Michael Jordan in many eyes, including mine, is the Greatest Basketball Player ever. Or best, whichever word you prefer. Kobe Bryant, also one of the very best players ever, grew up idolizing MJ and modeled his game after him. However, as a result, some "fans" (mostly casuals) think Kobe was Just some lesser version of MJ, and just simply copied his moves. But this is just inaccurate. When you study both players... they actually went about scoring in different ways. Please read on So I can breakdown both MJ and Kobe and explain their games and skillets.
First up, let's start with Jordan. Jordan came into the league as an athletic monster, back in 84'. Boasting a 45+ inch vertical, paired with insane speed, even running a 40 yard dash in 4.3 seconds which is comparable to the likes of Russell Westbrook, and John Wall when they got into the league. But coming into the league, Jordan was a skinny lengthy 21 year old. Didn't have much strength yet, and didn't have much of a jumpshot either, shooting just 16.4% from three in his first 4 seasons. But he was able to get by with Supreme, God Given athleticism. This would change overtime. Teams like the Bad Boy Pistons would punish MJ whenever he would get to the basket. They would wall up and force MJ to be more of a Jump shooter, and because MJ at this time, was on the thin side, he was getting beaten up by their physical style of defense. He couldn't get by the Pistons by just being athletic.
After losing in 1990 to the Pistons, MJ paired up with Tim Grover and started working on his strength and Conditioning. MJ as a rookie weighed about 190-195. After working with Grover, he came back much stronger with more muscle, weighing about 210-215.
MJ would come back much stronger and much more refined. He wasn't just an athletic freak anymore (trust me he was still Uber athletic). But now he had more facets to his game. He was always good at shooting the Mid Range, but he added a more deadly post game, much better footwork, and played much better off ball by the 90-91 season.
MJ with this new found strength was much better at finishing with either hand through traffic, Elite ball handler for a two guard, and one of the very best post players the game had ever seen. He could use his new found physique to bang defenders and create space, and then use his leaping ability to rise over any defenders or double teams with his fadeaway. Not to mention his elite footwork. He could fake and plant either foot so quickly, that the defender bites almost every time, leaving MJ to turn over the other shoulder for a jumpshot.
MJ was also a monster in the Triple threat. When he caught the ball and faced his defender, they were essentially at his mercy. He could rise above and shoot, hit a lightning quick Jab step or just simply blow by his defender. He was also supremely effective with just a few moves. He didn't waste any movement and almost NEVER over dribbled.
KOBE BRYANT
Moving on, let's discuss Kobe Bryant. As I said before, Kobe grew up watching Michael Jordan and aspired to be just like him. However that didn't quiet pan out. Yes, stylistically, he's more similar to MJ than anyone in NBA History. But it's much deeper than that. Although Kobe built the foundation of his offensive game using MJ's blueprint, it was tweaked a great deal for good reason. Kobe was not MJ. He wasn't as strong, wasn't as fast, and couldn't leap as high at MJ, nor did he have the massive hands that MJ possessed. This hindered him from being able to copy MJ's arsenal completely. Which may sound like a bad thing, but trust me, this worked out for Kobe because this would lead him to become the hardest working and most skilled basketball player ever.
Because Kobe didn't have physical gifts that MJ had, he couldn't copy MJ to a tee. But he still was able to use MJ's skillset as a foundation given they were the exact same height and similar build. Because he didn't have the same physical attributes MJ had, in order to compensate, he needed to develop more moves and more counters. He also had to work even more at perfecting his foot work. Kobe couldn't bang and create separation as easily as MJ so his feet placement had to be precise and fluid. He even worked with Hakeem Olajuwon... another player who was more finesse/skilled based. He would study under Hakeem and learn every aspect of footwork as well as posting up. In addition to working with Hakeem, Kobe also worked with Reggie Miller in the off season before the 00' season. He picked up on a step back jumpshot.
Furthermore, both MJ and Kobe had elite fadeway jumpshots. But both were different. When MJ posted up a defender, it was more brute force and banging, that would lead to a turnaround jumpshot. For Kobe it was pivots and counters, and more headfakes to get the defense caught up, allowing Kobe to elevate. Not to mention shot fakes. Kobe had a better pump fake than MJ, almost by necessity. Kobe many times would post up, turn Baseline, then pump fake to get his defender off him, and then rise and shoot. Jordan didn't have to pump fake as much because he usually created enough space by backing his opponent down, and if not, he got much more elevation than Kobe on his jumpshot, so even if the defender contested, MJ could shoot over him.
In the Triple threat Kobe was almost as lethal as MJ. His Jab steps were impeccable. He couldn't pull up and shoot over a defender as easily as MJ, but he was still elite. When Kobe opted to blow by a defender, he would more often op to pull up for a jumpshot after beating a defender, more often than taking it to the cup. When Jordan beat his defender from a triple threat, he could also pull up and hit a jumper, but more often he chose to take it inside and finish strong. Both were elite at either, but Kobe tended to shoot, MJ tended to drive after beating a defender.
When it came to shooting, they were both almost identical at the free throw line. They both favored the Mid Range, and operating near the elbows, or close to the baseline. Jordan was the better inside scorer. Kobe was the better shooter from deep. Both were elite at the Rim, especially in Kobe's early days, with his many acrobatic finishes, but MJ was superior near the basket. His leaping ability and strength enabled him to be more effective there.
To sum it up... MJ and Kobe were similar players. But they didn't operate the same way. They got their points similarly, but also very different. The way the played in the post, the way operated in the Triple threat... the tendencies they had after beating a defender. MJ was the more fundamentally sound player. He could dominate a defender with 3 dribbles, and get an effective shot for himself. Kobe on the other hand, had to invent shoot many moves and counters on top of the MJ blueprint. Which made Kobe a complete nightmare in an isolation situation. Kobe was also the better scorer from outside. Where as MJ was better than Kobe at the basket. Kobe was more skilled and had more moves than MJ, but MJ was more effective with the slightly less moves due to his physique. However Both were extremely elite moving without the basketball and getting open for mid range jumpshots.
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