Kobe Bryant Versus Michael Jordan - Five Reasons it is No Contest

With Kobe Bryant trying to fight his way to yet another three-peat in his Los Angeles Lakers career, the inevitable comparisons to Michael Jordan have begun all over again. Having grown up watching Jordan and seeing Kobe throughout my adult life, I have been fortunate enough to see them both in their prime. Jordan is the only NBA player in the modern era of professional basketball to secure two three-peats and currently owns one more championship than Kobe. While the comparisons are many, trying to put Kobe on the same level with Michael Jordan is simply not fair--not fair to Kobe and not fair to Jordan. Here are five reasons why Michael Jordan beats Kobe Bryant as the all time greatest guard in NBA history hands down:

Different Eras and Talent Levels

In today's NBA, there are the haves and the have nots. The vast majority of NBA franchises realize that winning a title is not in the cards, and Kobe has had the benefit of playing against teams that are watered down in talent. NBA expansion is one good reason for that. Adding teams to the mix has certainly had an effect on the talent level of the NBA. More importantly, the NBA stars of today are not of the same mind as they were in the days that Jordan was dominating the hardwood. While there are still plenty of superstars, there are few real teams in the NBA today. The teams that dominate are these days are the throwbacks. Jordan faced teams like that on a regular basis, and the competition was fierce. Kobe faces several cupcakes per season to pad his stats.

Kobe Does Not Have the Stats

Kobe Bryant has the numbers to be at number two on the list of all time guards, but he is a distant second to Jordan. Scoring average, turnovers, blocks, steals, assists, rebounds, field goal percentage and wins are all in Jordan's favor. The only areas that Kobe leads in are in three pointers and free throw percentage, and those are by the skin of his teeth. No more needs to be said.

Jordan Did It Without A True Big Man

Kobe has won five titles to be sure, but it can be argued that Shaquille O'neal was the driving force in three of them. Jordan never had that type of big man in the post, working instead with the likes of Bill Cartwright, Will Perdue and Horace Grant. All of these guys were talented to be sure, but they were not Shaquille. While Kobe was certainly a dominant reason that the Lakers won their championships, he had an ingredient that Jordan never had, and Jordan still did it more often.

Michael Jordan Had Post Up Game

Kobe can do it on occasion, and when he does he is a better player. The rub here is that Jordan relished going down low to battle the big boys, and won more often than not. Because of this, when he isolated on another guard they had no chance whatsoever. Kobe shoots from outside sometimes when he should drive, and that sets the two apart in my opinion. One concession here is that Kobe is a bit better long distance, but just barely. Jordan hit the long distance when it was needed, but knew when to take an opponent down low.

Jordan Transcended Basketball and Had Long Lasting Effects

Part of the reason that Jordan was such a huge superstar and ambassador for a growing NBA was timing. He came along at the perfect moment in time for the NBA, and his talent was met with open arms world wide. Kobe came along at a poor time comparitively in the NBA, and reaped many of the benefits that Jordan, Magic, Bird and others put in place. Jordan was not only the face of the NBA, he was the face of basketball and an era. Kobe can not and will not ever match that level of commercial and iconic appeal.