(I realize this has nothing to do with Dallas sports, but I love the NBA and this is a historic time for our generation of hoops fans. So thanks for bearing with me.)
I’ve never liked the phrase “second place is just the first loser.” It’s a statement without any perspective, any concept of legacy. The second greatest at anything is still incredibly great at something. Ever since the world was introduced to the greatness of Michael Jeffrey Jordan, there has been no one greater to play in the National Basketball Association. The one who has come closest to reaching His Airness’ loftiness is Kobe Bean Bryant, the son of an NBA player who crafted his game all around the world, patterning himself after Jordan.
Kobe and Michael both played the shooting guard position, both were clutch scorers, and exceptional on-the-ball defenders. I speak of Kobe playing in past terms not because he’s retired, but because we can all see the writing on the wall: that his best years, even his years of playing at an all-star level, are behind him. This season, the 2013-14 campaign, Kobe has played 6 games all year, and according to the news out of LA, The Black Mamba is going to shut it down for the rest of the season due to an injury. Kobe is talented enough to still play at a high level; but after 18 years in the league, we can expect to see Kobe on the court less and less.
In most sports, greatness is measured by hardware–rings, MVP’s, all-star selections, and the sort. This is especially true in basketball, where the small number of players participating at one time means magnified individual performances. Jordan and Bryant’s trophy cases hardly compare though, as you can see below:
| Jordan | Bryant | |
| Championships | 6 | 5 |
| Finals’ MVP’s | 6 | 2 |
| League MVP’s | 5 | 1 |
| All Star | 14 | 16 |
| All Star MVP’s | 3 | 4 |
| Scoring Champ | 10 | 2 |
| Def POY | 1 | 0 |
| NBA 1st Team | 10 | 11 |
| NBA 2nd Team | 1 | 2 |
| NBA 3rd Team | 2 | |
| Def 1st Team | 9 | 9 |
| Def 2nd Team | 3 | |
| Olympic Gold | 2 | 2 |
| FIBA Gold | 1 | 1 |
There are a few categories where the two are close, such as NBA and Defensive 1st Team selections, All Star selections, and the all-important championships. But in most other categories, especially in big time awards like MVP’s and Scoring Champ, Air Jordan remains strata over the grounded Mamba.
Even in the category of championships, where Kobe comes close to catching Michael, the numbers are misleading. For clarification, look at the category right below it, Finals’ MVP. Every time Jordan won a ring, he was the best player on his team, 6 of 6. But of Kobe’s five Larry O’Briens, only two came when he was the lead dog. The majority of his rings actually came when he was Robin to Shaquille O’Neil’s Batman in the early 2000’s. Jordan was always Batman. And not the pathetic Val Kilmer/George Clooney portrayal of Bruce Wayne, but the awesome Michael Keaton/Christian Bale variety. Five League MVP trophies, ten scoring titles, and a Defensive Player of the Year greatly overshadow Kobe’s one MVP and two scoring titles.
After hardware, the next criteria for greatness is career stats. Jordan only played in the league 15 years, and Kobe is in his 18th season, so in order to compare apples to apples, let’s handicap Kobe’s per game stats and take his 15 best seasons, that is, let’s take out his first two years and current season, and see how they compare to Michael’s numbers. With career totals, we’ll compare them straight up. Here’s how they stack up:
| Jordan | Bryant | |
| Pts/game | 30.1 | 27.2 |
| Ast/game | 5.3 | 5.1 |
| Reb/game | 6.2 | 5.7 |
| Stl/game | 2.3 | 1.5 |
| Career Pts | 32292 | 31700 |
| Career Ast | 5633 | 5925 |
| Career Reb | 6672 | 6601 |
| Career Stl | 2514 | 1835 |
Jordan edges out Bryant in every per game category, and the only career category that Kobe claims is assists; but that is to be expected when you’ve been in the league for 3 more years. When 24’s career is over, he’ll surpass 23 in career points and rebounds; but he won’t catch his steals numbers. And the way things are looking in LA, he won’t catch his championship numbers either. Certainly not as any team’ Dark Knight.
Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest players in NBA history, and in my Top 5 All-Time list (MJ, Magic, Russell, Jabar, Bryant). If after he graduated from Lower Marion High School in Philadelphia, 18 year-old Kobe set out to be one of the greatest to ever play, then he has more than accomplished his goal. But if he set out to be the greatest player of all time, to surpass Michael Jordan, then he is, in fact, the first loser.
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