Will The King Ever Be Dethroned? Kobe Might Be Ready To Take Over

Let me start by saying how privileged I was to watch Michael Jordan play his entire career, I saw amazing moments. As a Knicks fan, he broke our hearts millions of times. Competing against those Ewing-led frontlines was no easy task.

So when he won, he definitely earned it. New York fans hated him because he wasn't a Knick, but we still respected, admired, and were in awe of him.

I saw amazing moves, both graceful and smooth. I saw clutch shots, I saw Mike put it all on the line in the biggest moments. He was so good I could just say Mike and people know exactly who I'm talking about.

Whether they were a sports fan or not. What set Mike apart from the others was his killer instinct. He was an assassin on the court. he looked to embarrass and annihilate his opponents, especially when it really counted.

In the beginning he had the league in awe because he was an innovator. His acrobatic moves, crazy shots and dunks hypnotized us into amazement. He scored on opponents with ridiculous ease. Midway through his career, he was labeled as the best player in the league, and the best to come along in years.

That was just off of his talent alone. He wasn't in the discussion of being the best player ever until he was able to trust his teammates, get his whole team involved, and win games.

I remember one game in particular, where my respect for him really hit an all time high. It was Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, and he had the flu or a fever or something. I've heard all of that before, but for once you could see by the look of him he was really sick.

You saw the fatigue in his face. When he went to the bench he was visibly exhausted, and not from running up and down the court. He gutted it out and carried that team to a series clinching win. That pretty much sums up the will of Michael Jordan.

Years have passed by, and every clown with an athletic or acrobatic move is compared to Michael Jordan. There was Harold Miner. Baby Jordan. Vince Carter. And many more, based on their hangtime. However, Jordan's athleticism wasn't his most important attribute.

He was the total package, not just a fool who could dunk nice and make shots over his head. So many idiots came into to the league trying to emulate those Jordan moves we saw on SportsCenter.

When Kobe Bryant came into the league, he was one of those young fools. He had a killer instinct too, but it was to get the notoriety and highlight time. I'd see Kobe in his rookie year shooting all these wild shots, looking as if he were trying to top Jordan.

We've all seen someone whether on TV or in the playground that takes these wild shots trying to get attention. That's exactly what Kobe was.

I cut him a little slack since he was put in the professional spotlight at seventeen. He came  a year after Garnett when not too many high school athletes were making that jump, skipping college. Back then, when the players made that jump, they usually were ready in a few years, unlike recent years.

Kobe got to develop his game around the most dominant player in the league in Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq was young, healthy, and was at the peak of his offensive game. He went from being a cocky showoff to the best scorer in the league. He seemed to be in constant competition with Shaq. Perhaps because he was steamrolling through the league.

Who could forget the All Star game in 1998 where Kobe waved off a Karl Malone screen so he could go one on one with Jordan. That summed up the type of player he was early on in his career. He had the athleticism. He had the talent. But he was playing for the fame, for himself. Winning seemed to be secondary.

Even with his selfishness, he and Shaq still managed to win three consecutive titles. And Kobe reminded us of a young Mike the way he embarrassed and lulled opponents into submission.

When they finally broke up in 2004, he finally had free reign, and didn't have to worry about deferring to Shaq. He didn't realize what a luxury it was to be able to play with a dominant Hall Of Fame Center. Playing with Shaq elevates players games to the next level, Anfernee Hardaway, Kobe and Dwayne Wade, all went to superstardom.

The first year they went to the playoffs and lost, and the following year Kobe went on a scoring spree. He had a game of 81 points. he had a stretch where he scored over forty points ten consecutive games.

He averaged a eye-popping 35.4 ppg, which was the highest since Jordan's 37.1. However they was going backwards in the standings, and wasn't even getting out of the first round.

The 2007 offseason was when Kobe released his frustrations, on the organization and his teammates. Trade rumors were all over the place, constant threats and rumors of Kobe opting out of his contract at the end of the season.

He stayed in LA and had to play it out. If he shut it down like Vince did Toronto, it would damage his reputation for years. What's a better way to boost his value than winning with a bad team?

Kobe played the best basketball of his career that year. He realized he could score anytime he wanted. He became smarter and his game was more calculated. Most of all, he believed and trusted his teammates.

When he did that, the Lakers got the first seed and went to the Finals. For the first time he was successful without Shaq. Stealing Pau Gasol from Memphis didn't hurt anything. This was with the same guys he was complaining about. All they needed was to be involved.

He finally decided shared the spotlight. And guess what. He got the recognition he wanted by winning his first MVP award. The next year he won that ring. I'm not a Laker fan, but Kobe paid his dues and deserved it.

With Kobe's four rings he is one ahead of Jordan at age 31. Personally I think Kobe has more athleticism and explosiveness than Mike. Jordan had the hangtime, the post game, and the knowledge. They both have the killer instinct to want to take over games.

Both seem to excel the less time there's remaining. Kobe is the only player I've seen in the last twenty years whose killer instinct is comparable to Mikes. Robert Horry. Chauncey Billups. Close, but not nearly the same.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that Kobe is better than Michael Jordan. That's blasphemy if I did. What I'm saying is Kobe's talent level, instincts, and athleticism is the only one who is comparable. Very, very, close. If he keeps up on the pace that he's on, we could put him in the discussion.

Lets not forget the two years Jordan missed playing baseball. Granted, he came back and won three more, which solidified his G.O.A.T. status. But who is to say we cant argue that if Kobe doesn't win four or more titles playing at this level in the next 10 years?

In the long run, I think it'll be a close discussion or race, with Mike winning in the long run. If Kobe is a part of another dynasty, we'd have to mention him. Just like Mike, Kobe never ceases to amaze us. I think he could do it.

Then again, I think that Derek Jeter could break Pete Rose's all time hit record. He has the talent to do it. The question is will he be able to do it? That's the beauty of sports to me. Records are made to be broken. Getting close is easy, breaking them and performing isn't.

I apologize for the length of this. I go off on this topic. I should do an hour long talk show on it. I love this game!