Image via Complex Original
Even the biggest Kobe Bryant stans will admit that his Achilles' injury, age, and the rise of LeBron James have made Bryant's chances of becoming the G.O.A.T. very slim. To even be in the conversation with Michael Jordan is an accomplishment any NBA player would be happy with. However, Kobe Bean Bryant isn't just any NBA player. Five NBA championships, two Finals MVPs, 15 All-Star appearances (including four MVPs), his 81-point performance, and many more accolades that we don't have time to mention define one of the greatest careers in NBA history. Anyone who has followed Bryant over his 17 seasons knows that he isn't satisfied with being known as "one of" the all-time greats, he wants to go out on top of that list.
This week the Lakers gave him a couple more seasons to add to that legacy with a contract extension through 2016. But at 35 years old is it even possible for Kobe to somehow catch MJ and go down as the G.O.A.T.? Possible? Yes. Word to KG. But likely? Not really. If there's an insane to-do list Kobe is keeping, it likely looks something like this: 10 Things Kobe Bryant Needs to Do to Surpass Michael Jordan as the G.O.A.T.
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Find his Robin/Scottie Pippen.
If Kobe has any plans on winning more championships he'll need some help. MJ had Scottie by his side during his six championship seasons. Ironically, Kobe was viewed as Shaq's Scottie/Robin during the Lakers' three-peat at the beginning of the aughts. Now he's going to need a reliable player to serve as his right-hand man as he goes after another championship. By the looks of it, that reliable sidekick is not on the Lakers roster right now. This year's squad looks like the 2004-2007 squads that failed to win a playoff series. Bryant's two-year, $48 million deal puts the Lakers in a bit of a salary cap bind but the team still has room for a max contract in the 2014 offseason. Time will tell if any of the top free agents are willing to take the risk of joining the Lake Show with Kobe and a lot of unproven young players.
Win a title without Phil Jackson.
The Zen Master was there for all of both MJ and Kobe's titles. For that reason alone, Phil Jackson's opinion on the Kobe vs. MJ debate holds the most weight. What's the best way for Kobe to take some power away from the man who once called him "uncoachable?" Win a title without him. After he won two titles without Shaq, the next thing that Mamba haters pointed to was the fact that he hasn't been successful without the guidance of Phil. Kobe and the Lakers are 268-176 with coaches other than Jackson at the helm since 1996. Not too bad, right? Well, in the seasons without Shaq or Phil, the Kobe-led Lakers are 120-110 and have failed to win a playoff series.
Come up with some original moves.
It's no secret that Kobe Bryant is a student of the game. Growing up watching the NBA during the '80s and '90s, Bryant couldn't help but be impacted by the rise of MJ. Everyone wanted to "Be Like Mike" in the '90s but how many of us really took Teknoe's lyrics to heart and have documented proof? Only Kobe. The turnaround fadeway jumper, the occasional sticking out of his tongue, trash-talking, killer instinct, it's pretty obvious that MJ's fingerprints are all over Kobe's playing style. That's not necessarily a bad thing but many critics say that he's a carbon copy of Mike with fewer accolades. Earlier this year MJ even said he isn't sure if he'd be able to beat Kobe one-on-one because "he steals all my moves." Age and his recent achilles injury will no doubt slow Kobe down a bit and possibly force him to add a few original moves to his repertoire. If successful then those moves will only add to his legend and quiet the haters.
Win another NBA MVP.
Michael Jordan won five NBA MVPs in his career—Kobe has just one. Although championships remain the widely used metric for NBA greatness, regular season MVPs are a solid way to measure consistency. If you look down the list of MVP winners, it's basically a list of the all-time greats and the eras they ruled in. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar leads the pack with six and MJ finished right behind him. Kobe's sole MVP season came in the 2007-08 season. Some argue that he should've won in 2005-06, a season in which he averaged a career-high 35.4 PPG. Steve Nash walked away with the award that season. A regular season MVP in his mid-to-late 30s would put Bryant in a class by himself.
Play until the age 40 like MJ did and still score 20 points per game.
