"Kobe Bryant is better than Michael Jordan" -Mark Jackson

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"... but it is a lot closer than MJ people want to think."

I think not. Name one objective statistical category where Kobe
can be shown to be better than Jordan. Hmmm? Name just one.

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http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13015

Recent opinions regarding Kobe's greatness have bordered on blasphemy. Can Kobe be considered one of the greatest NBA players of all-time? Yes. Is he in the top-10? Maybe. But, is he the greatest? No. Quite frankly, he's not close. It is actually irritating that so many people are trying to make the argument that Kobe is "just as good as Jordan." Or to hear Kobe-supporters claim "it is too close to call and you can't say that Jordan is definitely better than Kobe."

Of course you can. Here is the fact of the matter: Michael Jordan had a better career than Kobe Bryant. Period.

It's very simple and empirically evident.



This is the first issue we have to address. Yes, it is absolutely possible to prove, via corroborative facts, the assertion that Michael Jeffery Jordan was a far more accomplished basketball player than Kobe Bean Bryant.


That is no big knock against Kobe, it is a simple acknowledgment of the fact the he shares something in common with every other person in history who has ever picked up a basketball. It probably won't happen, but maybe someday Kobe catches MJ. Either way, to compare Kobe to Jordan right now is ludicrous.

It should also probably be noted that Jordan also had a far greater impact on the international ascendance of basketball, the economy at large, the marking of athletes, and the evolution of the sneaker industry in particular. But those are somewhat nebulous concepts that are difficult to prove, even if the majority of us know it be true. However, individual performance on the court is far easier to evaluate, so let's stick with that. Some will argue you can't compare great players to one another and declare one individual superior. I disagree. For starters, let's look at the numbers. Keep in mind, while statistics certainly aren't the sole determinants, they provide a helpful insight into the discussion. And when we look at the compiled evidence, Jordan is clearly far superior to Kobe in nearly every single statistical category. For this portion of the production, I am going to shut up and let the stats speak for themselves.



(For their careers, MJ played 1072 regular season games and Kobe has now played 948, which gives a comparable sample set):

● Jordan averaged five more points per game (30.1 PPG for MJ versus 25.1 for Kobe)
● Jordan averaged more rebounds (6.2 vs. 5.3)
● Jordan averaged more assists (5.3 vs. 4.6);
● Jordan shot a higher percentage from the field (49.7% vs. 45.5%)
● Jordan averaged more steals (2.3 vs. 1.5)
● Jordan averaged more blocks (0.8 vs. 0.6)
● Jordan averaged fewer turnovers (2.7 vs. 2.9)


You get the idea… From a statistical standpoint, Kobe can't compare.

******​
Nonetheless, there are innumerable methods used to determine greatness on the basketball court. In addition to conventional stats, such as tabulating point and assist totals, various new methods of determining effectiveness and efficiency are continually introduced.



ESPN's John Hollinger (PER) and Roland Beech of 82games.com (Roland Rating) are but two of the pioneers in this emerging field. We have learned that simple stats can be influenced by exterior factors such as rule changes, 'pace of play,' and are tempered by the era in which the individual played. (For instance, imagine if opposing defenders weren't allowed to hand-check MJ during his heyday!?)



Thus, some other meaningful indicators of excellence would be all-star nominations, DPOY awards, MVP's, etc. These honors are good tools to gauge a player relative to his contemporaries. And Kobe takes a backseat to Jordan in this department as well. Kobe has won one MVP award. #23 has five in his trophy case. In addition to nine All-Defense selections, Jordan also won the Defensive Player of the year Award in 1988. Kobe has never won a DPOY. MJ has 10 NBA scoring titles, Kobe has just two.
Still, winning is usually considered the definitive measuring stick. It is arguably the purest indicator of greatness. If you can beat everybody you play against, then common sense dictates you are superior during that game/series/year, etc.


And during the playoffs, when the pressure was ratcheted up, the disparity between Jordan and Bryant is even more pronounced.


