Phil Jackson: ‘Stop Comparing Anyone to Michael Jordan’

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• Ugh Posted: Mar.14 at 10:03 am
  Words wise words?
  SUB-EDITOR!

• Max Posted: Mar.14 at 10:03 am
  This makes sense, something Phil said, makes sense!

• Ugh Posted: Mar.14 at 10:04 am
  Haha, got is fast – good work you guys.

• chiqo Posted: Mar.14 at 10:04 am
  if anyone knows, it’s philip.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 10:15 am
  Most rational basketball fans already know this. Kobe fan boys and Laker slurpers do not apply in this instance. This group also includes guys that are “blinded” to the fact that others made Mike seem “invincible” as they (this nitwit group) tries to point out his shortcomings at every turn of the page. You could be sure that Michael wasn’t staying after games to try and “work through” the anger of a loss. He would go out the next game and blast the next team on the schedule….not shoot another horrible game for the record books and rely on his “ship his a*ss out” center to play huge to correct his continued faults. Suck on that, bit*hes.

• AT33 Posted: Mar.14 at 10:17 am
  Only 10 year old kids who have only heard of Jordan from history books compare Kobe to Jordan. Those of us who have witnessed Jordan through his careen know that there will never be one like him. Jordan was unbelievable. Jordan will forever be the basketball-god. Kobe so far has had a great career but even measuring him with his current piers I don’t even think he’s had a better career than Shaq or Tim Duncan. How can one compare Kobe to Jordan if Kobe hasn’t been better than Shaq or Ducan? I think if you want to measure which one is better post Jordan era, I think Shaq has a far greater argument than Kobe, I would even put Duncan ahead of Kobe in this post Jordan era.

• RobbieJay Posted: Mar.14 at 10:21 am
  Although Kobe is close, there will never be another MJ. God dont allow it. No one ever combined strength, elegance, speed, and passion like mj did.

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 10:22 am
  Yeah Phil said it well. Kobe is the best since
  Jordan but that doesn’t make him as good as Jordan. I think Kobe is just under him though. top 5 all time when its all said and done.

• chinhooper Posted: Mar.14 at 10:23 am
  someday eariler,in our basketball bbs,somebody said:pippen was crazy,put mj in today,he is just in joe johnson’s level,i felt this world is going crazy,how could this person said this.OMG.

• j.b Posted: Mar.14 at 10:24 am
  hehe, believe me. This is just another nice motivation trick..
  Watch Kobe blow up in the playoffs(for the last time mind you)

• vtrobot Posted: Mar.14 at 10:41 am
  phil said that kobe is the best since? i don’t think he said that because it’s not true. i’d go with timmy first and then diesel. then bean.

• toinefan88 Posted: Mar.14 at 10:43 am
  Kobe is great but even if he gets 7 championships he won’t be as good as MJ. It’s like his own coach said, look at the shooting percentage. Also Michael was never beaten in the finals, he was a better defender…etc etc

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 10:45 am
  This argument again?

• runNgun Posted: Mar.14 at 10:46 am
  “There won’t be another Jordan… like there won’t be another Sabonis.” – Donatas Motiejunas

• The Fury Posted: Mar.14 at 10:47 am
  It’ll never end….

• The Fury Posted: Mar.14 at 10:49 am
  Maybe in ten yrs. time, people will start comparing someone to Kobe??

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 10:51 am
  @AT33…lets be serious. He is the best player since Jordan and the player of his generation. As great as Duncan and Shaq are, Kobe has had a better career and there’s no question about it. Has things about MJ been hyperbolized? Hell yes. So many guys adored MJ and looked up to him that Kobe will be looked at slewed because he is so close to MJ even though he is not better. We all know there are guys who believe Jordan never missed a shot. The MJ fanboys are now the fathers and uncles of the kobe fanboys. We know Kobe is not better than MJ but he is damn close to being his equal. It does suck somewhat to be Kobe because everything he does is tarnished because it is compared to MJ and usually comes up short.

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 10:55 am
  @Fury, of course. And then people will line up on either side of the equation, and debate it with definitive statements that, in some cases, won’t have any basis in fact. @runNgun, saying there won’t be another Jordan is a bit shortsighted. The game evolves, players evolve, and no one can say whether or not some kid playing in an U-10 league today won’t become better than Jordan, Magic, Bird etc.

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 10:55 am
  Can anyone tell me how Duncan is the better player than Kobe? I thought is was a consensus that Kobe had surpassed Duncan. I could understand the argument for Shaq being the player of the generation but not Duncan. As good as Duncan is he has always played with supreme talent and slowed down alot while Kobe is still somewhat dominant.

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 10:57 am
  The argument is only gonna get worse if Kobe gets #6 and moves into the top 3 all time scoring list. He still has like five more years in the league, so this story is far from over.

• vtrobot Posted: Mar.14 at 10:59 am
  Since Tim Duncan joined the Spurs, they’ve been the most successful team in all of the main American sports. How can you argue with that? If you could build a team with one of them at the start of their prime, you’d pick Kobe? Again, TD, then Shaq, then Kobe. KG would be a very close 4th.

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 11:02 am
  @SG, not only that, but Kobe’s personality “flaws” color everything he does on the court. Sadly, we live in a time when everything, no matter how infinitesimal is pored over and examined with a microscope. There are things MJ was able to get away with (asking bench players to pick out girls in the arena for him to meet up with after games) that would be all over TBL/Deadspin today.
  Fact is, Kobe is one of the greatest players of any generation. Is he greater than MJ? No. But the vehement defense by both sides (Kobe fans VS. MJ fans) is totally out of proportion to the relevance of the comparison.

• greg Posted: Mar.14 at 11:05 am
  yep jordan was in his own world. he had that iverson stamina that never waned for a second. he could play 48 minutes every game and score 40 a night if he wasnt so busy playing golf and partying, and gambling all the time.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 11:15 am
  Here’s a good math equation I like to use:
  Jordan – Kobe = the ability to pass.
  And there you have it! I’m out.

• zoom Posted: Mar.14 at 11:18 am
  For once I agree with Phil. However, as much as I hate Kobe it is absolutely false to say that offensively MJ was light years better than Kobe. Overall MJ was the better player, but Kobe is close offensively. I don’t think that point is up for debate if you are old enough to remember MJ in his prime. Still, to say that no one will ever be better than Jordan is silly. He may not be in high school or even middle school, but eventually it will happen.

• Max Posted: Mar.14 at 11:21 am
  @Fury, they allready were comparing OJ Mayo to Kobe when the dude came out of college, look at him now….

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 11:25 am
  @Jukai, i don’t think “ability” is the issue. Looking back at Kobe’s career, some of his greatest playoff moments were passes (the lob to Shaq against Portland, the behind the back pass to Gasol against Orlando, etc.). His willingness to pass is really the issue. Once can only imagine the kind of player Kobe would have become i he approached the game differently. We’ll never know.

• just bcuz Posted: Mar.14 at 11:25 am
  i mean its really become quite WACK!! we dont have to compare every great player to MJ’s legacy. he is the GOAT, we get it! kobe has his own legacy and his own place in history. i think its unfair to constantly compare someone of ANY field to the best ever at it. it takes away from what they do and have accomplished. lets live in today and appreciate what we see NOW but also remember what has happened before. at the end of the day, ITS ALL FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME RIGHT?

• T-Money Posted: Mar.14 at 11:26 am
  As Phil pointed out, Kobe is close to Jordan on offensive in terms of arsenal and aesthetics. But in terms of efficiency, it’s not even close.

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 11:26 am
  *One not Once

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 11:28 am
  @Just, I think the constant comparison of Kobe to MJ (at least by some) is an attempt to diminish his achievements.

• just bcuz Posted: Mar.14 at 11:28 am
  another thing have you noticed the NBA, espn, and outlets alike have tried to MOVE AWAY from MJ? its almost like his greatness has overshadowed the game to an extent. ppl really dont like bringing him up for these very reasons

• coolhowie Posted: Mar.14 at 11:30 am
  ok here we go again jordan/ kobe are the jordan fans scared because they dont want two another star record to be broken if fans pay attention records are ment to be broken and the man above always know when there is tyme for anther susperstar.

