The quotes were everywhere a couple of weeks ago, broadcasting to the heavens that Michael Jordan picked Kobe Bryant over LeBron James when asked to choose between two of the game’s best players.
As is often the case with these types of things, there’s nuance involved, and it isn’t as easy as simply choosing one side over the other.
With that in mind, we present to you the video clip of Jordan responding to the question: Kobe or LeBron?
Jordan clearly sees a lot of himself in Bryant, both in terms of the way Kobe plays the game, as well as the way he values the pursuit of championships above all else. There’s a kinship there that’s evident when Jordan is speaking about him.
But as you’ll see, Jordan wasn’t exactly dismissive of LeBron, and pointed out his strengths immediately before ultimately settling on Kobe because of the number of championships that reside on each player’s respective resume.