All of Jordan's stats spiked during the playoffs, as his scoring (NBA-record 33.4 PPG), rebounding (6.4), and dishing (5.7) all saw significant increases during postseason play. Kobe's numbers remained relatively stable (25 points/ 5.1 boards/ 4.7 dimes).
And Jordan's jaw-dropping playoff production leads us into the next topic - arguably the most important of them all: NBA Championships and the NBA Finals MVP awards handed out to the best player out-performing everyone else on the game's biggest stage.



Here, it is vitally important to denote whether a player was the primary reason for his team winning a title, an important sidekick, or just a bit role-player. For instance, Stacy King won three titles with the Bulls in the early 90's, but no one is going to claim he is a better player than Karl Malone, John Stockton, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley etc.



On the other hand, if a guy wins the NBA Finals MVP, that a good indicator that he was the best/ most important player on the best team in the NBA.
And this is the primary reason why Michael Jordan's resume is unparalleled in modern basketball history. (Comparisons amongst those who played previous to 1969 – the year the award was established - become more difficult in this particular respect.)



Jordan won the NBA Finals MVP trophy six times. His team advanced to the Finals six times. His team won every single time (no one can ever say they beat Jordan in June). And he was UNDOUBTEDLY the best player on the best team in the NBA each of those six seasons.



By comparison, Kobe just won his FIRST Finals MVP trophy. In the other three Lakers championships, Shaquille O'Neal took home the Finals MVP hardware. This is why so much was made of Kobe winning the title this season. Rightfully so, he finally got that Shaq-sized monkey off his back. It was incredibly important for his placement within the NBA's pantheon of all-time greats. I was always bewildered by those pundits ignorant enough to suggest Kobe didn't need to win a title sans-Shaq to cement his legacy. That is utter nonsense. Name another player that is considered an elite, all-time great that had never been the best player on a championship team. If you want to consider yourself one of the greatest players who ever lived, that is undoubtedly one of the perquisites. Thus, his most recent ring allows Kobe to enter the conversation, as it grants him admission into a distinguished club. Keep in mind - Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Timmy Duncan all won the Finals MVP award three times in their career, while Willis Reed, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, and Hakeem Olajuwon won the award twice. So, Kobe still has some catching up to do…



Personally, if we are ranking the best to ever play the game, I put Jordan at #1, with Bill Russell a close second. (The NBA Finals MVP award is now named after Russell, an 11-time champion and the greatest winner in NBA history. Little known fact – Russell's record in Game 7's was 10-0.) After those two – who are in a class by themselves - I'd lump Magic, Bird, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar into the next tier (I won't waste my time or yours trying to rate them against each other - you can assign them a number three thru five and I wouldn't squabble, as it's a topic for another day).



That brings us to the next layer of greatness, and Kobe's current likely landing place – alongside such superstars as Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, Shaq, Jerry West, Tim Duncan, George Mikan, etc.
Nevertheless, the previous paragraph is loaded with subjective judgments and unsubstantiated conjecture. Admittedly, it is often difficult to compare similarly great players against one another. Often these opinions are highly debatable.


But this statement of fact is not: "Michael Jordan is better than Kobe Bryant." Period.


Come on Zit lets not be ignorant. You DO know there were diffent rules and the way the game was called was different in the Jordan eroa. Because of that you can not compare the statistical categories fairly.


Jordan is better NOW but if Kobe gets ring #7....lookout.
 

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At least M.J. is not a rapist.


Why do you quit your job? Because you can't take it anymore. It's not because you got old and retired. No, what Jordan did was quit in his prime on both occasions.

And yes, Jordan had an aura about him, as does Kobe. I don't doubt that. However, he is an attention whore and narcissist for going out his way to "retire" and return, then retire again, repeat, etc. When somebody keeps doing that, it means they want people to go, "NOOOO WE CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU! NOOOO!" I mean, c'mon, how many times do you need to "retire" in the prime of your career? :ohno:
 
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I have the book dumbass. He never says that. :ohno:

Your credibility just continues to corrode. There's no bottom with you, clearly. :lolBIG:

Checking the facts, yes you are somewhat right, the quote Phil
makes about Kobe sabotaging games in high school was made to
the press and is not in the book.

I have the book. There is no doubt that Phil trashes Kobe in the book,
and shows that Kobe did sabotage the team, and basically whined like
a bitch, and drove Shaq away from the team. There is no denying that.

