Michael Jordan vs. Kobe Bryant? | The Video makes a statement
July 31, 2008 – Dr. Browntorious
Today felt like Christmas when I was surfing the web. I saw something that gave me the game day feeling. You know that excited yet slightly nervous feeling in your stomach that you get before a big game or event that you have been thinking about forever. You know the feeling, the ‘game day’ feeling. Let me explain….
I grew up in the Jordan era. I’m a Michael Jordan guy. Like the guy can do no wrong in my eyes, so i’m a little biased towards any conversation that has to do with ‘his airness.’ That being said he’s an easy horse to back because he is widely considered to be the greatest player and competitor to ever live. It also doesn’t hurt that he holds more records than virtually any other player and he was a 6-time NBA Champion. The ultimate goal of a legit NBA star is to win that ring.
I used to love watching Michael Jordan games during his days with the Bulls, because he was the type of player you couldn’t take your eyes off of when he was playing. Even when he didn’t have the ball you were glued to him on the screen because you didn’t want to potentially miss the next big highlight reel play. Sure you know you’d see it back on Sports Center about a quadrillion times afterwards, but it was still one of things that you wanted to call your boyz right away and be like “did you just see that dawg? Whaaaaa”
So with all that said, this morning when i’m surfing I come across this video post on a blog called Mixmakers that talked about an MJ video schooling cats one-on-one at the ripe old age of 45. I have been starved of any fresh Michael Jordan video content in quite some time (although I regularly watch my Michael Jordan ULTIMATE JORDAN DVD Set). Well to my pleasant surprise not only does the video of MJ teaching cats of all ages at a Hoops Camp about fundamentals and visualization, it also shows Jordan dunking at 45 years of age!! And one is a nice two handed throwdown right in a guys grill that is defending him! But the greatest part of the video has to be at the beginning when Jordan is answering the kids questions. One of these real young dudes who probably never watched Jordan live because he wasn’t born asks “Who would win in a game of One-on-One – You or Kobe?”
Of course MJ doesn’t even hesitate to say “Kobe would win because I’m older. In my prime? Not even a contest. Let’s just say I have a better chance of stopping him than of him stopping me.” ……LOVE IT!!
But just so you readers can share in my excitement, let me give you your early Christmas present from Dr. Browntorious below:
They are not even in the same universe when you are talking about basketball legends. Kobe is more in the class with Dr. J. Amazing scorer, great player all time.
But Jordan is a god. Kobe wouldn’t have even the slightest chance ina game with Jordan in MJ’s prime, cause jordan is a better scorer, and a much better defender than kobe
Can’t say M.J is more talented undisputably. Yeah, M.J’s game was definitely more efective and better.
But I could say that Kobe is just as talented.
At the moment M.J is the greater player.
Have seen them both in their prime and after. Jordan has had more years.Kobe is’nt done yet.
The new Kobe seems to be an all-around player now.Right now,I would have to give a slight edge to Jordan,but if Kobe continues to be the play maker,and gets all his players involved likes he’s doing,I think because of his superior jumper,and the fact that he can turn on the offense on his own at anytime,I think he could surpass “his airness”.
We are comparing apples to oranges here. The lack of physicality, hand checking on the perimeter in todays game makes for unfair comparisons to MJ. Michael’s entire career was played with hand checking as well as clogged lanes during a great era for big men.
Kobe struggled quite a bit (for him) against the Celtics in this years finals. One big reason was the Celtics clogged the lane very well and did not allow free lanes to the hoop as all/most teams do nowadays.
Great point RJ! I totally agree. With no hand checking on perimeter Jordan would have either lived at the FT line or scored at ease going to the basket. That season he averaged 37ppg might have been more like 47ppg under today’s rules
MJ did not go against zone defenses either which is now allowed. Kobe is a lot closer than it may seem.