• JTaylor21 Posted: Mar.14 at 11:33 am
  Well damn!

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 11:35 am
  Taking a person to build a team around and who’s the better player are two different things. I like how Eman and Juk’s lay out their feelings and then bail because they know there is a good argument for bean.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 11:37 am
  Kobe’s female fan contingent are making their feelings knows…..what a shocker!

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 11:38 am
  I’ll leave it like this…..Kobe can’t even outduel D-Wade in head to head matchups from season to season…and Dwyane has been the second best two guard for a few seasons now……do with that what you will.

• Fat Lever Posted: Mar.14 at 11:39 am
  In related news, Reggie Evans likes to grab Kaman’s b@lls. Let’s move on, shall we?

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 11:40 am
  KulchaKris: Noooo that’s dumb. Willingness to pass is something people have made up to try and bolster Kobe’s low passing numbers a bit. Kobe has some great passes when he SEES them but he doesn’t SEE them because he’s only looking at the BASKET.
  YOU may say that’s a willingness to pass issue. I say that’s a court vision issue.
  But in the end, it’s an ability to pass issue.

• Jahmai Posted: Mar.14 at 11:41 am
  I have to agree, the fg % is a big thing, Kobe has the guys around him and he has so many moves he has a great jumpshot a great work ethic, there’s really no reason for him to not have atleast one season of 50%. Jordan 6/6 in Finals all MVP’s, 5 regular season MVP’s, DPOY he’s got everything, no argument here, but Kobe haters are really missing out on something great though.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 11:42 am
  @Fat Lever: Loose ball foul!!

• Riggs Posted: Mar.14 at 11:43 am
  shaq is arguably the best center, tim duncan arguably the best PF. kobe….ehhhhhhhhh

• Jahmai Posted: Mar.14 at 11:43 am
  @Eboy, actually last season, Kobe totally owned Wade in Miami, he had 39 points and he just did to Wade whatever he wanted, it was super sick, go look the clip up at youtube, just type in Kobe 39 vs heat.

• BlackPhantom Posted: Mar.14 at 11:45 am
  Well, Phil’s statement really makes sense, I mean, who else has averaged 28ppg,6rebs,5.9apg all in their rookie year

• Fat Lever Posted: Mar.14 at 11:47 am
  Jukai, I’ve heard of a loose ball foul, but never an under the grundle foul. Too far?

• Art of Deception Posted: Mar.14 at 11:47 am
  “Kobe has patterned himself after Michael, and there are a lot of identical things there, but it’s one thing to hope to be like him, it’s another thing to be like him.” had i not read the original article, that would’ve sounded like a diss. c’mon SLAM, y’all better than that.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 11:49 am
  Yes, one game dictates an entire career of matchups, thank you.

• vtrobot Posted: Mar.14 at 11:50 am
  Why would you choose one person over another if you were building a team, if that person wasn’t the “better” player? Sorry fanboys, I know they don’t sell the shoes or have the horribly lame Richard Rodriguez TV spots, but for their generation, it’s TD, Shaq, and then Kobe. Zzzzzzzzz. I’m tired of this. Bye!

• tuxo Posted: Mar.14 at 11:55 am
  @sg seriously? duncan playing with a “supreme” talent? does shaq and now gasol, odom, “strong” knee bynum, artest sound off than david robinson, parker, ginobilli, and maybe bowen?

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 11:59 am
  You toss it to shaq with 1 minute left in the game and he gets “hack-a-shaq’d” misses both free throws and you lose. where as you give it to kobe and he gets a good shot off or gets fouled and sinks the freebies. I want Kobe over shaq for winning the end of the game not being bigger than everyone during it. Shaq isn’t more skilled than Kobe.. he is 7’2″ and 330lbs. Thats not being better than someone that is God given natural size…

• Jahmai Posted: Mar.14 at 12:00 pm
  You don’t have to talk down to me and you said, kobe can’t even dominate wade head to head from season to season, they only play eachother twice in one season, he dominated him last season, if you can’t accept that you need to grow up, the other time they matched up last season, kobe had that amazing game winner over dwade’s outstretched arm, but all of this stuff doesn’t count right? Because you’re much much smarter than anyone else and if you say it it has to be true.

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 12:01 pm
  Been saying this every time any of the mentally challenged Kobe guzzlers bring MJ into the conversation for the last however many years since Kobe fictionally joined that conversation.

• mock&awe Posted: Mar.14 at 12:03 pm
  Is Kobe closer to MJ than anyone else? Sure, Philly is ‘closer’ to NYC than Chicago – but still miles away. I think Kobe is a wonderful player with flaws – flaws that wouldn’t be so glaring if 1) he didn’t try to appropriate Jordan’s every tic and 2) his fans weren’t so eager to be suckered – by him – into constantly comparing him to Mike.
  An example of a flaw of KB’s: once he does something that may be attributed to luck (though not entirely- the boy IS good), such as hitting that lonnnng shot in the playoff’s last year, he’ll fall in love with his good fortune and try to replicate it when it’s not needed. Too many 27 footers from bad angles.
  A commenter wrote last week in one of these interminable comparisons: “..notice that Jordan, even when he was averaging 35, 37 ppg, didn’t dominate the BALL – his decisions were quick (and usually correct). BUT.. damn, Kobe is good!

• Bryan Posted: Mar.14 at 12:07 pm
  I don’t know why people can’t just be satisfied with them as two different players with similar characteristics. If anyone is close to a Jordan playalike it’s probably Wade anyway.

• Omar Posted: Mar.14 at 12:10 pm
  Love Kobe to death but Mike is on his own planet. Mike was bigger, stronger, faster, more athletic, better in the post, better from mid-range, better handles, better defensively and better in the clutch. Kobe has a better outside shot, that’s it. No, he’s not better than Mike but he’s the closest one.

• Enigmatic Posted: Mar.14 at 12:10 pm
  YAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWNnnnn

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 12:10 pm
  @tuxo…I’m saying that the spurs have never had to rebuild like the lakers did through 04-07 which was Kobes best years. I wish we could have seen that Kobe play with the talent he has now. Those two years were probably the best offensive output the league has seen since Wilt. It was ridiculous what he did in 05-06 & 06-07. I agree that the comparisons to Jordan only diminish the things Kobe has done. Its a catch 22. If he plays great then people say Jordan could of did better or did do better and if he plays bad then people say Jordan wouldn’t of struggled like that. I also find the FG% stat a stupid argument also bc of the fact Kobe takes shots no one else would take. If he wanted to, I think he could of shot around 49% in some past seasons.

• lightsout Posted: Mar.14 at 12:12 pm
  @SG: Duncan’s always been on talented team, but I don’t agree with you when you point to the “supreme talent” that Duncan has played with. sure, for a little while he had David Robinson, but he was on the tail end of his career. Since then, the best players he’s been around have been Manu (great for his role on that team, but not an elite player) and Parker (again, great in his role, but not a top tier point guard).

• Bryan Posted: Mar.14 at 12:13 pm
  Omar, Kobe is taller and weighs more so define bigger. Also Kobe has a better handle.

• Jahmai Posted: Mar.14 at 12:13 pm
  I’d say Kobe’s 5 rings are closer to MJ than Wade’s 1. Don’t get me wrong I think Wade’s a great player, top 5 but Kobe has done more in his career than wade has and seeing as their playing styles are similair to Jordan’s, Kobe’s achievements are closer to Jordan’s than Wade’s, so therefore you have to give Kobe an edge.

• airs Posted: Mar.14 at 12:15 pm
  who is this “kobe” fella? sounds alright

• Riggs Posted: Mar.14 at 12:16 pm
  @Lakeshow: hey tell me what size are chris kaman, brendan haywood, kwame brown, tyson chandler, yao ming? Because they all have “god given size”. get outta here with that.

• Bryan Posted: Mar.14 at 12:17 pm
  You missed the point entirely. I’m talking individually. Kobe is and always has been more of a shooter than Jordan. Wade is relentless going to the rack the way Jordan was. Kobe got there and still does, but not at the same level Wade does and Jordan did.

