people say kobe bryant is as good as M. Jordan what are your thoughts on this????
600294
Hell NO!  He was the sidekick to Shaq to win all of those rings, and he hasn't done anything without him.  He is a ballhog and doesn't make his teammates better.  MJ did all of those things and did win with only Pipen as a decent player.  I would say that Shaq is closer to MJ than Kobe, and that is not even close.
618335
I think Kobe is the best player in the league.  He can score at will, & plays hard-nosed defense.  He also has the "IT" factor where he can perform under pressure & win the close games at the end.  He already has 3 rings; yes, Shaq had something to do with it, but all the greats in the history of the NBA had their counter parts (Jordan/Pippen, Magic/Kareem, etc.).  The only other player you can make an argument for is Lebron.  However, he has yet (not saying he won't) to prove himself.
1019901
MJ, Michael Jordan. A great. No doubt.
291023
There are different things that make basketball players great.  When you look at a player like Jordan, he was a great scorer and a great defender.  He also made players around him better.  With a player like Shaq, he gets a bad rep because of his free throws, but in reality there has never been a big man of his size that was so good with the ball.  He is a great passer, he is very quick for his size(he has slowed down with age), he runs the court very well, and he has great hands.  He is the most dominating player in the league right now.  Most people that big can't walk and chew gum at the same time.  Shaq is also very unselfish.  If you ever listen to him speak, he always praises his teammates and coaches and not himself.  Kobe Bryant on the other hand still has to learn how to become great.  He needs to improve his defense and learn how to pass the ball a little better.  You are right that scoring 81 points does not make you great, but he did do it against an NBA team.
434807
MJ is loved by all except Mark Jackson and a few other players he embarrassed into retirement. Kobe is hated for being a ball hog, uncoachable, and other off court activities but is still the best in the game today!!!!!
613609
OK bro I'm a answer your question because I know what you mean. Firstly I think a lot of people comment on the NBA and don't know much about it. They know stars and commercials and what others say and they might watch some games but they don't know in depth stat analysis. For example most of these people making these comments are making them as if they only started watching Jordan when he returned from retirment the fist time when he couldn't really average over 33 anymore because he slowed down physically. Secondly they don't like Kobe because he's a good looking black dude married to a white girl or almost white girl that's way hotter than any girl that ever liked them. So many whites would like to beleive that he's a rapist because it reafirms there superiority complex that a good looking black man would want to rape an average white chick just cause she's white which a lot of people know is complete BS. Because I'm sure some playboy bunnies have tried to throw panties at him. Kobe is not a perfect player but neither was Jordan, and I don't think anyone can say that they have seen a player never make mistakes on the court. Jordan's shot to win his 6th championship was an offensive foul. Yes Jordan was my favorite, and Kobe is the best right now and he is very unfairly judged by people who act like it doesn't hurt the man. How can you run around calling someone a rapist if he might not have done it? You know what that must be like for him? Kobe is the best hands down and these people are ruining his career, and I hope some fairness prevails in the end. The only thing that Kobe needs to improve is instilling confidence in his team mates, but irregardless he is the best in the NBA. His dunks look better than Lebron's. He shoots better and has a nicer handle. How exactly people are hating on this is beyond me. I've seen Kobe do stuff that Lebron will never do and people can scream Kobe's a rapist and Lebron is MJ till they are blue in the face but it won't alter the truth. That being that Kobe is the best since Jordan and even if he fails from here on out it's because he is being mentally abused in this country right now. Just say he didn't rape that girl. O.K. because of what he really didn't do he deserved to be robbed of the MVP award and his commercial pressence? And Shaq never got along with Penny Hardaway either that's why he went to the Lakers! And last year Kobe scored less and they won less. Bro they are retarded don't even bother with them. They said Jordan was a ball hog back in 1988 and he would never win a championship! And Kobe's bad for cheating on his wife like oh say America's favorite white actor Brad Pitt! The kid above me is right in what he's saying about Wilt and Russell. But I think where Kobe and Jordan get the edge is in entertainment factor. After all the NBA is entertainment and they make more spectacular plays.