I think that this is a mismatch comparison. M.J. has the highest PPG ever, he has the highest post season PPG ever, he has the most scoring titles ever, He has the highest single season PPG for a guard ever with a 37.1 and he’s the only other player other than Wilt Chamberlain to top the 3,000 point mark in a single season. This was juring an era when handchecking was allowed, defenses were much more aggressive and hard fouls were seldom called. To say that Kobe is even in M.J.’s league offensively is a joke! We shouldn’t even talk about defense! M.J. was arguably the greatest defensive player of his era and one of the best of all time if not the best. He led the league in steals 3 times, is second all time in steals, he won defensive player of the year and should have won it more than once and he has practically doubled Kobe’s efforts in blocked shots throughout his career. That means that Michael played much better than Kobe on both sides of the court so how can Kobe even be in the argument? How can people say that Kobe is just as skilled? Where and doing what besides taking more 3 point shots? This is not to mention that M.J. is the most decorated player in NBA history! 6 championships, a 6 time finals MVP, a 5 time league MVP, Defensive player of the year, 2 time slam dunk champ, etc. The list of achievements goes on. After 11 years in the league, Kobe doesn’t even come close. He’s not even in the ball park. He’s a great player and the best in today’s game but he’s no M.J. and never will be!
well let me say i love kobe. he is the best in the league and an all-time great. with that being said mj would beat him. i say because of all the reasons you guys have given. also, he is the reason alot of hall of famers didnt get a ring. ewing,barkley,stockton and malone,miller, hakem and drexler won two when he left but when he returned for his first full season he took it back. no other player in basketball or any sport has been able to retire and come back in there 30s and still clearly dominate. even at 40 he was an all-star. he avg over 20 a game. he was a shell of himself but still one of the best in the league. if you can do that how great are you? i can talked all day on this subject
Mike would spank Kobe pretty bad in his prime, no question about it. The guys was a beast and Kobe not even close. MJ had an unstoppable fadeaway and a post up game. On top of that he can jump way higher on his jumper and is way more quicker than Ko-me. I do not see Ko-me stopping any of MJ shots whatsoever. He would penetrate and dunk on him. In addition, he could post him up and hit that trademark fadeaway J in Ko-me’s face. He would shred Ko-me to pieces. Ko-me would just shoot jumpers, because he could not pass by MJ. On top of that, some of Ko-me jumpers would get blocked and the ball would be stripped off in several occasions. This is not a contest. Punks have not seen MJ in his prime could only think otherwise. The final score would be 21-10 and that is I am being generous to Ko-me.
u guy r all stupid all of u. first mj had no competition at the sg position like kobe had all his career . for all the record that mj had its only because he had his own team at the start of his career. kobe enter the league at 18 behind 2 all stars guars eddy ,van excel. kobe as alot more talent than Mj, all mj could do was carrying the ball he had no real cross over, is 3pt shot was not that great . people are saying that mj was a better defender than kobe i diasegree mj was guarding people on his prime that dosent have the haft of the skills ths players kobe is guarding today . fos the scoring kobe score 81 , 62 in 3 quarter(could have score 90 or more) he score 56 in 3 quarter) 51 in(3 quarter) . alll his career kobe was hold back by people saying to him that his time will come later. while jordan had a coach that let him do what ever he want and take has many shots he wan. i do think that mj is better but not by far . stat dosent defind player becasue they have diferent path different career.
kobe(better shooter ,better ball handle , all more move to beat the defesense, better ofensive player
mj(more atletic, more hang time, better defender
lol@ kobe4life
are you on drugs?
kobe4life YOUR THE WORST OF ALL TIME. MAYBE YOU KNOW ABOUT ” ZUMO WRESTLING” , BUT YOU DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT BASKETBALL. FOR THE REST OF THE GUYS HERE, MY RESPECT, YOUR TRULLY KNOWER OF THE GAME. EVEN AT THE END OF HIS CAREER JORDAN KICKS KOBE´S ASS, ALLWAYS DID AND THIS CAREER TALKS FOR HIM SELFT. REMEBER HE PLAYS AGAINST MAGIC, BIRD, DR J, ISEAH THOMAS AND ALL THE BAD BOYS , DREXLER, BARKLEY, EWING, ROBINSON, SHAK ATACK, HILL, PENNY, STOCKTON AND MALONE, ETC,ETC,ETC,ETC,ETC…… AND DESTROY ALL THIS DUDS. MJ BEAT KOBES ON HIS PRIME EASILY, AND TODAY RIGHT NOW , “ONE ON ONE” “MANO A MANO” , JORDAN WOULD MAKE KOBE HIS BEACH!!! OH YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!! LONG LIFE TO THE KING JORDAN.