• tuxo Posted: Mar.14 at 12:19 pm
  umm first one, maybe the spurs have never had to rebuild like the lakers because you know, they draft smartly, rise them to become great and stuck with their plan. did you ever consider parker and ginobilli to be an elite talent when they both enter the nba? they’re both 28 & 57 draft pick for god’s sake. consider that the elite talent in your mind. and the “kobe take shots no one else would take” is a bs. it’s more like ” kobe shooting whenever he want to.”

• rondo4mvp Posted: Mar.14 at 12:21 pm
  @at33 u know that that’s fu*king bullsh*t kobe is better than tim and shaq sure their both kick ass players but kobe had a more complete game then both and was a better scorer and at the end of his career he will be the best of his era but comparing kobe to jordan come on guys really jordan was a legend and kobe will be to bujt jordan was at a different level then kobe ever will be he involves his teamates more and stepped up against the best competition while kobe can’t fend off dwayne wade with out help from pau and bynum his body guards jordan would murder d wade so guys come on be a bit more realistic

• tuxo Posted: Mar.14 at 12:21 pm
  oh that’s for you, sg. and lightsout I’m just comparing the elite talent that sg said tim duncan always have then compare it with lakers elite talent. so different, right?

• JTaylor21 Posted: Mar.14 at 12:22 pm
  How can Kobe be the best player of this generation when TD and Shaq dominated like few others have in history. TD in his prime was better than Kobe in every way expect scoring while Shaq put up 3 straight otherworldly final runs and was the more dominant player.
  With all that info at hand, how can any sane human still label Kobe, the best player since MJ?

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 12:23 pm
  @tuxo…you basically said the same thing I said.

• T-Money Posted: Mar.14 at 12:23 pm
  In what planet is Kobe taller and weighs more than Jordan? For real, I wouldn’t take Kobe over MJ in anything (on offense OR defense) but 3-point shooting and Kobe’s shot from deep is not automatic either. I mean, there’s nothing to be defensive about – second greatest shooting guard of all-time is freaking ridiculous.

• Jahmai Posted: Mar.14 at 12:25 pm
  Jordan was relentless going to the rack, yes, but Jordan’s mid-range game was one of his biggest assets, and Kobe does that way better than Wade and Kobe in his younger years, got to the rim alot too. Wade’s midrange jumper is nowhere near Kobe’s or MJ’s mid-range game, so if you’re strictly talking about going to the rim, yes, wade is more like jordan, but Jordan also had a great offensive skillset that Wade also doesn’t match AT ALL, Kobe does, if you look at the big picture, Kobe is more like Jordan.

• Myles Brown Posted: Mar.14 at 12:26 pm
  If only there were a relevant post addressing portions of this topic that wasn’t buried under a dozen NCAA posts with no comments….

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 12:27 pm
  Soooo… everyone’s going to focus on the offensive and defensive differences between Kone and Jordan? Sigh…

• tuxo Posted: Mar.14 at 12:29 pm
  not the exact same thing, I just want to point out the supreme talent that you’ve said tim duncan always have. Tim never have to go through rebuilding mode because the spurs basically developed both parker& ginobilli to be as good as now. did you think if the lakers drafted both parker & ginobilli, they won’t have to go through the rebuilding mode?

• just bcuz Posted: Mar.14 at 12:31 pm
  also let me say this, at NO POINT in his career was kobe ever the athlete that YOUNG MIKE was. when mike was air jordan he was freakishly athletic. i always thought kobe was an above average athlete but not freakish

• Bryan Posted: Mar.14 at 12:32 pm
  Um Kobe is 6’7 210 pounds, Jordan for a lot of his playing career was listed at 6’6 195. SO I guess the short answer is earth.

• BlackPhantom Posted: Mar.14 at 12:35 pm
  TD was better than Kobe in every aspect except scoring? Really? I’ll give you team leadership, Post Skills, and Rebounding. But If you’re saying TD has better ball-handling skills or anything in that nature, you’re stupid

• airs Posted: Mar.14 at 12:39 pm
  on a slow day at slamonline, you can always rely on a kobe/mj debate to spark some comments.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 12:40 pm
  Kobe’s bod isn’t nearly as hot as Jordan’s. Jordan’s gerth isn’t as impressive as Kobe’s. Jordan owns Kobe when it comes to length Hey, Enigmatic: who would u pick?.

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 12:40 pm
  Kobe has been to the finals more than Duncan, has more championships, more all star appearances, more all star mvps, more career pts, still playing at a high level, top 5 in playoff points, top five in playoff games, and etc. I think Kobe has the edge on Duncan.

• SG Posted: Mar.14 at 12:41 pm
  Anyone catch the FAB 5 last nite?

• BlackPhantom Posted: Mar.14 at 12:42 pm
  Kobe is 6’6″ Bryan

• zoom Posted: Mar.14 at 12:43 pm
  Is Kobe officially listed at 6’7″?

• zoom Posted: Mar.14 at 12:45 pm
  Hey Jukai, who’s Kone?

• Art of Deception Posted: Mar.14 at 12:47 pm
  MJ is the GOAT…forever. i think kobe realizes that he won’t be considered better than MJ, but hey, he can still shoot for #2. There is NO SHAME in that.

• BlackPhantom Posted: Mar.14 at 12:48 pm
  Kobe is officially listed at 6’6″

• The Philosopher Posted: Mar.14 at 12:54 pm
  Michael Jordan never got lit up for 60 points by anyone. Hall of Famer OR scrub. (Arenas)
  And, in Jordan’s day, there were true hard core guys trying to end careers whenever someone even thought about pulling something cute in the paint. Now, you can’t even touch anyone on the perimeter or in the paint. I’m watching Ronnie Nunn try to explain some “touch” foul on NBA TV…
  The only thing Kobe has on Michael is the range on his shot. Nothing else. For many, this is painful AND uncomfortable to comprehend and accept.
  How many DPOYs does Kobe have compared to Michael? How about regular season MVPs? Finals MVPs? Scoring titles? All defense 1st teams?
  Never mind, let us touch the numbers a bit; Never mind.
  Who’s the better athlete? Who’s the better leader? No one’s scared of Kobe on his team. Wasn’t Shaq jabbing Kobe in practice? Jordan? Shout out to Steve Kerr.
  And now, even Phil Jackson, the greatest coach in NBA History, JUST laid down the law for the masses.

• JL Posted: Mar.14 at 12:56 pm
  the only thing kobe is better at is 3pt shooting and he’s got a better looking wife. way better.

• Royal Posted: Mar.14 at 12:58 pm
  People are acting as if being the SECOND BEST SHOOTING GUARD in the history of basketball is a bad thing……

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 12:59 pm
  Michael’s current girlfriend make’s Vanessa look like a field goat.

• zoom Posted: Mar.14 at 1:07 pm
  Co-sign Royal. People act like Kobe is trash when they compare him with Jordan. I dislike him more than any current player but I can’t downplay his skills and talent. No one roots against Kobe like me, but there is only ONE guard in history better than him. That’s pretty impressive.

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 1:16 pm
  Let’s just make sure everyone realizes, SG wasn’t a prime position until Jordan. So being that he is probably the 2nd best SG of all time is great and all, but that position became a prime focus, or important aspect in the championship puzzle as a result of Jordan, before that it was typically shooters that would spread the court and work off the big men. Some were used as primary scorers but it wasn’t a normal thing, George Gervin, Jerry West, Rick Barry are the only scoring 2′s pre-jordan that I can think of off the top of my head.

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 1:17 pm
  Scoring 2′s that were considered elite players********

• EJ Posted: Mar.14 at 1:19 pm
  This was kind of random.

• Enigmatic Posted: Mar.14 at 1:20 pm
  @Eboy – Nah. Vanessa Bryant > Yvette Prieto.
  By far. Could be my Mexican bias, though.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 1:23 pm
  Michael Jordan played in a era where there were dominant big men throughout the league…..dominant, not dormant like guys like Andrew Bynum or Greg Oden. In the history of the NBA (up until his time in the league)nba titles usually wound up in the hands of teams that had a rock solid center. He never had that once….yet his team won the most titles in the modern game. Kobe has played with Shaq and now with Gasol and oft-injured Bynum. Let’s not discount that in the comparisons of their teams…not just their playing styles. It’s also safe to say that Michael wasn’t considered “to be on the decline” at the age of 32….if anything his most storied accomplishments happened on the other side of 32. Revising history doesn’t work if you have people that actually were ALIVE when history was being written.

