends itself.
So who gets to five first? Remember, this isn't an argument bred to determine who would be the best player amongst the three. Though it isn't a huge advantage, Kobe probably takes the honor, at this point.
It's a team game, and we're trying to guess at which crew seems the most fit for pulling in a title. It doesn't even have to be in 2010, and while we're at it, Shaq (a free agent one year from now) doesn't even have to be a Cleveland Cavalier while grabbing that fifth Lawrence O'Brien Trophy.
