Some lead by example. Some lead by voice. Some lead by friendship. Some lead by fear.
I truly believe that anyone can be a leader and can use any of one of the qualities above or even a combination of all four; however, the one quality a leader must possess (and Aretha Franklin said it best)
R E S P E C T.
R E S P E C T.
Since the NBA finals is fresh in my mind and I have gone on record talking about the greatness of Kobe Bryant, I decided to watch the finals with a different perspective. I didn't watch necessarily to see who won, I watched to see if Kobe had finally become a leader. When comparisons to him and Michael Jordan are made, most would agree that talent wise, they are very close. Where the argument gets fuzzy is when the ability to lead other men gets brought up. Most would argue that MJ knew how to lead. He made others around him better and thus helped himself and a bunch of other scrubs win multiple championships.
How did he do it? FEAR. He had one of the most menacing stares ever to come upon the face of a man. He would stare down an opponent and have him shaking in his nikes. He would stare down a teammate and have him saying, "Yes MJ. Whatever you want MJ. Here is the ball MJ." He would stare down an referee and as if to say, "I could call David Stern right now and have you fired on the spot." (sidenote: MJ never fouled out of a single game after his rookie year).
And this "stare" created MJ the leader. Sure he led by example and that is how it started but he struck so much FEAR in everyone around him, that he became a great leader and thereby earned R E S P E C T.
Now on to Kobe. We all know that MJ is his hero. He has mimicked his every move since being drafted out of Lower Merion High in Philadelphia. He wags his tongue. He flies through the air. He mastered the turnaround jumper. He buddied up to Phil Jackson. And.....he tried to mimick Jordan's menacing stare.
As I watched the finals these past few weeks, I concentrated on Kobe. I wanted to see if he had indeed become a leader. He plays harder than anyone. He practices harder than anyone. He wants to win more than anyone. You would think that just purely through example, that Kobe could and should be a great leader. When he gets on the court and sees things are going the wrong way, he tries to STARE down his opponents, his teammates, and the referees BUT here is where the difference lies between him and Michael Jordan:
All those people STARE back.
Result = Kobe doesn't get the calls. Kobe doesn't create the fear. Kobe's teammates don't respond positively. And therefore Kobe does not garner the R E S P E C T that I think he deserves.
Is it his fault? Maybe. But that is not the point. It doesn't matter who's fault it is, what matters is that Kobe lacks respect and therefore is not a leader. This was so clear to me as I watched the finals. They always had the camera on the circle of players during timeouts. When Kevin Garnett or Ray Allen or Doc Rivers spoke, everyone listened. You could see it in their eyes. They had their respect and therefore whatever those guys said, the players did. They believed it could and would happen.
When Kobe was yelling at his teammates in the huddle, you could also see it his teammates eyes: They doubted. I saw no respect for Kobe or his ability to lead. Phil Jackson wouldn't even be looking at him sometimes (I think he was actually looking for his dentures behind the bench....what his he now 70 years old?).
Anyway, some people have it and some people don't. Can one develop leadership qualities...sure. But it's not the man that decides he can lead, it's the people around him that decide if he's a leader.
10 comments:
I agree with your assessment Dro. Jordan definitely was the leader of his team and they definitely listened to him. I think it got that way because early in his career Jordan would say "I told you so" with a look or verbally. "I told you to give me the ball", "I told you to take the shot", "I told you to run that play", "I told you not to call that foul." People don't like to hear "I told you so." Eventually they didn't want to hear him say it anymore and just did what he told them to do and he was able to deliver. Kobe can deliver, he just needs to say "I told you so" more often.