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 1:23 pm
  Pete Maravich (even though he was more of a tweener PG/SG), Earl Monroe (same) – Anyone else people can think of pre-jordan that was a primary scorer from the SG position?

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 1:25 pm
  No doubt, Mexian bias. I have about 5 chicks that work at local taqueria’s that make Vanessa seem average. Stop it.

• Enigmatic Posted: Mar.14 at 1:28 pm
  E, come on now! That Cuban chick looks pedestrian as hell. Ain’t nothing special about her.
  Not her face, not her physical assets, nothing!

• Cheryl Posted: Mar.14 at 1:30 pm
  Funny how y’all are using Phil’s famous button pushing to re-ignite this debate. Obviously, to me and jb, Phil is using the media (again) to push Kobe’s buttons. I’m figuring Mutoni put this up to get 100+ responses on one of his posts. It’s probably an inside joke at the Slamdome.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 1:33 pm
  Regardless, Cheryl, Phil made his most “cement” statement regarding the comparison between the two. I think Phil has long given up on trying to “motivate” Bean….I mean sh*t, do you think Phil pushed Kobe back onto out homecourt a few nights ago?

• Tom Posted: Mar.14 at 1:33 pm
  The biggest difference between Kobe and MJ can be summed up in one word: college. Jordan had 3 years learning to play 5 on 5 team basketball under Dean Smith. So Jordan has knows how to balance his 1 one 1 tendencies withing a team game. Kobe doesn’t. He is like Iverson in that sense. But, luckily for all us laker fans, he’s learned and, even though its not natural to him, he can play the team game quite well when he wants to. I think if 15yrs ago if Kobe decided to spend a year or two at Duke, he’d be a much greater player for it.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 1:34 pm
  The demise of Kobe Bryant has been greatly exaggerated…
  Just wanted to say that.
  Carry on…

• Tom Posted: Mar.14 at 1:35 pm
  Eboy, you can’t compare MJ at 32 to Kobe at 32. At 32, Kobe has logged in wayy more NBA minutes than Jordan did at the same age. 32 yr old Kobe is more like 36 year old MJ.

• Cheryl Posted: Mar.14 at 1:36 pm
  No, E, I think he’s telling Kobe “no need to work on your shot after the game. go out and eplode on the next team we play.” the story about the 27 holes of golf before a game, was the tip off that he was pushing buttons to me.

• KulchaKris Posted: Mar.14 at 1:36 pm
  Funny that Cheryl references “100+” posts, and hers was number 99! I must have missed it, but did anyone in this comments section state that Kobe was better than MJ? I’m neither a Kobe/Laker fan, nor a MJ/Bulls fan. But I appreciate what both men brought to the game, regardless of their flaws. The EBoys and JTaylors of the world are responding as expected.

• Cheryl Posted: Mar.14 at 1:36 pm
  *explode*

• T-Money Posted: Mar.14 at 1:38 pm
  Bryan: You’re really going to go by the weight they were listed at when they entered the league?! Just look at them, MJ in his playing days was bigger and stronger than Kobe. Cmon now. / Can we dead this motivation BS? Like… for good?

• Tom Posted: Mar.14 at 1:39 pm
  And Eboy, do you really think if Jordan had a dominant big on his team like Kobe does that he would have deferred to him?…I seriously doubt that. At least not in the first part of his career

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 1:40 pm
  Only Kobe fans are crying.

• zoom Posted: Mar.14 at 1:44 pm
  It may be the NYer in me but as good looking as Vanessa Bryant, I could go uptown and find legions of waaay badder Puerto Rican and Dominican chics.

• Inamik Posted: Mar.14 at 1:46 pm
  Phil’s comments is nothing new. This is not the first time that he’s hinted that Jordan is the superior player. Kobe in his own right is a great player, and it is not a blasphemy to compare him to Mike. They play the same position, pretty much the same size, both have accomplished alot in the game, and Kobe has done a great job imitating Jordan’s game. But if you do a fair comparison, Jordan is better by far. Phil Jackson of all people would know this better than anyone else.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 1:46 pm
  At the behest of T-Money, let’s keep this area free of esoteric BS. Move along…

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 1:46 pm
  Kobe has NEVER dominated like MJ. NEVER, even when he averaged 35 he did it on 45% shooting, lower then every single full-season of Jordan’s career pre-washington. For all the “kobe is a better scorer/shooter” talk it doesn’t translate into actual production. Inside the 3pt line Michael Jordan is better then Kobe Bryant in every single conceivable way, end of story

• T-Money Posted: Mar.14 at 1:51 pm
  BC: I’m not saying that motivation doesn’t exist at all but how much motivation does Kobe Bryant need at this point in his career? He’s one of the hardest worker in the NBA and he’s got his own race against NBA legends to worry about. I think he’s motivated alright. Sometimes, Phil just says what’s on his mind.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 1:53 pm
  Considering he’s an attorney, I wonder if the “T” in T-Money stands for “Tort”?
  Hmmm…

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 1:54 pm
  Wasn’t trying to diss on that last one, T… Just always wanted to say that, too. Haha.

• Allenp Posted: Mar.14 at 2:07 pm
  Kobe has never lacked motivation.
  His motivations are just different.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 2:08 pm
  In reality, what are we all arguing anyway? According to Mike, no other team has eyes on the title, except the current Bulls squad, until 2017….so Kobe will never sniff his sixth ring…unless he cries his way out of LA and finishes up in the Chi.

• keef Posted: Mar.14 at 2:10 pm
  Kobe has the longest streak of consecutive 40 point games in NBA history, second highest scoring game of all time, and the single higest seasonal scoring average since Jordan. I think he’s pretty close to him, if not equal as a scorer.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 2:11 pm
  Love that spin, E… You should teach a class.

• Enigmatic Posted: Mar.14 at 2:15 pm
  And according to Bron, the next seven titles belong to the Heat.

• Eboy Posted: Mar.14 at 2:15 pm
  Don’t you need to bone up on the history of The Fab Five?

• T-Money Posted: Mar.14 at 2:20 pm
  And according to Dan Gil.. ah, nevermind.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 2:23 pm
  Who me? Nah… That was my era. You know, back when cats still wanted to be hoopers and not entertainers.

• tonyknorr Posted: Mar.14 at 2:28 pm
  Since when was kobe ever bigger than mike. sure he is taller they are both listed at 6’6 but at certain points in Beans career he was listed at 6’7 which always confused me. However, Mike was always more jacked. when mike was in his prime he always hovered between 210 and 220 while Kobe has never been bigger than 212 I believe. currently bean is listed at 205. get out of here with that Kobe is bigger stuff Mike was a physical beast capable of gaurding guys much larger than him cause of his strength, the same can not be said for Kobe.

• keef Posted: Mar.14 at 2:43 pm
  I believe it was the 2003 season, but Kobe actually bulked up to about 225-230. He came down the very next season because he said he didn’t care for all the muscle.

• hoodsnake Posted: Mar.14 at 2:44 pm
  I thought he was talking about Jordan the owner. Anyway when(if) Kobe gets his 3rd finals MVP he will be half the player Jordan was.

• Felix Posted: Mar.14 at 2:52 pm
  Somebody needs to mic Fat Lever. LMAO

• The Fury Posted: Mar.14 at 2:55 pm
  ..I wonder if Kobe checks SLAMonline…but I know he’s a fan.

• sam Posted: Mar.14 at 2:57 pm
  If there were to be another MJ (even though I’m saying Magic is the best of all time), don’t have them be on the Bulls, C’s, or Lakers please. Try the Pistons or like the Nuggets.

• Felix Posted: Mar.14 at 2:57 pm
  Kobe has a lot of game. It’s fun to watch him play. But better than Jordan? Only in LA

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 3:00 pm
  Or the State of California, Felix…

• keef Posted: Mar.14 at 3:05 pm
  Kobe thinks he’s better than Jordan. Equal or better. Of that I am certain.

