We know what you're thinking (and getting ready to write in the comments section of our Facebook page) right now: "GET OFF KANYE, ER, KOBE BRYANT'S $^%&, COMPLEX!" But Kobe seems to be everywhere right now, so we're gonna keep on covering him today. First, Kobe made his much-anticipated appearance on Shaquille O'Neal's podcast this morning and talked about his oft-rocky relationship with Shaq. Then, during that same podcast, he spoke about how his wife Vanessa calls him—ahem—"Bay-Boo." And now, Sports Illustrated has released their annual Top 100 NBA Players rankings and revealed that Kobe is ranked the lowest he's ever been, which we're sure is just going to make Kobe thrilled.
According to SI, Kobe is now the 54th-best player in the NBA. He is listed behind guys like Ty Lawson and Rudy Gay. And SI writer Ben Golliver went as far as to say that "there is a pretty good case to be made that Bryant shouldn't be on this list at all." WELP.
Kobe was listed at No. 24 on the list last year. And while it only makes sense for Kobe to slip on the list as he gets older, we can already hear all of the MJ fans out there screaming, "THE REAL G.O.A.T. WOULD NEVER LAND AT NO. 54 ON ANY LIST!"
What do you think about Kobe landing so low on SI's rankings? We remember Kendrick Lamar telling how "disrespectful" it was for ESPN to put Kobe at No. 40 on their list last season, so we can only imagine the reaction Kobe stans are going to have to this one.
Send all complaints, compliments, and tips to sportstips@complex.com.
[via Sports Illustrated]
