Jordan: 'I could have scored 100 points' in today's NBA

Not that I disagree with Him (well 100 points is a bit much, but I understand the idea). But I always find it Annoying when old players need to boost their own Ego and state how much easier the nba is nowadays (again not that I disagree) I just do not see the point of it.

Yes the NBA is much easier for a guard today than it was in the time of Jordan it is much less physical. Why would Jordan need to compliment himself that way? It just annoys me.

 

Are people here all teenagers and never really watched games in the 80s?
Let's put things into perspective, the 1988-89 Pistons, NBA champion, 2nd best team that year in terms of opponents PPG, gave up 100.8PPG.

In 2009-2010, the league gave up 100.4 PPG, and 15 teams did better than that. So teams of today are better than "bad boys" Pistons in terms not allowing scoring. Is Jordan still so confident?

 

He took 28 shots per game in 86-87, and he never broke 70 barrier, his 69 points game came off OT. 100, I am pretty sure he can't even beat 80, if there's no force feed like how Wilt got his 100.

 

nobody said MJ will average 100 points. the question is can he? the overall pace is definitely slower nowadays, but not every team plays like that (suns/warriors/knicks). and the game isn't definitely as physical.

kobe bryant is considered the best scorer for most of this decade and his fg% is 45% for the most part.

jordan is considered the best scorer for most of his era and his fg% was 50% for the most part.

if kobe can score 81 points, it's not unfathomable to think jordan can score 100 points.

 

LOL @ the zone argument.

if y'all don't think they ran zones back when mike was in his prime, you need to hit up youtube.

MJ destroyed zones for years, and ID wasn't called.

 

The rules today favour scoring by guards. So you would expect Jordan to score a higher percentage of the points his team scored. I would also expect him to score more points than his career high.

Talented scorers like Kobe, Jordan can score a lot of points. Especially if they take almost every shot (which Kobe does every now and then). However that is not the way to win games. So could he score 100 points in a single game, possibly. Would his team win the game, probably not.

 

It's easier to get high points game in 80s, however you see it. MJ's highes PPG seasons were coming out of those years too.

A league averaging 100 is easier to score than a league averaging 110? I don't get that. I do agree the star preferential treatment is worse than MJ's era. LeBron and Wade's game will be severely set back without touchy foul being called.

 

david robinson scored 71 points in a reg. season game. what's your point?

the game kobe scored 81 points: he took 46 shots and 20 fts -> 56 shot attempts COUNTED. and that was a close game all the way until late in the 4th.

circumstances have to be right and the game has to be close for your star to keep playing.

jordan's highest fg attempts was 49 in 93 and he scored 64 points in that game. WITH ONLY 11 FREE THROWS. and that was a close game where the bulls lost. and that was with shaq patrolling the paint.

now imagine the fouls called galore nowadays for MJ playing that type of game v. a weak interior team no less.

to get to a lot of points: you will need A LOT of free throws to score points when the shot clock isn't moving. kobe had that. jordan will definitely have that if he played in today's league.

shot attempts won't be a problem for MJ with his efficiency. he just needs free throw attempts.

 

I never said that scoring more points today is easier than in the 80's. I said that for a guard scoring a higher percentage of point of your team total points today is easier than in the 80's. Just look at the hand check rules and the star preferential treatment of guards (although Jordan had enough of that in his time). Furthermore the game is much less physical, therefore it is easier for a player to take more shots in a single game nowadays than it was in the 80's because of less fatigue nowadays.

Like I stated before I do not know If Jordan would have scored 100 points in a certain game, I think that is a bit much (although if Bryant could score 82 points why wouldn't Jordan be able to score more in a career high game, since I believe he is a better scorer than Bryant). However I agree with the notion that the NBA is less physical and easier for a guard to score in than in the 80's.

 

How? Half the NBA teams are better defensive team than the "bad boy" pistons. If MJ had problem scoring against Pistons, he has problem scoring against half of the teams today in the same standard. MJ said the toughest defender for him was 6-3 Joe Dumars, in an era one on one. Show me a 6-3 player that had good success against Kobe without playing a zone.

 

You might want to rethink that statement....lol

The chances of scoring 100 points and losing is pretty close to zero.

