Since 2010, I’ve split my time between New York and Los Angeles. These years have also been my formative years in sports fan-dom, so my loyalties have grown recently—not in the time I grew up in NY. For all the people who get wonder why I don’t particularly care for the Knicks, that’s the explanation in a nutshell. I’m starting a series of comparisons between the cities. This is the first installment.
The King
Every great empire must have a king. These are the sports icons, the living gods amongst mere men. We know the cities. These are their kings.
New York City – Derek Jeter – “The Captain”
Derek Jeter IS New York sports. His easy charm embodies the blase attitude of the city while his fierce competitiveness captures New York’s determination and grit. Mr. November is the quintessential professional and New York’s most eligible bachelor. There are never stories about Jeter to distract the clubhouse, but everyone in the city has a friend with a story about Jeter in a club. A legendary career and an urban legend, Jeter wins the crown in Gotham.
Notable Stat: Jeter is 5 of 7 in World Series(es?). Judging by injuries to the Yank’s this season, it looks like that will be the number he’s retiring with
Crowning Moment:: The Flip. Jeter makes an unforgettable play that shows the instincts and ballsiness that has made him an immortal baseball icon.
Los Angeles – Kobe Bryant – “The Black Mamba”
Without a question, Kobe is King of LA. The Black Mamba is Undisputed Dictator of the city of angels and you know what? He wouldn’t have it any other way. He seized the throne for himself by way of coup (sorry, Shaq) and has no intention of giving it up any time soon (sorry, Dwight). He has the most indomitable will that I, personally, have ever witnessed in sports and he’s won the hearts of Los Angeles by being a classy, larger-than-life figure that blurs the line between athlete and Hollywood celeb. And it’s not Angelinos, either. I’ve never seen a player who gets MVP chants in opponent arenas and I don’t know if I ever will again.
Notable Stat: Kobe has played enough playoff games to fill three full NBA seasons. He’s 5 of 6 in Finals and is showing that if you give him the chance, he’s going to make a run to tie Michael.
Crowning Moment: The Fourth – After years of hearing that Shaq won them the first three titles, Kobe gets the monkey off his back with his fourth title and first Finals MVP.
SportSRoot 
Not sure if you knew how to add the timelink onto a youtube video, but you can add “&t=54s” at the end of the URL to get to your point.
“He has the most indomitable will that I, personally, have ever witnessed in sports…”
I’d say Kobe’s the fiercest competitor in all sports over the last 10-15-ish years. If only you could go back in time and watch Michael Jordan play…
Great post. I’ll be waiting for the next installment.