Kobe Bryant can't catch a break these days.

First, ESPN's NBA rank put him at No. 25, down 19 spots from 2012. Then, Metta World Peace, Kobe's teammate from last season, calls the New York Knicks' Iman Shumpert the best shooting guard in the league.

"Iman...amazing," World Peace says in a YouTube video posted by Max Frishberg. "I think he's the best shooting guard in the league."

Not sure Kobe feels the same way. Or James Harden. Or Dwyane Wade. Monta Ellis definitely doesn't.

"Some people get it twisted," World Peace continues. "They make the mistake of thinking the best players are the ones that can just score. That's totally false"

Seriously Kobe, are you alright? It's like that comment was crafted with you in mind.

"Iman's strong, can play defense, can shoot, can score," World Peace adds. "[He's] quick. All around, I think he's the best shooting guard in the league."

Kapow. Now it's no longer personal. Kobe can rest easy knowing he's not alone this time. World Peace is taking on every other shooting guard in the league with these comments...and losing.

We're conditioned to take anything World Peace says with some strings attached by now. Not just because Shumpert is only entering his third season and hasn't even secured his starting job, but because typical World Peace behavior consists of him talking in hyperbole.

Just last spring, he called "Steve" Curry a top-10 player (somewhat believable) and predicted he would win the MVP award this season if he worked on his defense (er...).

Curry gets the #Twinhearts co sign I think Steve Curry is Top 10 in the NBA. If he works on his defense , he will be MVP next year. — Metta World Peace (@MettaWorldPeace) May 9, 2013

Looking past the fact that there's no "Steve" Curry in the NBA, World Peace clearly has a taste for the dramatic. Or, less likely, making predictions that he knows won't come true.

"I don't think people realize how vocal he is," Shumpert says in the video. "Especially with me."

Trust me Shump, we do. We most definitely do.

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