 

judging defense isn't from ppg scored, but fg% against. like i said, the pace was faster back then and no one can question that.

i call a 6'3 joe dumars a vastly better defender than a 6'8 shane battier, who kobe calls him the best defender he faced. not only would dumars work jordan on defense, he would make him work on offense. kobe, and lebron/wade/pierce/tmac..., all have the benefit of chilling on defense. ALL OF THEM.

like i said again, jordan at the age of 34 shot 46.5%. that is what a PRIME kobe bryant can't even shoot (maybe outside of 2-3 years). THINK ABOUT THAT.

 

Kobe scored more points than MJ for one quarter, 2 quarter, 3 quarters or 4 quarters. He's just a better shooter and when he's hot, he can shoot 3 over 3 defenders, you can't defend that. MJ isn't as good a 3 point shooter and of course it's harder to get a high points game.

MJ's 69 and 63 games caming off OT. His other 60 points were all under 65.
Kobe had 62 and 56 for 3 quarters besides his 81 points game. He could at least touch 70s 3 times if the game wasn't blown out.

 

just for stat freaks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_40-plus_point_games_by_Kobe_Bryant

here are the list of 40+ point games scored by kobe. notice the trend of teams he tends to score against: known bad defensive teams (teams with poor opponent fg% -> the real indicator of defense)

sure the rockets and spurs pop in there 3-4 times, but for the most part v. great defensive teams, kobe usually shot below 50% and had to jack up a ton of shots to get those points.

again: recipe to score a lot:

1) face bad defensive teams
2) shoot a lot
3) get fouled a lo and shoots a lot of fts

 

Hello, how many points one can score a game is directly related how many the team can score, pace and fg% are all normalized. It's like today's league they can only score 100 points but if you force them to play 53 minutes, they'll get close to 110 too.

If MJ boasts how high fg% he can score today, I am fine with that. But he came off an era scoring way more than today, his highest 60 points game without OT was 61, both in 87 when league averaged 110, I have difficulty to see how he can scratch 80, let alone 100.

 

mind you those games came in the PLAYOFFS. it just goes to show MJ scores to win. he doesn't score to get his like most stars nowadays.

tell me when kobe scores like that in the playoffs. HE CAN'T. the defensive intensity heats up in the playoffs.

kobe sometimes goes out of his way to score and ignore his teammates. you can't argue that. phil jackson himself publicly criticizes kobe for that. that happened last year, IN THE PLAYOFFS too.

i don't think that ever happened with jordan. if jordan wanted to set his mind to break a points record, i would not put it past him.

 

I don't think Jordan had the range to get 100 points in today's NBA.

Kobe dropped 81 on the raptors because they were lost on how to defend him. When they crowded him at the three point line, he blew by them for an elbow jumper or drove to the basket. When they gave him space, he shot the long ball. Teams would zone up on MJ and I don't doubt that he would be just as great today but getting 100 points would probably be too difficult for a guard without a 3pt shot.

Who knows who would be a good defender from that era? Some of those guys used to literally push a player away from his position with their hands or at least slow him down. Now it's all about reaction time, quickness, and court awareness not toughness and physicality.

 

Kobe destroyed Bowen, Artest, Kobe scored 50+ games on Battier 3 times. I don't remember Kobe saying Battier is the best defender he faced. He did say he never worry the defender in front of him, he's always worried where help defender is coming from, that's the key.

If Kobe can ISO on low post like MJ due to the zone rule, he'd shoot over 46.5% easily. Think about it. Rodman can't shoot, and no one didn't leave him on weak side to help defend MJ, Why? Because players at old time were dumb? No, because the rule didn't allow that. You can't double off ball, hence entry pass was easy. You can't do position defense, hence a help defender will be taken out with one simple swing back and force. That's just the way it is.

 

Bryant never had a FG% in a season higher than 0.470 Jordan had an average FG% in the regular season of 0.497. Anyone can score points if they take enough shots.

 

02-03 was michael's last year in the league. he shot 44.5%. he was freakin' 39.

02-03 kobe shot 45.1% (tmac the best scorer than year shot 45% also).

c'mon, let's be real.