NBA Playoffs 2011: Just How Close Is Kobe Bryant to Catching Michael Jordan?

As Kobe Bryant prepares to play his 200th career NBA playoff game on Wednesday night, we take a look at how the "Black Mamba" stacks up against "His Airness."

Michael Jordan played 179 playoff games over his career, but has one more Larry O'Brien Trophy than Bryant, who will look to grab his sixth this postseason, and third consecutive.

In an age where players are defined by titles, Bryant has the rare opportunity to surpass the game's greatest player. Kobe is just 32 years old and leads the league's most recent dynasty.

Join B/R as we compare the two roundball superstars and decide whether or not Jordan needs to sweat the cocky kid from Philadelphia.

Michael Jordan: 1980s

Rick Stewart/Getty Images

1980's: CHICAGO GUARD MICHAEL JORDAN FLIES TO THE BASKET FOR A DUNK OVER LOS ANGELES GUARD MAGIC JOHNSON DURING THE BULLS GAME VERSUS THE BULLS AT THE GREAT WESTERN FORUM IN LOS ANGLELES, CALIFORNIA. Mandatory Credit: Rick Stewart/ALLSPORT

Jordan's first three postseasons ended in speedy first-round exits, not because of poor play from Michael however.

Jordan averaged 29.3, 43.7 and 35.7 PPG in those first three playoff series respectively. In his first playoff series, 1985 against the Milwaukee Bucks, Jordan hit his first career game-winning postseason shot in Game 3, but the Bulls would lose in four games, 3-1.

The 1986 playoffs saw Jordan's No. 8-seed Bulls get swept by the Boston Celtics, 3-0. Jordan would score an NBA playoff record 63 points in a double-overtime loss in Game 2.

The next season, Jordan and the Bulls were again swept out of the first round by the Boston Celtics.

In 1988 Jordan would finally win his first career playoff series, 3-2 over the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, his 36.3 PPG were not enough to continue Chicago's run as the Bulls fell to the Detroit Pistons, 4-1 in the conference semifinals.

Jordan took yet another step in 1989, when he led the Bulls to the Eastern Conference finals, only to lose to the Detroit Pistons in six games, 4-2. Jordan averaged nearly 35 PPG, 7 RPG and more than 7 APG during that postseason.

Jordan would finish the 1980s with postseason averages of 36 PPG, 6.5 APG, 6.7 RPG and 47.9 FG%.

Kobe Bryant: 1990s

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18 May 1998: Kobe Bryant #8 of the Los Angeles Lakers goes up for a basket during a game with the Utah Jazz at the NBA Western Conference Finals at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Jazz defeated the Lakers 99-95. Mandatory Credit: Jed Jaco

Kobe got a taste of his first playoff basketball in 1997. Bryant would play in all of L.A.'s nine games that postseason, but did not start, averaging only 8.2 PPG as an 18-year-old. The Lakers would lose to the No. 1-seed Utah Jazz, 4-1 in the conference semifinals.

Bryant and the Lakers took the next logical step in 1998, making the Western Conference finals after defeating Portland and Seattle, 3-1 and 4-1 respectively. The 19-year-old Kobe averaged just 8.7 PPG in 11 contests (remember Jordan was playing for North Carolina at age 19).

It was the 1999 postseason that saw Kobe take his game to the next level, perhaps the level we are now accustomed to seeing every spring. Bryant started all eight playoff games for the Lakers that season, scoring 19.8 PPG in the process. Unfortunately, L.A. would get swept by the Spurs in the conference semifinals.

Bryant ended the decade with career playoff averages of 12.2 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.4 APG and 40.6 FG% in 28 playoff games.

Michael Jordan: 1990s

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29 Nov 1997: Guard Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls jumps to the basket during a game against the Washington Wizards at the US Airways Arena in Landover, Maryland. The Bulls won the game 88-83. Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /Allsport

Simply put, the 1990s were very good to Michael Jordan, who averaged 30-plus PPG during eight consecutive postseasons from 1990 to 1998 (not including 1993-94, when Jordan retired to play baseball).

Jordan played 142 playoff games in that time, winning 105 of them, including six world championships.

Only two of Jordan's postseasons in the 1990s ended without a ring. Chicago's dynasty needs little explaining and Jordan's decade of dominance will be forever remembered.

Jordan's numbers over those 142 games? Absolute insanity. No. 23 averaged 32.5 PPG in those eight postseasons, a high-level consistency that has yet to matched.

Jordan's assist and rebounding numbers are equally as eye-popping over that time. The Chicago Bulls failed to win a title before Jordan, and have not won one since Jordan.

Perhaps that is the greatest compliment we can give MJ.

Kobe Bryant: 2000s

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LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 17: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates after the Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in Game Seven of the 2010 NBA Finals at Staples Center on June 17, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. The Lakers defeated the Celti

Kobe Bryant threw five parades in downtown Los Angeles in the past 10 years. Bryant's numbers over that time are not quite as incredible as Jordan's, but incredible nonetheless.

Since the 2000 playoffs, Kobe has averaged 20-plus PPG in every postseason he's played in. He's also averaged four-plus APG and RPG over that time.

Bryant's first three rings came at the turn of the century, when L.A. won three straight behind the brilliant play of Kobe and Shaquille O'Neal.

The fourth ring didn't come until 2009, when Kobe put the Lake Show on his back to beat the Orlando Magic in five games, 4-1. A repeat in 2010 featured an epic seven-game series with rival Boston. But you already know this.

Five rings, and some of the most well-known clutch shots in basketball history, are just a few of the things that stand out on Kobe's resume, and he's only 32. Jordan got his sixth title at age 35.

Kobe could have nine by then.

Kobe vs. Jordan

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1 Feb 1998: Guard Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls (left) and guard Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers look on during a game at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. The Lakers won the game, 112-87. Mandatory Credit: Jed Jacobsohn /Al

Since all we have to go on are the numbers, let's do just that. Take a look at how the two compare statistically in their postseason careers.

Michael Jordan:

179 Games, 41.8 MPG, 48.7 FG%, 33.2 3PT%, 82.8 FT%, 33.4 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 5.7 APG, 2.1 SPG and 3.1 TO

6 World Championships, 6 Finals MVPs, 5 League MVPs, 14-time NBA All-Star and 2-time Olympic Champion

Kobe Bryant:

199 Games, 39.5 MPG, 44.9 FG%, 33.7 3PT%, 81.6 FT%, 25.6 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.4 SPG and 2.9 TO

5 World Championships, 2 Finals MVPs, League MVP, 13-time NBA All-Star and Olympic Champion

Jordan has Kobe beat in nearly every statistical category, but Kobe can tie Jordan in the championship category, and even pass him before it's all said and done.

Will Kobe Ever Surpass Jordan?

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LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 17: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on after the Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics 83-79 in Game Seven of the 2010 NBA Finals at Staples Center on June 17, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expre

NBA fans will always be sensitive about the idea of someone surpassing the accomplishments of Michael Jordan, whose heroics are etched in every NBA fan's mind from the beginning. It's the first name you must know, and the last one you're allowed to forget.

However, my generation fears Kobe more than any other player. He has been to the top of the mountain, with Shaq and without Shaq. He has won everything a player can win, sometimes more than once, and if you took Jordan and I took Kobe, I'd like my chances.

Patrick Clarke is a Featured Columnist for the Phoenix Suns and a student at Towson University.