146945
Lebron james is not the best basketball player right now. He has great numbers and is a good leader on his team. I think he has a bright future but i hear many people praising him like he is god. \n\n       He is not even close to MJ he is not old enough. When he leads the league in scoring 10 times or makes the defensive team 8 times like MJ did then u may say he is as good as MJ. The best part of Micheals game was that he made the rest of his players better. I think there are only three players in the NBA that can do that. Jason Kidd and Kevin Garnett and Shaq. I was flipping channels today and there was a Old Game on Knicks VS Bulls 1985 MJ first time in the garden. I really havent seen him play in many games except his 98 season and his average Wizard days. But he was a rookie and he was leading his team and making his players better. And he did remind me of Lebron James because he lived up to the hype. I think in 5 or 6 years Lebron will be the best Player in the NBA and maybe by the end of his carrer could be the next Jordan. \n\n     5 best PLayers\n\n      1. Shaq carried 3 teams to the playoffs most dominant made 2 of his teamates great Kobe and Dwayne Wade. He is getting lazy over the years. But in the playoffs where he trys he is unstoppable. \n\n      2.  Tim Duncan- 3 rings end of story. Gives his all day in and day out. Great leader. Is a basketball player based on fundamentals.\n\n      3.  Kobe Bryant- No one can deny he is amazing he is not the most unselfish player but he does what he needs to do if he had a player to pass to he would not be a ball hog. Lakers need to get a star over free agency because the player they can trade for a star is Smush parker and Kobe.  81 points says it all \n\n     4.    Kevin Garnett- one of the most unselfish players in basketball. Does not care about stats. He would pass the ball out of a lightly contested jumper unless they would need him to score. \n\n     5.     Lebron James- Great PLayer Great Future when he is healthy. Bringing the Cavs to a 5th seed playoffs spot. \n\n     Special notices \n\n                   Tracy Mcgrady- When healty can play like Kobe could have been up in top 5 if it was not for his back. He is a young player and has accomplished many things. But if his back has been hurtin for 2 or 3 seasons he may not get any better. \n\n                 Allen Iverson- One of the greatest little men ever. Has most heart in NBA History. 3rd or 4th in NBA scoring Average of all time. PLays injured every game. My favorite player since i started to watch basketball in his rookie year. PLays harder than most players in the NBA.\n\n     Edit: Marion is good but his stats are misleading he has the stats of the best player in the league but he definetly not one of the best i say that he is top 15 or top 20 and Carmelo Anthony is no where near best basketball player he did not live up to the hype
1056207
I totally agree with you! When you think of NBA "Greats", who is it you think of first? MICHAEL JORDAN--not Dwayne Wade..! I am in no way putting the man down (he is one HECK of a basketball player), but it is waaayyy too early in his career to tell! Michael Jordan was a legacy almost immediately, but it was AFTER he retired (for the last time) that he became a legend! Let Dwayne grow and age, and maybe in a few years we'll know for sure whether he can be compared to MJ....! =)
634401
MJ is remarkable for how old he is, but I don't know if he could keep up with Kobe. My money is still on MJ. Oh snaps. \n\nIn their prime, MJ would crush Kobe. He's not just (arguably) the best basketball player of all time, but one of the greatest athletes of all time.
320404
There is no next Jordan.  I can't see someone winning 6 NBA Finals MVP's in a row.\n\nKobe is the most similar player to Jordan that we have ever seen, more similar than James, or Carter, or Iverson, but I think James has more potential than Kobe.  James should have a better career than Kobe, but people who say James is the next Jordan are dumb cause his style isn't even close - he's more of a Magic Johnson - and he doesn't have the Air (Jumping skills) like Jordan or Kobe.
584696
You have to be kidding me. LeBron may have records that MJ didn't get this young, but c'mon, MJ was and still is the best player in NBA history.\n\nAnd also, you can't really compare someone that is done playing for his career. Now If you compare MJ in his 3rd season to LeBron right now, then YES LeBron is better. But LeBron's career has pretty much just started. We'll have to wait until LeBron James retires from the NBA to be able to compare him to MJ.
1056471
Point is, he played a GREAT game and he deserves that MVP trophy for this series. Michael Jordan is the best of all time, I think that D.Wade can earn a spot next to MJ if he continues to play like this, but replace MJ and be the MJ of this generation, I don't know....
424840
I think Kobe is up there with Jordan.. that game winner didn't seal the deal though because numerous players have made game-winning shots. Jordan was an excellent player and people consider him to be untouchable... but he is... people just say that because he is retired...when people die or they retire they are much moe appreciated... just like Tupac, people didn't think he was all that great until he died.. now he is untouchable....this is getting long so buh bye!
1015538
No. Just cuz he has a ring doesn't mean hes the best.... Lebron is an overall better player still and kobe is close if not better than Dwayne.
912056
i have to agree with most people here.. he's NOT YET better than MJ but he can definitely be..as long as he keeps on focusing in his career and his game.. for some reasons, i really think he is "LIKE MIKE".. come to think of it, MJ was and still is his idol.. MJ just looks like better because in his time, only him was the 'KING' of basketball.. being the 'Air' and everything.. yeah Bron may be 'King James', but there are many out there ready to try to dethrone him.. my point is, i really think MJ and Bron are equally gifted, though Bron may prove that he's better..but it's too early to tell.. the difference between the two of them is, MJ has no one to compete with in his days- yeah there are some but no one can come close to him in those days.. unlike today with King James, he has many competitors, like his friends Melo and D-Wade.
346893
Lebron certainly has a great chance to be as good as Jordan.... He's already a much better player than Jordan was at that age. (You can't compare Jordan's 2nd year in the NBA with Lebron's, since Lebron went straight out of high school, and Jordan played 3 years in college)...He's a better shooter than Jordan, a better rebounder than Jordan was, as good a passer as Jordan was... his in-depth knowledge of the game definitely surpasses Jordan's at the same age... he's also much stronger than Jordan ever was, although that's not entirely basketball related.\n\nLebron is certainly on his way to becoming better than Jordan, but he has to not only keep this level up for many more years, but he must continue to improve every year as well (which he's done so far, and which Jordan himself did).\n\nPlus, Lebron's GOTTA be a better baseball player than MJ...  Jordan was a HORRIBLE baseball player!\n\nOf course, Jordan really wasn't the best player ever, that's just hype fed to the yutes of America by ESPN...
346810
Nobody can be like Michael Jordan, you can make comparisons to it, but still MJ was the best and he has a legacy that almost nobody will touch. That being said, Kobe is already living a Jordanesque life in the NBA. Multiple Championships (with Shaq), countless buzzer-beaters, scoring over 35 ppg in a season, leading a team that would be otherwise bad to the playoffs. Keep #8 Kobe, it is YOUR legacy. When kids 20 years from now look back and say, who wore #8 in the NBA that was really good? Of course everyone will say... Kobe Bryant. Live you own NBA life Kobe, you dont need to be like Jordan with almost the same number, people compare the 2 of them anyway.