Best Kobe Defender?

Yeah for the past couple years Thabo is the guy who gives him more trouble than anyone else…he picks his pocket, blocks his pullup jumpers, and stays in front of him off the dribble better than anyone I can think of in recent history.
Tony Allen is good against him too, but he’s so undisciplined that he picks up fouls in the last 5 secs of the shot clock biting on shot fakes.

It might be Thabo right now hard to argue with those numbers.  Also Harden is no slouch, I still can’t get over ppl who ripped Presti for taking him over Tyreke Evans.

As for the other guys I think Toney Allen is too small and Kobe would post him up.

Lebron is obviously a great defender and Kobe isn’t posting him up but on the perimeter I think Kobe would score on him.

I think guys who are long like James Posey, Battier, Bowen, Prince, Marion do better against Kobe compared to smaller players.

 For me it´s also Thabo. I think Tony Allen does a nice job, but like NYK2010 says length is critical in defending Kobe. Unfortunately all the lengthier guys have lost a step.

Last year when he was put on him during the playoffs. You could really see how his length effected Kobe.

Last year when he was put on him during the playoffs. You could really see how his length effected Kobe.

I think thabo usually does a really good job on Kobe. Lebron does a good job on him, but usually doesn’t guard him much until the 4th. Battier does a good job because he is always making Kobe work for his shots and doesn’t go for the fakes that most people jump for.

I don’t see how OKC isn’t easily the best defensive team in the league though. Westbrooks strength and athleticism at the point, Thabo, Durants length, Ibakas block party and then Perkins all around solid D. Then you have Collison and Harden who play solid defense. I see what the Bulls are able to accomplish and think that this OKC team has better personel to do the exact same thing. Maybe not quite the depth, but they have an athletic advantage.

The Kobe Stopper AKA Ruben Patterson , I kid.

 Raja Bell anyone atleast deserves a mention here. He was a beast during those Suns vs Laker days

Thabo deserves some credit true, but let’s be honest Kobe is winding down, if Thabo would have caught Kobe at 27,28 he would get destroyed.

Here are their stats head to head.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/h2h_finder.cgi?request=1&p1=bryanko01&p2=sefolth01

Vanessa

Thank you for posting that. Never knew there was a site like that. 

 Sefo is currently the best I’d agree and Bowen also gave him problems over the years. I’ll throw Grant Hill in as a guy who in recent years Phoenix has often stuck on the opposition’s best player and he has helped to shut them down.

A quick long guy will always give a player problems even Kobe but I agree that Kobe of maybe 5 years ago would have destroyed virtually anyone who was put on him. He is still an elite franchise player but was playing at a level beyond that at his very peak.

I’d have loved to have seen a peak MJ against a peak Kobe, that would have been some battle.

You know who also defends him very well, Ray Allen.

We don’t think of Ray Allen as a top-notch defender but he is extremely disciplined, can stay in front of Kobe, and never bites on pump-fakes.  

 Shane is do you guys rember the rockets laker series and the book of defensive schemes named the "KOBE RULES":  a futuristic version of the jordan rules with stats,percentages,and details  on everything kobe does? or anytime shane stuck kobe.

Sefo is a pesky defender and long but shane is an hired assassin he will get the job done on anybody and uses his head alot more then most of the top defenders so stays out of foul trouble while playing more career mins a game then sefo .

I hated shane Kobe is my all time fav so everytime he sticks kobe it gets under my skin .My second fav player is tony allen but I still say shane sticks kobe better then the rest due to exp,brains,skill,and composure.

Battier has done it well for years, still a great defender but he’s getting up there as well, Tony Allen is great, but Thabo is amazing at putting on-ball pressure, the best in the league, and at this time for Kobe, he’s not nearly as explosive as he once was, so you rarely have to worry about the drive, if Thabo keeps this up even for 1 of the next two games, this series is over, because Kobe relly couldn’t get anything going.

Now a day. Can definately see the decline.

The best defense on Kobe is Kobe.

When he’s playing the game the right way and is healthy, there’s no defender that can stop him.

I like Luc Richard Mbah a Moute on him the best though.

 Put Kobe in the post with Thabo by allowing Sessions to do his job and take on the playmaking role and you would see things a lot more different. Mike Brown has it in his mind that Kobe needs to play like LBJ by having the ball in his hands and being put at the top of the key to create when that is simply NOT Kobe’s game anymore. Doesn’t have the explosiona dn athleticism to do this nor the ballhandling thanks to multiple hand injuries. Put in the post where he can his power or finesse, IMO, no player can guard him 1v1. Otherwise Thabo IS the best Kobe defender in the game right now. He actually guarded him quite well ever since he was a rookie on the Bulls. Still my opinion though that no one can handle Kobe when he is put closer to the rim and not asked to create from so far out.

Ray Allen no offense but he’s been torched by Kobe for years.

The year Boston beat the Lakers in the Finals they doubled Kobe a lot and Posey was on him a decent amount of the time.

Allen is in great shape but he can’t check Kobe and now it’d be even worse than a few yrs ago.

I like Iguapop’s suggestion of Kobe playing off the ball, this suddenly spreads the floor and will at least open up some shooting opportunities for Sessions. If the Lakers also put their best 3 point shooting SF on court at the same time then match ups become a real issue, Bynum and Gasol are a force inside, if you double team Kobe then the SF is free as Sessions will need to be marked.

I either seem to totally love or hate 99% of what IndianaBasketball writes, but he’s absolutely right in this case. Mbah a Moute is a beast on Kobe.  The length, sheer size, speed, footwork – everything you’d want.  He’s the most underrated defensive player in the league.