U wanna talk about Jordan not having a cross-over, that is rediculous. He had one of the best ever, just because he doesn’t do what the And-1 guys do, doesn’t mean he didn’t have a cross-over. Michael had all the moves, but everything he did began with fundamentals, just ask Bryon Russel. And u wanna talk about not having competition, PLEASE!!! MJ is the reason Kobe has it easy now. Everything was man to man defense back then, He battled double-teams & triple-teams every night. If you put MJ in his prime with the league now, he would eat up zones just like Kobe but better. He went head to head with Magic, Larry, Clyde the Glide, Sir Charles, the Bad Boys, battled Scottie Pippen every day in practice…. So don’t tell me that he had no competition… those guys are legends. If it wasn’t for Shaq, Kobe would not even be in this conversation. MJ had Scottie, but if you give him a Shaq….. come on now, they’d a won every year too. MJ had to carry a non-playoff team on his back right when he got into the NBA. Kobe came right into the league & demanded a trade to the Lake Show. Who is better, not even a question…. when Kobe wins 6 titles without Shaq, or even 1 title then we’ll talk.
It took jordan seven years to win his first title, he scored a bunch of points but never won a title until they put good pieces around him. jordan always had great and good players around him too help him win, not to mention scottie pippen who is also one of the 50 greatest players of all time. its not like he won alone. he didnt have a dominant center, but he had like 3 or 4 big men at his disposal, granted kobe had shaq for three titles, but when shaq was traded, kobe was still leading his team to the playoffs every year with far less talent(except one year). He is about to win his fourth title in 09 with less talent around him. he scored 81 points in modern bball which is far more impressive than wilt who did it as a big man in earlier bball. he’s a better 3 point shooter, jump shooter, and can score in more bunches than jordan! he is about too get his 4th ring at 30 years old, jordan has six, kobe still has years too play too get six! jordan had craig hodges a 3 point shooter who won multiple 3 point contests, kobe doesnt have that, but is still winning! They both had phil jackson! As long as they keep putting pieces around him, he will win, see yall in six titles!
Personally, THERE IS NO COMPARISON to MJ. He’s evolution as far as when he came into the league, being drafted to the one of the worst teams in the NBA (at the time), no “A-list” supporting cast/teammates, no established NBA title history (Chicago Bulls) etc; It took Jordan 7 years to grab his first championship….simply because he finally realized that he couldn’t do it by himself! With KB, it seems as if it’s a “personal” thing and it doesn’t come off as geniune and a “team thing” with him….but more of a “me..me…me” thing. MJ’s legacy was organically developed where as KB trys to “force feed” his. KB is a great player, but everything he does on the court, the style of play, body language, interviews, is all Michael Jordan!! I truly believe that KB studied MJ’s entire game package to a science but he claims that Magic Johnson is his favorite player?? Come on Kobe!! Are we that naive and blind? Magic was a team player who played for the team…not for personal stats and personally, I just don’t see any ” Magicness” about you so stop with the lies!! If KB stops trying to be Michael, and develops his own, then maybe he’ll be more accepted to comparison to MJ, but he needs to find his own first…it’s easy to adopt someone else’s persona and pretend be someone else.Be yourself Kobe!….and maybe MJ himself will have some respect for you as a player.
Firstly, let me start by saying I love Jordan and am very thankful for being able to watch his Airness. I also love Kobe, as he is one of the greatest players ever. Jordan vs. Kobe? Jordan wins hands down!!! With out Jordan there would be no Kobe!! As for Kobe claiming Magic is his favorite player, I guess he says that because he is a Laker. Funny I don’t recall him wearing Converse Weapons when he left Adidas I only remember him wearing Jordans!!! Michael Jordan is a very special athlete that comes along once in a lifetime! That does not mean Kobe is not great he just is not as great as Jordan is. Keep this in mind though; imitation is the most sincere form of flattery!
I can sit here n write a whole book on why jordan is better but it won’t change anything. Every one I guess is entitled to his own and whateva you hold in your mind is what really matters, dont try to change the worlds thinking (only the media does that lol). I guess these young kids (my generation, me being 17) were too young to enjoy “airboy’s” greatness so they look for someone in their time to (only person that’s good that they’ve watched) consider G.O.A.T. I luckily grew in a jordan household where Jordan was frequently watched when I was younger and fell in love. TO THINK ABOUT IT I KNEW WHO MICHAEL JORDAN WAS BEFORE I KNEW WHAT BASKETBALL WAS. =) In my opinion no one will ever surpass Jordan and his greatness. Point closed
There is no comparison. Two different players, two different eras. They are both spectacular in their ways. Many similarities & many differences, but they are both very unique/different players. There is no need for a comparison.