• Felix Posted: Mar.14 at 3:27 pm
  I think it’s cool Kobe wants to be better than Jordan… keep trying, keep putting in work. But if he thinks he’s better now? that doesn’t sound very hungry to me… Still don’t know why Bill Russell isn’t in the GOAT discussion.Wonder if any of esle will be around when another player leads his team to I wasn’t born when he was doing his thing but everything I have read or seen would say he has an arguement… Also, you could make a case for Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, maybe even John Wooden…

• Tina Turner Posted: Mar.14 at 3:28 pm
  Ummm… Kobe played against the Air decendants (from Iverson/VC to LeBron/Wade)and won the chips. Jordan won it against … the Reggies and Drexlers? Please get Dan Marle in front of Kobe and see if he doesn’t go off on him for a 100.

• Felix Posted: Mar.14 at 3:29 pm
  Bill Russell- 2NCAA championships, 11 NBA championships, Olympic Gold medal, 5 MVPS…

• Felix Posted: Mar.14 at 3:31 pm
  meant to say “I wonder if any one of us will be around when someone else wins 11 Championships” I’m bad at typing but that’s just weird

• Roc Posted: Mar.14 at 3:37 pm
  Either way, MJ and Kobe are the two greatest, and most compelling players in NBA history.

• xxeowynxx Posted: Mar.14 at 3:38 pm
  cool, jordan sounds manic.

• JTaylor21 Posted: Mar.14 at 3:40 pm
  So, Kobe has gone up against Bron/Wade/T-Mac in the playoffs. Really?
  Where the hell is Ike Turner when you need him.

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 3:40 pm
  Eboy – Kobe isn’t crying himself to anywhere…the only criers are on your team.

• Enigmatic Posted: Mar.14 at 3:41 pm
  Ha! JTaylor beat me to it.

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 3:44 pm
  Tina Turner… Kobe has never played against Iverson, Wade, LeBron, Vince or my mother in a playoff series.

• nbk Posted: Mar.14 at 3:44 pm
  lmao beat me too it two

• Clutch Performer Posted: Mar.14 at 3:46 pm
  good its unanimous that MJ>> Kobe, now could someone explain this to these high schools my brother goes to school with

• Cheryl Posted: Mar.14 at 3:58 pm
  hahahahahahaha…..

• Tina Turner Posted: Mar.14 at 4:05 pm
  Or get me a Craig Ehlo for the Mamba to drill a fadeaway go ahead jumper to pull the win. Would’ve been just as automatic. The fact is yesteryears players don’t play with the overall athletic ability of todays player whom by the way are taught better defensive principles than yesteryears players. Yesterdays players had more offensive basketball fundementals down but defense was a forethaught in MJ’s game till the Pistons came along. Jordan was unable to get by them till He had a mentally tough enough squad to win those chips. That’s what seperates Kobe from today’s athletes. The ability to instill this mental toughness in to his teams players and elevate them to champion status. That’s what your Stackhouses, Hills, AI’s, VC’s, McGrady’s, Wades, LeBrons and Durants never or haven’t yet learned.Some due to injury of coarse. Wade only had the luck of facing the weakest minded team of this past decade in the finals.
  The only plyers since Jordan to have this quality learned are Duncan, Kobe and KG. Shaq never had it. It was always Kobe who instilled this in that first dynasty. Shaq was a lazy mo fo who only got up for the play offs.

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 4:13 pm
  60% of the time it works…everytime.

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 4:14 pm
  @riggs. yeah Chris Kaman is a good argument for size? 6’11″ 270lbs of fat and minimal muscle… wait what? gitouttahere wit that

• gpaul Posted: Mar.14 at 4:16 pm
  2001 finals Philadelphia vs. Los Angeles

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 4:22 pm
  Tina Turner —- yesteryears players…?? You mean 8 yrs ago…? I don’t know if you get it really. There are about 100 players in the NBA at any given point with 10+ years experience dominating the league. Show me a team made up of rookies and 2nd 3rd year players winning championships…
  _____
  How about you leave the NBA commentary alone for a minute and go work on another Mad Max movie…

• Tina Turner Posted: Mar.14 at 4:23 pm
  Or get me a Craig Ehlo for the Mamba to drill a fadeaway go ahead jumper to pull the win. Would’ve been just as automatic. The fact is yesteryears players don’t play with the overall athletic ability of todays player whom by the way are taught better defensive principles than yesteryears players. Yesterdays players had more offensive basketball fundementals down but defense was a forethaught in MJ’s game till the Pistons came along. Jordan was unable to get by them till He had a mentally tough enough squad to win those chips. That’s what seperates Kobe from today’s athletes. The ability to instill this mental toughness in to his teams players and elevate them to champion status. That’s what your Stackhouses, Hills, AI’s, VC’s, McGrady’s, Wades, LeBrons and Durants never or haven’t yet learned.Some due to injury of coarse. Wade only had the luck of facing the weakest minded team of this past decade in the finals.
  The only plyers since Jordan to have this quality learned are Duncan, Kobe and KG. Shaq never had it. It was always Kobe who instilled this in that first dynasty. Shaq was a lazy ** ** who only got up for the play offs.

• speedy Posted: Mar.14 at 4:25 pm
  Cosign Phil.
  Enuf said.

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 4:25 pm
  How hasn’t Kobe made guys like Lamar Odom (who just wanted to eat sugar), Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol into hungry winning champions…? The only guy he didn’t have to bruise up was Derek who sharpens diamonds with his punches.
  _____
  Tina really is a troll.

• hoodsnake Posted: Mar.14 at 4:29 pm
  RIP Ike Turner

• Dacre Posted: Mar.14 at 4:30 pm
  Your mixing your comments up tina – one the one hand your saying that todays players haven’t the toughness of the older guys…but they are taught better defensive principles….?? How are you taught better defensive principles… and what principles are they if the NBA has moved their principles to allowing zone defenses… to OPEN up the game for offense…?? If a team from the previous generation was playing defense on you you knew it… you were bleeding, you were hurt and you were crying…you wanted out of the game…. YOU KNOW WHY CARMELO NEVER WANTS TO COME OUT OF A GAME….????????? Because it’s easy to stay in and score points. NO ONE IS COMING AT YOU WITH A KNEE AND A POINT TO MAKE.

• Bryan Crawford Posted: Mar.14 at 4:33 pm
  Annie Mae needs to stuff her mouth with cake…

• el_larsen Posted: Mar.14 at 4:48 pm
  well phil,aren’t you comparing kobe to mj just after telling us to stop?
  forever a dickhead

• el_larsen Posted: Mar.14 at 4:53 pm
  @tina turner
  you seems to forgot the pistons lakers final.
  kobe made the lakers lose,just because he wanted to shoot more than shaq.

• bogoyme Posted: Mar.14 at 5:06 pm
  eBoy sucks heat b@lls. you talk bout the heat and his ‘gina expands bigger than his small brain anywayz… haha look at him bail out his team everytime anyone of you say something bad to them while he brandishes himself as ultimate know how to the facts so he can just say f@ck to kobe stuffs, haha too bad his heat will be deepthroating bulls or celtics b@lls come playoffs, weeehhh

• Brad Long Posted: Mar.14 at 5:11 pm
  As Myles said, “There are dieties to be replaced.”.

• dirty frank Posted: Mar.14 at 5:24 pm
  Nothing to do with this post but I’ve seen nothing on this on Slam. R.I.P. Wes Leonard and Robert Garza. Two young men taken far too early.

• BossTerry Posted: Mar.14 at 5:58 pm
  There will NEVER be another Eric Piatkowski… Unless someone with the last name of Piatkowski names their son Eric..

• BossTerry Posted: Mar.14 at 6:00 pm
  ^ MAKE IT HAPPEN WALSH!!!!!

• The Seed Posted: Mar.14 at 6:09 pm
  Kobe can be top 1 to 3 all time in scoring list and win seven rings. Then yall HATERS can apologize later. Kobe has been the best player of his generation ask Sports Illustrated, TNT sports and plenty of other media outlets. Anybody who thinks Shaq and Duncan have a shot do not understand basketball. BOOK IT!!

• chyea Posted: Mar.14 at 6:12 pm
  The biggest difference between Kobe and Mike is the mental aspect. Mike has never had the type of talent around him the way Kobe has, but he always used his teammates to get himself good looks and to keep them involved. Kobe plays with a lot of talent, yet most of his points still comes off isolations and he still jacks up ill-advised threes. A player as skilled as him, with as much talented teammates shouldn’t be taking tough shots at all.