You're exactly right. Respect is the single most important trait that must exist. Maybe it goes a little deeper. When you ask a person what they want most in life, and especially in the workplace it's respect. They might not identify it as that, but at the end of the day that is a huge priority for all of us. People want more money, cause they want respect. They want more responsibility cause they want respect. They want knowlegde cause they want respect. People need to feel respected. People earn respect in various ways - knowledge, talent, fear, experience, the car they drive...but one of the best ways to earn respect is to treat others with respect. I think a leader that can treat others with respect, even if circumstances may not warrant it, earns respect. If what you say is true about Kobe, that the players around him don't respect him, perhaps that's why. Somehow Jordan found a way to be hard on his teammates but still be respectful to them. Perhaps Kobe has failed to do this. Of course he can treat them respect when they're playing well, but you prove your respect when they're not playing well. This builds their confidence and helps them reach their potential. Plus the Celtic defense was good.
Truly genius Dro, Im talking about your Us Open post. Your laker post sucks though. Kobe is a leader, But he needs to raise his teams toughness which I think he will probably do next year. TOD
A true leader not only respects his team mates, but inspires them as well. If Kobe wants to be a great leader for the Lakers he needs to inspire others around him, and fear probably isn't the best way to accomplish it. True, fear can inspire others to action, but it certainly isn't the best way to inspire, and it will never lead to the best possible results either.
MJ was respectful to his teammates? The dude punched Steve Kerr in the face during practice! Pippen hated the guy and the rest of the players were a bunch of hacks that were just glad they made it to the NBA somehow.
MJ got respect because he came first. He put the NBA back on the map and made everyone associated with it rich. They loved him because of that and were able to look the other way when MJ did something stupid like gamble away millions or cheat on his wife. They looked the other way and in my opinion probably covered it up for him in ALL cases. People RESPECTED MJ not beacause they wanted to, but because they had to.
Kobe on the other hand came into a totally different league. A time when the league was already tagged as a "Thug" filled and overpaid bunch of gangsters. The NBA was already back on the map and rich as ever. So why would they respect some 18 year old kid trying to be MJ? They actually disrespect him for doing so and turn on him every chance they get. (please see celtic vs. laker series 2008)
If the roles were reversed we'd be discussing why Kobe got respect and why MJ doesn't. Kobe is the best player in the world and if you are his teammate you should do everything that he says if you want to win a championship. I think the look you saw in the laker bench was "oh crap, kobe is going to kill us after this game" They respect him, they just suck so please don't blame my boy Kobe. MJ Sucks!
Shackie
Shackie is correct. Kobe's steller leadership is the only thing that stood between a 30-some-odd point blow out in game 6 and a 50-point blow out in game 6. He is, without question, a better leader than MJ.
Sorry, I forgot that we had a lawyer in the group........Whatever he says is correct. Please disregard my other post. Kobe is horrible, MJ was the greatest thing that ever happened. Kobe is a rapist and a whoremonger, I hate kobe bryant, MJ is awesome, Kobe is not a leader, MJ is da man, Kobe is the only reason the Lakers lost, he had nothing to do with their yearl long success, kobe is gay, MJ is my idol BLAH BLAH BLAH.
PS- Wilt Chamberlain was a true leader. He led over 10,000 woman to his hotel room during his career.
sorry, that was chad not heather....that would be sweet if it was though huh? Shackie
I agree with your assessment. Kobe could not even gain my respect in watching the finals. I think that is the ultimate test. As a sports fan (and a Laker fan) I watched the games in the finals to see if there would be the kind of performace - that head and shoulders above the crowd type of presence on the court that would indicate that Kobe had joined the pantheon of basketball gods. It wasn't there. When you viewed Magic, Jordan and Bird you always knew when they were on the court. There was an electric energy that followed them. They were larger than life. Often during the finals I had to look to see if Kobe was on the floor -- he just sort of disappeared at times. Perhaps its because he doesn't have the respect of his teammates, his coach, or the refs, or perhaps its just that he just doesn't have the persona - yet.
Ouch! Shackie/Heather pulling out the lawyer card. In retrospect, some comments are better made after an individual has had a chance to distance himself from the catastrophic collapse of his favorite NBA team. I apologize for the timing of my sarcastic barb directed at Kobe.
Post a Comment