Kobe Bryant: A Three-Peat Can Elevate Him to the Level of Michael Jordan

Kobe Bryant will forever be compared to the NBA’s greatest legend, Michael Jordan.  The Lakers have the chance of a lifetime in the 2010-2011 season to add more fire to the debate.

With a Lakers championship next season, Kobe Bryant will have 6 NBA Championships, matching Michael Jordan’s number of championships.  Also it would have come in a pair of three-peats, just like Jordan’s. And last but not least, they would have come while playing for the same hall of fame coach, Phil Jackson.

Kobe Bryant’s legacy is already marked in Los Angeles, as Michael’s is marked in Chicago.  He has established himself as the best Laker to ever play the game, Magic Johnson and other Lakers Hall of Famers included. 

Michael Jordan might top Kobe Bryant in almost every statistical category possible, but their productivity in the court is much similar.  I would be very hard to try and collect both men’s game winners and come up with an undisputed champion in that category.  But one thing is for sure, Kobe still has several more years to surpass Jordan and several of those categories.  By the time Jordan won his sixth NBA championship he was 35.  Kobe Bryant is 31.

At the end of his career, without any other championship, Kobe Bryant might not be considered just as good of a player as Michael Jordan ever was.  But just with a Lakers championship next season he will definitely be at Michael Jordan’s level. 

No longer will any NBA fan, analyst, manager, or player be able to say Michael Jordan is in a different category.  Kobe Bryant would have broken that barrier.  He will probably never be considered the best of the two athletes, but he will have to be considered at the same level of greatness.

Agree?  Disagree?  Comment away!

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