MJ haters (yes, though they are a rare species they do exist) love to point out three things about His Airness: 1) His tenure with the Wizards in which they failed to make the playoffs. 2) His horrid fashion sense. 3) His terrible front office moves (i.e. drafting Kwame Brown). There's no defending two of those but MJ's return to the Wizards wasn't all bad. At 38 years old MJ returned to the NBA and still managed to average 22.9 and 20 PPG over two seasons. Yes, the Wizards finished 37-45 in both of those seasons but no one can deny that 20 PPG at that age (especially when you're a guard) is quite an accomplishment. Will the Buss family be willing to add a couple more years to a 37-year-old Kobe's contract in 2016? Eh, we doubt it. Maybe things will come full circle and he'll join the Bobcats.
Have his sneakers come somewhat close to the status/realm of Jordans.
It must be the shoes. They're the reason why 20 years from now some (emphasis on some) kids will know about Jordan sneakers but won't know much (if anything) about the man behind the brand. According to Forbes, Jordan's net worth is an estimated $650 million. That number will only continue to grow as more Js get retroed and released. Although Kobe's line is one of most popular in sports today, it's nowhere near the prominence of MJ's. In fact, Kobe's kicks aren't even the most popular among active players—that title belongs to King James. Can the Kobes ever jump over the Jumpman? It's highly unlikely but if they did it would only help add to his legend and status as one of the all-time greats.
Win a Defensive Player of the Year Award.
While the most iconic moments of his career ("The Shot," "The Flu Game," etc.) are based around his offensive prowess, what separates MJ from many of the other greats was his ability to get it done on the defensive end as well. Jordan won the Defensive Player of the Year Award in the 1987-88 season. The only other guard to win the award since MJ is Gary Payton who did it after he averaged a career-high 2.9 SPG in the 1995-96 season. Kobe has made nine All-Defensive First Teams but he has slowed down on the defensive end over the last couple seasons and his defensive skills are likely to diminish more in his return from injury. Considering his age and the fact that he's a guard, this is likely the toughest (or least likely) task on this list for Bryant to complete.
Beat LeBron James in the NBA Finals.
The biggest challenge of MJ's career was facing the Detroit Pistons who sent his Bulls packing in the playoffs on three consecutive occasions from 1988 thru 1990. Jordan finally was able to get over the hump by sweeping the Bad Boys in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals. Does Kobe have a similar story? Not really. He had Shaq by his side as they dominated the early 2000s, the mid aughts were more about his teams getting Ws against anyone much less rivals that would define his legacy, and though his 2010 title came avenged his 2008 Finals loss to the Celtics no one really thinks of the late 2000s as the Pierce vs. Bryant era.
There's no denying that this is LeBron's era though. Fresh off back-to-back titles and MVP awards, one could say LeBron snatched the torch from Kobe a little before the Black Mamba was ready. The two have never faced each other in the playoffs but Kobe is just 6-13 when playing against teams led by King James in the regular season. An epic showdown that Nike and the rest of us have been wanting for years would be the perfect end to Bryant's career.
Become the all-time leading scorer.
Kobe Bryant has scored 31,617 points in 1,239 games played over 17 seasons. His effort has him currently placed fourth on the all-time scorer's list behind MIchael Jordan (32,292), Karl Malone (36,928), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387). Kobe—if he stays healthy after his return—should pass MJ this season. In order to catch Kareem though, The Black Mamba would have to stay healthy and average approximately 31 PPG for the rest of his career. This is all assuming that he'll return sometime next month. His career average is 25.5 PPG (MJ's is 30.1) and he's averaged 31 PPG or more in just two seasons (2005-06 and 2006-07).
Win two more championships and NBA Finals MVPs.
When you think of Michael Jordan one of the first things that comes to mind is his six NBA championships. MJ won on every one of his trips to the Finals and was named the MVP each time, too. Kobe has been to The Finals seven times and has won five rings along with two Finals MVPs in the process. One of the things critics always love to point out is the fact that it was Shaq leading the ship for three of those championship years. The Black Mamba got some of the haters off his back by winning titles sans-Shaq in 2009 and 2010 but another two titles and Finals MVPs are essential if he has any hopes of going out as the G.O.A.T.