Kobe Bryant: Has Kobe's Game Finally Silenced the Haters?

I wonder if the folks at ESPN still think Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant is the seventh-best player in the NBA, because nobody else does.

The only thing rising quicker than Bryant's scoring average are the number of people who have recanted on their statements concerning Bryant's guaranteed decline this season.

With each game Kobe plays, it seems his 16th season could be one of the most productive and successful of his long career, and it also means a long season may be in store for the chorus of haters who scrutinize his every move.

Bryant leads the NBA in scoring at 30.3 points per game, while also averaging 5.7 assists 5.9 rebounds and shooting nearly 46 percent from the field.

Bryant's also forcing many people to eat a whole lot of crow.

Before the 2011-12 season began it had become fashionable to predict how far and how fast the Lakers—and especially Kobe—would fall this season, but ESPN and the TrueHoop network's ranking of Bryant may have been the icing on the cake.

Many people, myself included, were willing to accept the theory that Kobe may no longer be a top five player, but apparently Kobe was not.

I'm not sure of the exact cause for this new invigorated version of Bryant, but I can think of a few reasons.

One of them is Bryant's liberation from former head coach Phil Jackson's offense, which sometimes prevented Kobe from receiving the ball in his comfort zone.

In head coach Mike Brown's motion offense, Bryant is able to roam much more freely, and this allows him to be more creative with his offense.

Lakers fans have had the pleasure of being exposed to most of Kobe's offensive arsenal during the Lakers' first 12 games, and they've also been able to catch a glimpse Bryant in his younger days.

Many people have pointed out that Bryant is attacking the rim and finishing with aggression at a much higher rate than last season, and that could be a result of his revolutionary knee surgery in the offseason.

Kobe certainly looks much lighter on his feet, and the extended offseason due to the NBA lockout provided him with plenty of time to rest up for the short season.

But the main reason for Bryant's renaissance might be his uncanny ability to draw inspiration and motivation from criticism.

And the fact that Bryant is playing with yet another injury only makes his feats this season more impressive. Other NBA stars could possibly play with a torn ligament in their wrist, but I'm not sure they could compete on the same level that Bryant has.

The inevitable next round of criticism from Bryant's detractors once they gather their thoughts will likely center around his ability to maintain this pace for the duration of the season and the playoffs, but even that is much different from what I was hearing before Christmas.

Twelve games is not enough time to determine the true contenders for the NBA's MVP award, but if it were Kobe would definitely sit atop that list.

And if you think Kobe's critics have fallen quiet now, imagine how deafening the silence will be if he can continue to play at this level and capture the award at 33.