If MJ’s all right with it: Give Kobe
a chance.
by rick olivares (I took the photo from my copy of the book)
When the book “For the Love of the Game: My Story”
came out in 1998, there were two NBA players given a page and Michael Jordan’s
thoughts – Scottie Pippen, who His Airness affectionately called a “predator,”
and Kobe Bryant. At that time, supposedly Jordan’s last year in the NBA, Bryant
was in his third season. But the GOAT obviously thought well enough of him to
earn a page.
In that page, Jordan asked, “Can Kobe Bryant become a
great player?”
I think that even back then, MJ saw something special
in Bryant that warranted that special mention.
Sixteen years after that Jordan “endorsement,” the
Black Mamba has surged past him on the all-time scoring list to squarely sit in
third. It was obvious that Bryant was going to pass Jordan in the all-time
scoring list just as he past MJ for the most number of points scored in his
All-Star Game history.
With the Jordan loyalists out in force (as are the
Kobe loyalists and haters), maybe this should put things in perspective.
In the last page of the book, Jordan says, “There is
no such thing as a perfect basketball player, and I don’t believe that there is
only one greatest player either.”
Let that sink in for a moment.
“Everyone plays in different eras. I built my talents
on the shoulders of someone else’s talent. I believe that greatness is an evolutionary
process that changes and evolves from era to era.”
“The evolution of greatness doesn’t stop with me just
as it didn’t stop with (Elgin) Baylor, Dr. J (Julius Erving), Larry Bird, or
Magic (Johnson). The nature of evolution is to continue.”
“Somewhere there is a little kid working to enhance
what we have done. It may take a while, but someone will come along who
approaches the game the way I did. He won’t skip steps. He won’t be afraid. He will learn from my
example just as I learned from others. Unless they change the height of the
basket or otherwise alter the dimensions of the game, there will be a greater
player than me.”
Sixteen years ago, Jordan wondered about how great
Kobe Bryant is. Looking at how his career turned out, I sure as heck don’t
think he took shortcuts. He certainly didn’t skip steps and wasn’t afraid. And
without a doubt, Bryant will go down as one of the best. Possibly even cracking
that list of Top 10 players to play the game.
Just as Reggie Miller (who played against Jordan and
Bryant in their primes) said of the latter’s feat of moving past MJ in the
all-time scoring list, “It’s a truly special career. That’s a heck of a lot of
points and a heck of a lot of longevity.”
Miller forgot to mention that Bryant has been relatively
injury-free for most of his career (save the past two seasons where he was
knocked out for an extended time). His longevity (18 years and counting) and
relative durability is a testament to his greatness as a player.
Just as Jordan was quoted as praising Bryant, we too
want to see what Kobe will accomplish next. We should just all sit back and
enjoy one of the NBA’s all-time greats pour it on in the twilight of his
career.
With Jordan’s words, prophetic or not, about players
surpassing him. Let’s take at look at where he has been surpassed.
At one time or another, Jordan owned some 200 records
in NBA history (all of which he achieved during his time in Chicago). However,
since his full time retirement from the game, there are quite a few that have
been broken:
Games scoring 20 or more points: 926. Broken by Karl
Malone.
Seasons scoring 2,000 or more points: 11. Broken by
Karl Malone.
Free throws made in a quarter: 14. Broken by Vince
Carter.
Free throw attempts in a quarter: 16. Broken by Ben
Wallace.
Consecutive free throws made in a game: 19. Broken by
Dominique Wilkins.
Seasons leading the league in steals: 3. Broken by
Chris Paul.
Scoring 10 or more points in career playoffs: 179.
Broken by Shaquille O’Neal.
Consecutive points in a playoff game: 17. Broken by
Ray Allen.
Playoff field goal attempts: 4,497 points. Broken by
Kobe Bryant.
Three-point field goals made in a half of a playoff
game: 6. Broken by Vince Carter.
Three-point field goals attempted in a half of a
playoff game: 9. Broken by John Starks.
Free throws made in one post-season: 183 free throws.
Broken by Dirk Nowitski.
Free throws made in one playoff game: 13. Tied by
Dirk Nowitski.
Career post-season free throw attempts: 1,766. Broken
by Shaquille O’Neal.
Free throw attempts one post-season: 229. Broken by
Shaquille O’Neal.
Free throw attempts in a 4-game series, one
post-season: 58. Broken by Shaquille O’Neal.
Free throw attempts, regulation, one game, playoffs:
28. Broken by Shaquille O’Neal.
Free throw attempts, half, post-season: 17. Broken by
Magic Johnson.
Free throw attempts, quarter, post-season: 14. Broken
by Shaquille O’Neal.
Post-season steals, career: 376. Broken by Scottie
Pippen.
Field goals made in a 5-game NBA Finals series: 63.
Broken by Allen Iverson.
Three-point field goals made, career, post-season:
42. Broken by Robert Horry.
Three-point field goals made, one game, NBA Finals
game: 6. Broken by Kenny Smith.
Three-point fields goals, made in half, one NBA
Finals game: 6. Broken by Ray Allen.
Three-point field goal attempts, one NBA Finals game:
10. Broken by John Starks.
Three-point field goal attempts, one NBA Finals game:
10. Broken by John Starks.
Free throw attempts, one half, NBA Finals game: 15.
Broken by Shaquille O’Neal.
Free throw attempts, one quarter, NBA Finals game:
12. Broken by Shaquille O’Neal.
All-Star Game points, career: 262. Broken by Kobe
Bryant.
All-Star Game field goals, career: 110. Broken by
Kobe Bryant.
All-star Game field goals made, game: 17. Broken by
Blake Griffin.
As you all will notice, those records were broken by different players. And some of those records doesn't justify how it was broken especially the no. of attempts. No disrespect to Kobe, yes he surpassed the total points but we also have to consider the no. of games played (and credit to Kobe because of that longevity). It just goes to show that MJ is indeed the best.
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