LeBron James

Despite the game missing some of the league’s biggest stars – due to COVID-19 and injuries – the players put on a great show in Atlanta, Georgia.

Life in our society is not composed of neatly arranged, mutually exclusive categories. When an athlete begins playing at a professional level, they don’t leave behind their identity.

If a player wants to be a successful Laker, superstar or not, they must have the thick skin Bryant referred to.

In perhaps his most defining moment, NBA commissioner Adam Silver found success not only on the basketball court but in everything he accomplished off of it.

As when a Monster Energy drink looks like it would be green based on the can but is actually orange, appearances can be deceiving.

There were plenty of successes and drawbacks to the bubble format the NBA and WNBA used this past season. Here are some of them.

But what about the rest of the team? Have the media given players No. 3 through No. 14 their fair share of credit? The answer is no. Or at least, perhaps not enough.

Winning an NCAA tournament, an Olympic gold medal and the Larry O’Brien Trophy, Davis became the eighth player to earn the prestigious triple crown of basketball.

When comparing Anthony Davis to Nike’s current signature athletes, it is absurd that he does not have a signature sneaker.

This regular season, Luka Dončić averaged 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists. In NBA history, only Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook have either matched or exceeded those numbers.