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/01/s...-in-lakers-triangle-offense.html?pagewanted=1
 

ham

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Checking the facts, yes you are somewhat right, the quote Phil
makes about Kobe sabotaging games in high school was made to
the press and is not in the book.

I have the book. There is no doubt that Phil trashes Kobe in the book,
and shows that Kobe did sabotage the team, and basically whined like
a bitch, and drove Shaq away from the team. There is no denying that.

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/01/s...-in-lakers-triangle-offense.html?pagewanted=1

In his new book, ''More Than a Game,'' Phil Jackson writes about a player who stubbornly refused to buy into the triangle offense, a player who thought he could showcase his talents more without giving up space and shots to his teammates.


That player joked that the triangle was a ''white man's offense,'' because of its emphasis on spot-up shooting rather than one-on-one forays to the basket.


It sounds like a Kobe Bryant lament. But the words belong to Michael Jordan, who took several years to grasp all the qualities of the offense that helped the Chicago Bulls win six championships.

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Jackson also said: ''Someone told me that in high school, Kobe used to sabotage his own games, so the game could be close, so he could dominate at the end. To sabotage the team process, to be so self-centered in your own process . . . it's almost stupefying.''



Bryant said he would not dignify the claim with a comment.



Jackson, upon reflection, said, ''There's a word, 'sabotage,' that got a large degree of colorization. . . . If I could take the word back, 'sabotage,' I would do that.''
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The only thing that article shows is that everybody has flaws. Jordan and Kobe were both selfish when they initially entered the league, as most players at the NBA level. You can't succeed the way they have without at least some degree of greediness.

Same deal with Phil. Just because he's considered the greatest coach in the NBA, doesn't mean he doesn't exaggerate accounts or use fictitious or bullshit sources to project his antagonistic feelings in a passive aggressive format.
 
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I wasn't in the room, nor were you. :lol:

Common sense clearly eludes you. :drink:


If you study the rape case you'll find documented evidence
that:

Faber's rape examination revealed "vaginal trauma" and that her underwear had a very small brown mark on the crotch that was identified as dried blood.

The prosecution deemed that there was plenty evidence to go to trial,
and the only reason it didn't is because the woman got paid off.

There is evidence leaning both ways in this case, and the only
common sense statement is the one I already stated which is that
only two people in this world know if rape actually occurred in that
hotel room.

So, for Kobe's scrotum lappers to definitively state that no rape occurred
is frankly an ignorant, stupid thing to say.
 

ham

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If you study the rape case you'll find documented evidence
that:

Faber's rape examination revealed "vaginal trauma" and that her underwear had a very small brown mark on the crotch that was identified as dried blood.

The prosecution deemed that there was plenty evidence to go to trial,
and the only reason it didn't is because the woman got paid off.

There is evidence leaning both ways in this case, and the only
common sense statement is the one I already stated which is that
only two people in this world know if rape actually occurred in that
hotel room.

So, for Kobe's scrotum lappers to definitively state that no rape occurred
is frankly an ignorant, stupid thing to say.

I love the way you blatantly ignore the fact that they found multiple sperm samples in her vagina. :lolBIG:

Again, common sense eludes you. G'day. (<)<
 
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I love the way you blatantly ignore the fact that they found multiple sperm samples in her vagina. :lolBIG:

Again, common sense eludes you. G'day. (<)<

I love how you ignore my very clear statement that said
there is evidence leaning both ways in the case.

:ohno:

Besides, what you're implying is that if a woman has sex before
getting raped, then it can't actually be rape, because there
would be multiple sperm samples in her vagina. WTF?

I'll repeat myself yet again. There are only two people in this
world that know if rape occurred, and you are not one of them.
 

ham

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I love how you ignore my very clear statement that said
there is evidence leaning both ways in the case.

:ohno:

Besides, what you're implying is that if a woman has sex before
getting raped, then it can't actually be rape, because there
would be multiple sperm samples in her vagina. WTF?

I'll repeat myself yet again. There are only two people in this
world that know if rape occurred, and you are not one of them.

Do I have to spell it out for your dim wit? :ohno:

Who has more credibility? The slut who wants to make a quick buck, or the guy all the girls want? You're just grasping for straws now. :lol:
 

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