• flipnoyce Posted: Mar.14 at 6:19 pm
  LMAO at Phil!!! Phil quit after Shaq got traded and wrote a book about Kobe, exposing to the media that ball hog Hobe is uncoachable. Kobe score 81 points against a no good Raftors when Phil unretired, Phil then said Kobe might even be better than MJ. And thats when I said this dude is on CRACK!!!! Any fan boys who believe that Kobe is better than MJ was probably born in the late 90′s who is between the age of puberty to juvenile in todays society. Jordan shot the ball with ease even if he had 3 defenders on him while Kobe struggled and forces his shots with one DEFENDER. Kobe, and I will keep saying it that Kobe could not cover any all star caliber type of player in any of his games. I’m sorry to say this to all the Kobe fanatics.Kobe won’t even break the ONE spot to whom ever put on a Lakers uniform!!!! Kobe is great but JORDAN is simlply GREATER THAN……to X amount of powers!!!!!!

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 6:20 pm
  Second best to Jordan = Chopped Liver

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 6:22 pm
  Seed your forgetting that WINNING isn’t that important to Slam Fam. Tattoo’s, Athleticism and ability to wear a headband are a premiums here. like duhhh

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 6:24 pm
  As Myles said to me, “if there was ever a Spanish-American war, I’d kill Ricky Rubio first”
  He’s quite quotable.

• flipnoyce Posted: Mar.14 at 6:26 pm
  If Iverson had his head right and just play his game untill his career was over, he would of broke scoring records faster than Kobe could keep him between his eyes. If you wanna talk about scoring AI is that man post MJ era!!!!

• Hurricane Posted: Mar.14 at 6:27 pm
  Kobe’s points per attempt: 1.312, Jordan’s points per attempt: 1.316
  -
  CAN YOU IDIOTS COMPREHEND THAT, FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE DOESN’T MEAN S__T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-
  -
  KOBE TOOK WAY MORE 3s THAN JORDAN DID, WHICH ACCUMULATES FOR THE DIFFERENCE IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
  -
  ALL IT SAYS IS THAT KOBE HAS A BAD SHOT SELECTION
  -
  & FOR ALL THE IDIOTS SAYING KOBE NEVER PLAYED IVERSON, CARTER, MCGRADY, WADE & JAMES IN THE PLAYOFFS, HOW IS IT KOBE’S FAULT THEY DIDN’T GET THERE????????YEAH, IDIOTS
  -
  KOBE IS EQUAL TO JORDAN RIGHT NOW, IF HE WINS HIS 6TH RINGS THEN HE WILL BE THE G.O.A.T.

• dp Posted: Mar.14 at 6:27 pm
  @eboy. don’t be a hater coz that’s what it sounds like you are right now, you normally have some good insight but when it comes to kobe all you do is hate. sure he’s not perfect but he never said he was, sure he’s making some failed attempts at trying to get better, but at least he’s trying. but just for the record, kobe at his peak would smoke wade and lebron at their peaks. and if you’re gonna come back to me with stats then you don’t understand the game, you should switch over to baseball.

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 6:37 pm
  Sorry guys E(the 40 year old man)boy is a hit and run type of fella. He knows that facts back up to much for Kobe for him to stick around and argue ya’ll.

• Hurricane Posted: Mar.14 at 6:37 pm
  JORDAN FANS SAY THAT JORDAN NEVER HAD A LEGIT CENTER, KOBE FANS SAY THAT KOBE WOULD DROP 100 ON THE PLAYERS JORDAN PLAYED AGAINST
  -
  EBOY IS A REEEEETAAAARRRDDD FOR MENTIONING WADE’S NAME IN THE SAME SENTENCE AS KOBE, WATCH THE ALL-STAR GAME AGAIN BUDDY, WADE COULDN’T STAY IN FRONT OF KOBE FOR A SECOND, WITH NO SCREENS SET LIKE IN A REGULAR GAME, STRAIGHT UP 1 ON 1, WADE WAS EMBARASSED SO HE ACCUSED KOBE OF GOING AFTER THE MVP, & IT’S EMBARASSING THAT THE EAST DOUBLE TEAMED KOBE IN THE ALL-STAR GAME, WHICH IS WHERE ALL OF DURANT’S POINTS CAME FROM
  -
  EBOY YOU SHOULDN’T BE TALKING ABOUT WOMEN AS IF THEY ARE A POSSESSION, IT’S NOT LIKE YOU GET ANY GIRLS, YOU ARE A GEEK, YOU SIT ON SLAM ALL DAY AND TALK NONSENSE, & AT NIGHT YOU JACK OFF TO LEBRON & WADE HIGHLIGHTS

• BossTerry Posted: Mar.14 at 6:42 pm
  ^ wow.

• Hurricane Posted: Mar.14 at 6:44 pm
  KOBE B___H SLAPPED LEBRON & WADE IN THE ALL-STAR GAME(WHICH MATTERS NONE), WADE & LEBRON B___H SLAPPED KOBE TWICE IN THE REGULAR SEASON(MATTERS NONE), KOBE B___H SLAPPED THEM WITH HIS POST-GAME WORKOUT & KOBE WILL B___H SLAP THEM AGAIN IN THE OFFSEASON WITH 6 RINGS ON HIS HAND
  -
  2011 NBA FINALS- LAKERS VS. BULLS- LAKERS IN 6 WITH FINAL GAME GOING TO LAST SECONDS

• Allenp Posted: Mar.14 at 6:45 pm
  Lake Show you do realize that the two cats mentioned as being better than Kobe were Duncan and Shaq?
  Tattos and losing don’t really apply to them.
  Kobe fans are crazy.

• Hurricane Posted: Mar.14 at 6:46 pm
  OH & INCASE EBOY RESPONDS, WHICH HE WON’T BECAUSE HE IS A COWARD, I’M NOT GOING TO RESPOND BACK
  -
  I JUST EXPOSED YOU TO THE FOLKS THAT DON’T KNOW YOU, EBOY

• Royal Posted: Mar.14 at 6:50 pm
  Duncan has a back tattoo… thug

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 6:51 pm
  Neither has won as much AP…

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 6:51 pm
  You think they are both “better” than Kobe AP?

• BossTerry Posted: Mar.14 at 6:52 pm
  Cosign AllenP (6:45) and Royal(6:50).. Hey, atleast he’s not J.O.ing to Chris Bosh highlights.. haha.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 7:04 pm
  Hurricane just made me want to believe anything that Eboy says just so I wont be associated with Hurricane.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.14 at 7:04 pm
  I don’t think Duncan or Shaq are better than Kobe. But I don’t think it’s out of the realm of debate.

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 7:07 pm
  ^^ i can handle that one Juk’s. I’m not saying its out of debate.

• tonyknorr Posted: Mar.14 at 7:12 pm
  @ Hurricane and LakeShow where the f**k did you learn math. check your numbers before posting. Kobe’s points per attempt is 1.305 and mike’s is 1.316. besides to take shots at somebody for not wanting to debate facts or statistics between the two is ridiculous because they honestly are not even close to comparable especially if one looks at the defensive side of the game. Also to anyone who thinks the elite players in todays game are better or more athletic you really must be young. Honestly, the game is more catered to those with individual scoring skills now then it has ever been. Its like mike said if he played in todays game with the lack of hand checking they allow he would have averaged 40 +. Athletically the players these days might look to be in better physical shape and stronger but mentally they are not nearly as tough as they used to be for the most part. Not a knock on Kobe because i think he is one of the few that is mentally tough but on average todays players would get wrecked in a street game by the guys jordan played against.

• LakeShow Posted: Mar.14 at 7:16 pm
  Did i post that tony? oh no i didn’t…

• Art of Deception Posted: Mar.14 at 7:21 pm
  lol @ hurricane. the all caps wasn’t necessary. kobe will never be considered better than MJ. look at their resumes. even if we pretend that shaq wasn’t on his team for the first 3 chips, look at their resumes. kobe can only become the 2nd best player of all time. And that would be quite the accomplishment considering how polarizing a figure he is.

