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It has come to my attention that some people are confused about the greatness of Michael Jordan. MJ is the greatest basketball player to ever set foot on the face of the planet. There are many names tossed around when the discussion of the greatest basketball player ever is brought up, and Kobe Bryant’s name comes up often. By the time Kobe finishes his career he will be in the top 10 best NBA players of all time, probably top 5, but let’s get one thing straight MJ is the greatest. If you don’t believe me let’s look at what they have done.
Career Stats (per game)
Michael Jordan- 30.1 Points 6.2 Rebounds 5.3 Assists 2.3 Steals 49.7% Field Goal
Kobe Bryant- 25.3 Points 5.3 Rebounds 4.7 Assists 1.5 Steals 45.4% Field Goal
NBA Titles
MJ- 6
Kobe-5
NBA Finals MVPs
MJ-6
Kobe-2
Regular Season MVPs
MJ-5
Kobe-1
ALL-NBA First Team
MJ- 10
Kobe-8
Defense All-NBA First Team
MJ-9
Kobe-8
Defensive Player of the Year
MJ-1
Kobe-0
All-Star
MJ-14
Kobe-12
In conclusion Michael Jordan for his career averaged more points, more rebounds, more assists, more steals, won more titles, had more finals MVPs, had more regular season MVPs, and beats Kobe in virtually every meaningful category. MJ also played in an era that was more physical than Kobe, and MJ would have scored more points if he played in today’s NBA. Michael Jordan was the perfect combination of raw physical talent, god-like basketball skills, and the heart of 100 men. MJ is the greatest to ever play the game, and no one will ever take that title from him.
*I found this chart helpful
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Bryant vs. Jordan? The whole question is subjective with only subjective answers. Why do individual fans get so upset about questioning their personal favorite? My personal pick would be Jordan (because, lets no forget about the Lakers little finals flop against the Pistons w/ Kobe, Shaq, Gery Payton and Karl Malone all in their lineup). With that being said, if you asked someone in the early eighties, “Who’s the greatest: Michael Jordan or Dr. J?”, what do you think the loyalists of the late seventies would say about Jordan as the young upstart? You’re answer will depend on who you like better? As far as skill level goes, we will never know, for sure. Right now, I’m sure Kobe is the better, 15 years ago, probably not. They are probably going to go down as the no. 1 and 2 shooting gaurds in history, possibly no. 1 and 2 players overall. Kobe is now, for all intents and purposes, the face of the NBA. He has taken over the proverbial torch from MJ, who in turn had taken it from the likes of Magic and Dr. J. If you’re a Kobe fan, be satisfied with his magnificent performances and quit worring about whether he’s better than Jordan. He probably doesn’t want to be known as the “New MJ”, he would probably like to be known as the “Original Kobe Bryant”.
Thanks, that’s a great point. I guess I just seperate MJ and Kobe in my mind bc MJ changed basketball forever. He shifted the way people play and look at the game. All on top of being a fantastic basketball player, athalete, and winner. Where kobe has juts been good, and was the second best player on his team for 3 of his 5 championships. Thanks for the comment.
Different eras, so comparison based on stats is incomplete. The league changed after Jordan. He essentially created a new prototype that all teams were more prepared for.
Yeah I agree with that, but just the fact that MJ changed the game (on top of his stats) is why he will be forever the greatest ever.
THANK YOU. Michal Jordan is the greatest basketball player who ever played the game!
Thanks for the read. Glad to see there are still some sane basketball minds out there.
jordan is better now doubt about that, but if u want to make it a fair article then u should also include all-time stats, which kobe is creeping up on.
Stupidest argument ever. They are both the best all-around 2 basketball players to ever play the game, HANDS DOWN. No one is perfect but on the court, these 2 men are the closest you can get to flawless. From incredible work ethic to unblockable fadeaways, Kobe and MJ’s style of play are near mirror images of each other. Through personal heated arguments and the media, MJ seems to be the most common choice of best player ever. However, I confidenty believe it is unjust to say either one is the better because of stats. It is ridiculous to say MJ’s era was more difficult than Kobes.
Michael entered the NBA and made the game his. I’m sure we all have seen an MJ replay and pondered, “Did he really do just do that?” The world had never seen an athlete transform the conception of “humanly possible”. However, everyone can agree Kobe is the closest thing we have seen since MJ. Both found some way to come out on top before the final buzzer. An unfathomable number of championships illustrates that plain and simple these guys are winners, which is the only statistic that matters . Because at the end of the day….THE BEST ALWAYS WIN. I strongly believe the common choice of Michael Jordan over Bryant is due to Michael’s career starting before KB’s. With MJ setting the bar, Kobe is already at an unfair disadvantage because he has to chase statistics. Think about this….if MJ subtracted 5 free throws, 1 rebound and an assist then both superstars would have merely identical numbers. Is Michael still better? NO. Basketball only records certain categories during games. For example, Kobe being triple teamed, tight defense causing the opponent to travel, and playing through numerous injuries never get recorded. Also, the most important statistics like competitiveness, heart, leadership, etc. are not/cannot be recorded. It is faulty to downgrade Kobe because he came into the league at a later time.
Kobe and Michael would be superior no matter what basketball era they played in. God-given talent and an endless supply of determination combined to result in top-notch success. These abilities equip Kobe and MJ to join similar athletes like Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali into the finest class: LEGENDS.
You lost all credibility after starting your argument with the nonexistent word “stupidest.” By the way, were you suggesting that MJ never dealt with triple teams or played through various ailments? A certain flu game seems to come to mind…
mj iz old man kobe iz btr….
WTF Michael Jordan all the way then Derrick Rose
Look Lets not forget that kobe tries to mock and copy michael so how can Kobe be better and Whoever said different eras so stats aren’t “complete” Michaels era was more physical and tougher to score in.
I hate this argument because it leaves out so many great players. Look at the numbers wilt put up and how he changed the game. I know he didn’t when as many titles but had to face the boston dynasty that one 9 titles in 11 years. You have the big O who average a triple double not in one but three different seasons. And the only reason he doesn’t have more titles is because Kareem left to go to the lakers. You have kareem who had the single most ungraudable move ever. Plus kareem has 6 rings, 6 nba mvps, 2 finals mvp, rookie of the year. The you have majic who along with bird changed the nba greatly. with out them jordan would of never been got the media exposure he did. Not to mention he couldn’t beat birds celtics until they were all past there primes.