hat's the nature of the beast. The great ones have long periods of excellence and then their last couple of years are often just good then mediocre then poor to sometimes downright unwatchable. How many Barry Sanders or Jim Browns are out there? Men who walk away from the game still at the height of hall of fame excellence...very few.

Kobe is no different from a guy like Derek Jeter. Yes, they can still play at an average level but no where near the dominance we were accustomed to seeing.  

Kobe's announcement at this time was sheer brilliance. Instead of listening to a season's worth of how he can no longer play and how awful he is, he now gets a season's worth of celebration and honor and recognition. Fans/ the media will now celebrate who Kobe was, not what he is today.