• BossTerry Posted: Mar.14 at 7:26 pm
  Q- Whats the difference between Tiger and Kobe?
  A- Tiger doesn’t have to r@pe his groupies..

• tonyknorr Posted: Mar.14 at 7:26 pm
  sorry lake show the math part of things was not meant to be directed at you.

• flipnoyce Posted: Mar.14 at 7:45 pm
  @hurricane comment 6:27. you’ve must have been born a few years before Katrina hit!!!! If you know basketball then you must realize that in order for Kobe to play Bron and Wade in the playoffs they must be playing in the same conference East or West.Playoffs are not finals, there’s a difference and FYI Iverson did played Kobe in the finals to represent the east in 01 and AI also played Kobe in the playoffs when he went to Denver!!!!

• BostonBaller Posted: Mar.14 at 7:48 pm
  What did I miss? Oh well… I bounced around on some of the comments so color me ignorant but are Jukai & Enigmatic ladies? Not that it matters I’m just ask’n.

• Babbito Posted: Mar.14 at 7:48 pm
  LOL wow SLAM. I read the original article and the title is so misleading. all he says is they are 2 different players and it’s not fair to compare the 2. Honestly it doesn’t matter if Jordan shot a better % or what not. It just means they are 2 different types of players. Yeah Kobe patterns his game after Jordan but doesn’t mean he plays just like Jordan. Kobe is more of a jump shooter yes, he uses the regular season as a big experiment and a refining tool because once he gets to the playoffs he changes up his whole game. He’s shot 50% the last 3 post seasons. at the end of the day Kobe does whatever it takes to win, when it matters. And he’s done just that. 6th ring coming this year, with possibly 2 more after that. and the fact that he got those with shooting a lower % means absolutely nothing.

• Jay Reyes Posted: Mar.14 at 8:08 pm
  shall we go back to the matter at hand? Kobe patterned his game to Jordan because of the similarity in the position they’re playing. so did Jordan patterned his game to Dr. J. that’s just how it is. as for comparing the two, it’s true that they both have the same mentality but do bear in mind that athletes who have that behavior tend to excel. and that behavior is not only seen on the two but to other athletes as well, but not as well-documented as Kobe and Jordan. which only means that they are two individuals who both have the same mentality but not the same person. Jordan loves golf, Kobe loves futbol.

• Allenp Posted: Mar.14 at 8:29 pm
  Bostonballer
  somebody is using people’s names to post fake comments.
  They are men.

• keef Posted: Mar.14 at 8:59 pm
  Hurricane is a pretty young kid lol. Why are u yelling thru caps? Lmao It’s like Samuel Adams Jackson. “I’m not yellin! That’s how I talk!”Simmer down lil kid. Kobe is not and never will be better than Jordan.

• Jukai Posted: Mar.15 at 12:11 am
  Thanks for gettin’ my back Allen!

• KB8TOSG8 Posted: Mar.15 at 4:20 am
  Babbito made the most sense here lol. Jordan took it to the rack more than Kobe. He was athletically superior and had large palms which gave him more control on the ball mid air than Kobe could ever dream about. Jordan made more of his damage from the post area supplemented by his midrange game. Kobe? Exactly opposite. Jordan’s teams didnot have a legit post threat. HE was the post the post threat. His team was loaded with shooters who knocked down shots and were a very good defensive team. Kobe’s teams however are loaded with post threats but pathetic perimeters ( No Ron-Ron, not you….. ) compared to those Bulls and hence his game needs to be different. And saying Kobe can’t pass is idiotic lol. That’s all I’m gonna say. Also, I have one question : On the offensive end, isn’t the basic point is how many points you create per shot???? Kobe gets 1.30 points. MJ gets 1.31 points. Not much of a difference. The 3s Kobe scorers compensates for his bad shot selection. What’s wrong with that? On the D end though, MJ was an absolute beast and consistently played great D. Kobe can be a beast only in short bursts ( See Q4s close games. His D in close games is vastly underrated ) Also, remember when Pau was out for the first 20 odd games last year and Kobe went to the post like MJ? Result : 51%. Don’t believe me? Look it up. Skills wise, Kobe is better than MJ. Overall player, MJ>Kobe

• KB8TOSG8 Posted: Mar.15 at 4:21 am
  Also, all the guys who picked Duncan/Shaq before Kobe better damn pick Hakeem and to a lesser extent Malone. Just sayin’.

• Mars Posted: Mar.15 at 4:36 am
  Jordan is the measurement of Greatness in b-ball. Even if Kobe aint Jordan, he still gets compared to him. You gassed him up, NOW he’s on the verge of equaling Jordan’s greatness.

• Mars Posted: Mar.15 at 4:42 am
  Kobe replaced Jordan, LeBron is replacing everyone. Who got NEXT?

• PapaBearATL Posted: Mar.15 at 4:44 am
  I think the talent pool was much deeper in the late 80′s through the 90′s. What Jordan was able to accomplish against the competition he had is amazing. Kobe is a great player, similar style but, there is really no way to gauge how he would have done against Magic, MJ, Bird, Olajuwon, Malone and Stockton, and the list goes on. There is great talent now in the NBA but the era that MJ played in is almost mythological, lol. Kobe is also being coached by Phil Jackson, so I don’t think the debate will ever end.

• Justin Posted: Mar.15 at 5:25 am
  Jukai, did I really see you compare Kobe and MJ’s girth and length? lol Wow!

• big_ticket Posted: Mar.15 at 8:01 am
  there is only one mj..no one comes close..

• peter Posted: Mar.15 at 8:36 am
  Everyone who is saying that Jordan willingly used his teammates has some major revisionist history going on in their minds. Kobe was actually much more of an all round player at an early age, maybe not by choice, but he was forced to because he had to be with Shaq on the team. He’s a great passer when he wants to be, probably better than Jordan. Don’t get me wrong, Jordan is the greatest of all time, but he wasn’t a model teammate. Both of them are pretty similar in that respect. Oh and p.s. Kobe did play Iverson in a playoff series…the Lakers won 4-1.

• Naiym Posted: Mar.15 at 11:09 am
  Wowo this again. Let it die.. Kobe isn’t Mike..He just won’t be..He wants to be better..which is , ya know…admirable…b/c a lot are trying to be showouts and money makers…I gotta respect K24 for jsut wanting to be the best and win…but I grew up in Jordan era, saw the DUDE play in person…and I’ve seen K24 too..Kobe is sick , yes..but Man Jordan was like from another parallel universe on the court… Jordan’s the GOAT…and Until I see someone better i’ll stand by that…now Kobe’s no lightweight. arguably the best of the POst-Jordan era…You hear that..POST-JORDAN ERA….i guarentee no one say POST kobe era…they won’t no matter how great. Jordan owns the bball world, he earned it…and it’s fair at that.

• Heezthedude Posted: Mar.15 at 4:19 pm
  I’m a big Michael Jordan fan. There is one thing that you have to remember about Jordan’s career. If you look @ the talent pool that he faced during his championships, the players were nowhere near as athletic as he was in his day. He stood heads above them all. Look at his era. Michael didn’t win in the 80′s with Bird, Magic, and Isiah Thomas in their primes. He beat an old Lakers team, The Suns, The Blazers who had only 1 star close to him and that was Drexler, Supersonics where there was noone even close to his skill level, and an old Utah Jazz team. Look at the talent pool that Kobe has to face on nightly basis. There are tons of athletic players that he matched up with throughout his career. (Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady,D-Wade, Lebron James, Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd (in his prime), Tim Duncan (in his prime), Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudamire, etc. Basically the talent pool has been much more even then when Jordan played. Kobe maybe doesn’t have the MVP’s and scoring titles as Michael, but that goes back to the dominance that Jordan had over the league at that time. Kobe had to play 2nd fiddle to Shaq and kind of pull back to spare Shaq’s ego.

• Deron Posted: Mar.15 at 7:51 pm
  Kobe is the closest thing to Jordan, but at the same time, he is not close to Jordan. He is the best of his era, but a new era is starting now. http://theresastatforthat.blogspot.com/2011/03/blog-post_15.html

• Justin Posted: Mar.17 at 11:45 pm
  if Michael wanted to just like pippen said he could average 40pts a game if he was still an active player an get 100pts vs kobes 81

• Mars Posted: Mar.19 at 2:06 pm
  wait…? Is Michael better than Magic??? I don’t think so. How come Magic don’t get press like Jordan.

