Tracy McGrady made waves in the basketball world with his recent comments in which he indicated that given a prime Shaquille O’Neal, he could have won a championship.
T-Mac’s comments drew the ire of many basketball fans, and Kobe Bryant fans in particular, who saw this as the latest example of the recent, cavalier disrespect of the late, great Kobe Bryant.
McGrady’s comments are a clear swipe at Bryant’s greatness and are laced with the sentiment that any reasonably talented two guard, at that time, could replace Kobe on the three-peat Lakers ( the Lakers won NBA titles from 2000-02) and the purple and gold still hoists championship hardware.
After fans and supporters of the tragically departed and beloved superstar pushed back against McGrady’s take, T-Mac attempted to walk back his previous words, saying “ Kobe is
my brother…it came out as me replacing Kobe. I never said I was better than Kobe.”
Someone who didn’t let T-Mac off the hook was former NBA player Baron Davis. The two-time NBA All-Star took to the formerly bird logoed social media platform to call out McGrady.
T-Mac was a brilliant offensive performer and while the argument could be made that those Lakers team may not lose much offensively, it completely omits the defensive side of the game. While McGrady had the physical tools to be a good defender he was never the elite defender that Bryant was, something that did not escape Davis’ notice.
Salute to Baron Davis for using his voice to push back against these shameful attempts to diminish the basketball legacy of Kobe Bryant.
