I think we do a disservice when we judge a player as GOAT just because he has the best highlight reel, or is the best one on one scorer. The game is played on two ends of the court, and it is a team game. Kobe is a great scorer, but MJ, Duncan, Dream, Wilt, and Russell were all ELITE defenders. Kobe is just a good defender. Kobe has intangibles like Jordan did, i.e. competetiveness, desire, will, but he doesn't have Jordan's refuse to lose no matter what mentality. These thisng make for GOAT. LBJ can jump higher than MJ, and maybe he is a better playmaker than MJ, but can't defend, shoot, dribble, lead, or score like MJ. Kobe can shoot better than MJ, but nowhere near as efficient a scorer, can't defend like MJ, isn't as strong as MJ was, nowhere near as strong as MJ, had much stronger hands that MJ. Kobe gets to the rim and get to the line for 2. Jordan finished at the rim, and got to the line for 1 more. Kobe shoots so many free throws not just because he is aggressive, but because he doesn't finish at the rim. He is easily bumped off his shot.
You are wrong, MJ never did that, the Only player in NBA history to have won MVP, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season (1993-94) was..... Im going to sound like tinman, but I got to say it: Learn some Rockets history first, and read my sig
if he leaves out the Defensive of the year, then he is right, but he puts that award. then he is wrong, MJ never won the Defensive player of the year and the MVP in the same season. if he only writes: MVP, scoring title and all-star mvp, he is right, but he wrote DPOY, then by that, he is wrong.
I disagree. I don't think there's really anything Kobe can do at this point that would move him to the top of the greatest of all time list. He has already peaked, and his peak was not as good as MJ's peak. He can add on to his list of accomplishments and maybe end up with the greatest career, but he will never be a better player than MJ. It's kind of like the situation with Kareem. I think you can make a legitimate argument that Kareem had a better NBA career than MJ. He won just as many championships, he won more MVPs, and he's the all-time leading scorer. But he was not a better player.
Although I think Jordan was a better player than Kobe, it is mainly due to the fact that he had a much better career than Kobe. Call me dumb, but I'm really not understanding your logic here. I guess you have a different criteria for the GOAT than I.
Never. GOAT is not and should not defined by how many rings a player won because doing so you are simply discrediting the teammates and exaggerate one's achievement. In recent decades, imho only Jordan and Olajuwan can be considered GOAT.
I guess there is only one way to settle this. Freeze MJ now until Kobe is the same age, then have them battle it out.
I guess I didn't explain what I meant that well. I'll try again. When I'm thinking about who is the better player between two guys, I think of them at their peaks. If I took MJ at his best and Kobe at his best and surrounded them with the same talent, which guy would take his team farther? I think the answer to that question is MJ, and that's why I consider him the better player. Kobe has passed his prime already, so that answer is never going to change. Going back to the comparison between Kareem and MJ, it's a little harder to decide which guy is the better player using the above logic because they play different positions. But I still think that a talented team centered around MJ would beat out an equally talented team centered around Kareem. However, because Kareem's career was so long and because he played in a different era than Jordan, I think you could make the argument that he had a better overall career (even though his peak may not have been as great) on the basis of his long list of accomplishments (most career points, most MVPs, six championships).
I hate how people want to even consider that Kobe is better than Jordan was.. How many MVPs does Kobe have? Jordan? How many Finals MVPs does Kobe have? Jordan? How many scoring titles has Kobe won? Jordan? Who has won a DPOTY award?
he has to earn a few more when he is the lead guy, not the wingman like he did during the shaq years.