• Manu Posted: Mar.21 at 9:56 pm
  haha. it was LA vs. Iverson in 2001 first of all….2nd of all…shaq 3 finals mvps, duncan 3, jordan 6,….kobe 2…nuff said right there how can u say kobes #2 when kareem abdul jabbars got f**kin 6 mvps and bill russells got 11 rings and chamberlains got over 50 NBA records wtf is wrong with u kobe homers…ive watched him my whole life hes top 10 all time but #2…jesus christ ur delusional

• J Posted: Mar.22 at 11:07 am
  KOBE+WADE=JORDAN(prime+later in career, with the better shooting ability)

• Delmar Posted: Mar.27 at 3:26 am
  Jordan is the Greatest of all time!!! Period!! i’m a HUGE Kobe fan, but even I have to admit it. there was something unworldy about Jordan! I was convinced after seeing the game where Jordan was sick and so weak. battled the flu and had to be carried off by Scottie, still carrying his team to a win.

• Tae Posted: Apr.16 at 9:22 pm
  Come on Dacre, Kobe played AI in tha 08 first round when he was with Denver. AI coulodnt guard him n denver got swept

• MJ Posted: May.16 at 2:55 pm
  KOBE SUCKS

• t~rizzle Posted: May.19 at 3:32 pm
  jordan is the best EVER period.

• t~rizzle Posted: May.19 at 3:34 pm
  how do can u even think of comparing anyone to someone like michael jordan? in my opinon jordan will forever be the one and only

• t~rizzle Posted: May.19 at 3:37 pm
  I’m a big Michael Jordan fan. There is one thing that you have to remember about Jordan’s career. If you look @ the talent pool that he faced during his championships, the players were nowhere near as athletic as he was in his day. He stood heads above them all. Look at his era. Michael didn’t win in the 80′s with Bird, Magic, and Isiah Thomas in their primes. He beat an old Lakers team, The Suns, The Blazers who had only 1 star close to him and that was Drexler, Supersonics where there was noone even close to his skill level, and an old Utah Jazz team. Look at the talent pool that Kobe has to face on nightly basis. There are tons of athletic players that he matched up with throughout his career. (Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady,D-Wade, Lebron James, Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd (in his prime), Tim Duncan (in his prime), Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudamire, etc. Basically the talent pool has been much more even then when Jordan played. Kobe maybe doesn’t have the MVP’s and scoring titles as Michael, but that goes back to the dominance that Jordan had over the league at that time. Kobe had to play 2nd fiddle to Shaq and kind of pull back to spare Shaq’s ego.

• Demigod Posted: May.30 at 3:15 pm
  Duncan’s tatoo is called a Slag-Tag where im at. a Slag is a working girl.

• Demigod Posted: May.30 at 3:15 pm
  I wouldn’t be suprised if Kobe changed his number to 7 next season.

• Demigod Posted: May.30 at 3:17 pm
  there will never be another kurt rambis

• compleatcarpenter Posted: May.30 at 9:34 pm
  There’s a guy who played for the Boston Celtics for 13 seasons who has 11 championship rings. Before we start talking about the greatest player, how about we make a list of those to be considered. Bill Russell is at the top of that list.

• sean Posted: May.31 at 12:18 pm
  Phil said it best here,there no one like MIKE even though i seen KOBE game and body language that you compare JORDAN because he did pattern his game after him.But what separates JORAN from anyone is his hang-time in air and his creativity in air to to make difficult shots look easy.He best at game winning shots hands down.It’s like you never see anyone make as difficult a shot as DR J did in scoop shot behind basket or ICEMAN finger roll from behind basket that u can compare players to them.Lebon James will never be Michael Jordan,they style of play is very different. Dominque Wilkins may be best dunker ever because every dunk he did was high-light film,not great dunk here ,average dunk there like many other great dunker’s.

• rhys Posted: Jun.7 at 1:37 pm
  Jordan has 6 finals mvps kobe has 2 nuff said

• Tonton Posted: Jun.21 at 9:42 pm
  The greatness of the players depends on how he performs on and off the court … retired or not … Those who passed away should be eligible for comparison … Your good reputation when you live will give best evaluation of your status as a valuable player. IF Jordan or Kobe dies in the tragic accident or commit mortal sin they will both vanish in the book of the NBA basketball. Legends should be written with the good reputation of a person identifying those words.

• Kerry Posted: Sep.30 at 2:43 am
  Kobe needed Shaq 4 the 1st 3 rings. Bulls needed Jordan for all 6! There goes your difference!

• Beth Posted: Sep.30 at 1:07 pm
  #1 all time in PER
  #1 all time in PPG reg season
  #1 all time in PPG playoffs
  #1 all time in blocks for a guard
  #2 all time in steals
  #3 all time in rebounds for a guard Here’s what makes MJ truly great: He played better in the playoffs than in the regular season. The same cannot be said about Kobe.

• Unknown Posted: Nov.14 at 9:19 am
  To all of the human beings who compare kobe bryant to michael jordan better read this MICHAEL JORDAN IS AND ALWAYS WILL BE A BETTER PLAYER THAN KOBE BRYANT BECAUSE: 1. IN 6 OF MICHAEL JORDAN’S NBA CHAMPIONSHIPS HE WAS THE MVP FINALS EVERYTIME, IN 5 OF KOBE BRYANT’S CHAMPIONSHIP HE WAS ONLY THE MVP FINALS 2 TIMES 2. 6 OF MICHAEL JORDAN’S CHAMPIONSHIPS WERE WON OUT OF A THREE-PEAT, IF KOBE BRYANT WINS ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP HE STILL WON’T BE AS GOOD AS MICHAEL JORDAN BECAUSE HE ONLY WON A THREE-PEAT ONCE AND DURING THAT THREE-PEAT HE WASN’T THE MVP AT ANY OF THEM 3. MICHAEL JORDAN HAS 5 MVP, KOBE BRYANT 1 4. MICHAEL JORDAN 10 SCORING TITLES (7 CONSECUTIVE), KOBE BRYANT 1 5. MICHAEL JORDAN 1 DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR, KOBE BRYANT 0 6. ALTOUGH KOBE BRYANT ONCE SCORED 81 POINT HIS TEAM WAS PLAYING AGAINST ONE OF THE WORST TEAM AT THAT TIME WHICH IS THE TORONTO RAPTORS, WHEN MICHAEL JORDAN ONLY SCORED 63 POINTS HIS TEAM WAS PLAYING AGAINTS ONE OF THE GREATEST NBA TEAMS IN THE 80′s WHICH FEATURED 4 HALL OF FAME PLAYERS AND THEY ARE LARRY BIRD, KEVIN MCHALE, ROBERT PARISH, AND DENNIS JOHNSON AND THAT 63 POINTS IS ALSO AN NBA PLAYOFF RECORD FOR MOST POINTS SCORED THAT IS STILL A RECORD TODAY 7. PHIL JACKSON ONCE SAID THAT KOBE IS UNCOACHABLE BECAUSE HE TENDS TO IGNORE THE TRIANGLE OFFENSE, MICHAEL ALWAYS RUNS THE TRIANGLE OFFENSE WHEN HE IS TOLD TO BY PHIL JACKSON 8. KOBE ISN’T A BETTER DEFENDER THAN MICHAEL 9. MICHAEL JORDAN 49-50% FG, KOBE BRYANT 43-45% FG THIS PROVES THAT MICHAEL IS A MORE EFICIENT PLAYER 10. MICHAEL JORDAN STILL HOLDS THE RECORD FOR MOST POINTS IN A CAREER WITH 31.1 PPG Thank you for reading this, i hope after you read this all of you will finally relize that Michael Jordan is an always will be the GREATEST OF ALL TIME (GOAT)…PEACE …

• Brian Posted: Apr.16 at 11:31 pm
  Hurricane, i like your use of maths only problem is that even in you twisted logic jordan still came up with a better scoring average. How can you use that to say that kobe is better? you even admit that kobe has a bad shot selection. So to paraphrase your argument your saying that kobe is better because he has a lower scoring average and has bad shot selection, genius. lol