What if Kobe and Jordan Played Together?

If Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant

played

on the same team, how many championships could the two of them win

together

today? We'll find out as we send rookie Kobe back to 1985 to pair with rookie Jordan on the Chicago Bulls, giving the two a chance to not only change NBA history as we know it, but also find out who's truly better. because eventually one will become the leader of the team and the other will become just a partner and to find out who is who. We'll be counting Kobe and MJ's MVP awards and their MVP awards to make that decision at the end of their careers, which happens to be the 1998 season, meaning the two have 14 years to accumulate as many awards as possible.

It is possible with all this said, although we are still only in the beginning stages of the duo, as in their first season they would average 18 points per game each, but would have relatively little success in the postseason and, as far as year 2, they would see them. They both improve their scoring numbers by about 22 to 23 per game but once again fail in the playoffs, but it's those two failed seasons that set us up nicely for the third as they would finally make some noise with the two barely separated in the scoring race. 24 per game each, realistically, to win MVP they'll have to get to around 30, but they've made great progress, especially Kobe, who, compared to Jordan, seems more willing to shoot the three, which It makes a lot of sense considering they're removing it. modern game until the 1980s, but more importantly, the progress of the two could best be summed up by their postseason appearance as a second SE with the man who stood in their way being Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics, the first of many legends they will have. to defeat in their quest for basketball greatness, this is obviously the matchup we need to keep an eye on and will definitely live up to the hype as both Jordan and Kobby will put up a more than solid fight against the battle-tested Celtics like the series would do it. quickly reached a stalemate with a 2-2 tie, which is a more than solid start considering the last few seasons have been largely uneventful and if the Bulls can somehow emerge victorious here, it will officially mark them as one of the best young teams in the world. league perhaps to the point where they go all the way and can finally add to their trophy cases, so after a tough battle from Larry, the Bulls duo would be one step closer to achieving it as they take the next two to close it out in home. advance to the Conference Finals for the first time and now heads to Philadelphia to challenge Charles Barkley and Dr.

J, a Jordan and Kobe-like player from an earlier era, which would ultimately make the difference: the presence Dr. J's veteran combined with Chuck's athleticism would be enough to not only take out Obe and MJ, but also take care of them quickly in five games, leaving many fans, including myself, a little disappointed. I a m a little disappointed. I thought they would have reached the final. now it's Jordan and Kobe, but no, and

what

really seems to be the problem is that while they're both fantastic individually, they may not complement each other's games as much as other duos since they both come into the game with the same approach , which is to score as much as possible, almost to the point where you might be right to call them Ball Hogs,

what

the team needs now is someone with some passing ability to set the table and now, in their fourth season, they would get precisely that, as will Scotty Pippen.

Recruited to the Bulls forming a great young trio in Chicago with his skills as a defender and passer being just what the team needed. He barely has a chance to fire the team and could average more points elsewhere, but he's providing enough. passing to help MJ, who is now a full B, is averaging 30, while Kobe, still with a full head of hair, is just a few decimal places away from 31, but despite all those encouraging signs, they would still fall short , as they would face the Celtics again in the second round who will get revenge for last season with old Larry overshadowing the Bulls' athleticism by eliminating them in five, it is a big step back for the team despite adding a young star and now four seasons without any team success to speak of.

It makes you wonder one of two things: Kobe's presence on the Bulls somehow slows Jordan down, or Jordan isn't willing to share the spotlight with another player at his level. Either way, we'll get closer to the answer in the duo's fifth season. It's crucial, for sure, as there's been a lot of hype for both, but they've fallen flat in comparison to the point where everyone starts looking elsewhere for the next star to run the league. Shaquille O'Neal of the LSU Tigers is coming out today saying he's not sure how long he'll stay in Baton Rouge, but NBA experts are sure that whenever he decides to take the next lead, he's the mega star, the league has been increasing, which is ultimately motivation enough. so that the two most competitive players in history have a bounce-back season working even harder than usual, resulting in their best regular season and now finishing as the only favorite with 63 wins, but most importantly it is the good enough for one of the two players to finally take home the title.

MVP and get on the board in our award race, and to keep it short, while they're both taking roughly the same number of shots per game, Kobe's three-ball setup early on is making him average 33 in comparison. with Jordan's 30 and it's that defining trait that ultimately gives him the advantage of attacking first in our race to find out who's better, the three-point shot, that's going to be interesting, man, because we're going to take it out of the modern game by old game and all that momentum. They will continue in the playoffs as the one-seat Bulls dismantle New York Philly, the team that eliminated them before, and the bad boy Pistons, to quickly reach their first Finals against the Portland Trailblazers and with MJ and Kobe leading the way.

Taking shot after shot and dunk after dunk, they would take a quick 3-1 lead and ultimately seal the deal at home, all capped off with a 38th performance with four 3-pointers from Kobe, who would finally finish with his first Finals MVP to give him a one to one. leader in both awards Kobe strikes first, the pressure is now really on Jordan and we will soon see how he responds to that pressure as we enter their sixth season

together

and at this point it is clear that MJ needs some type of Kobe shot-like trait which will give him a statistical advantage to win a major prize because right now the rest of his games are very similar, he could take on more of a passing role, but that would be a major adjustment that he may not be willing to make and as As far as three-point shooting goes, it will take him some time to catch up, so in the end, MJ will decide to become the best two-way player in the league since he is locking down the opponent's best player on defense and therefore of course, wreaking havoc on the offense as usual, so while Kobe might be the more complete offensive player as of now, especially with his Deep MJ shots crashing in on the other end, resulting in a look of totally defensive team, which would be a fantastic sign for the duo, since they would make their second consecutive final, this time against Utah, where the best player, Malone, with the help of Jordan, would be locked in and, although no series of six games can be considered easy, this one would be pretty close to that since it wasn't.

Always in doubt, resulting in a repeat championship for the Bulls and the emergence of a new Finals MVP, with Michael Jordan being the one who is proving that he is still a force to be reckoned with if you counted them out early and made a mistake because It's far from over. With that, we now move on to season 7 where it quickly becomes clear that Jordan stole the show now with regular season averages of 36 and 4 along with over two stamps and a block, which could have been the difference considering Kobe It's also averaging. 30 because in the end it would be MJ who would win his second consecutive award and his first MVP of the regular season, tying that category one to one.

The defensive stats are incredible. Plus he's shooting 61% which is just as crazy and with that we'd be in the playoffs where the two would be chasing a historic hero and in their Quest they take care of the first three rounds easily for a final showdown with the Seattle Sonics . They have Gary Python, a future Hall of Fame player, and Shan Kemp, a future Hall of Famer. Very good player, but in the end the Bulls had two future all-time great players who might even be good enough for that status at this point, as the series wasn't even close, the Bulls are three, winning easily and Jordan he ultimately took home his second Finals MVP.

Kobe averaged more points during the Finals, but it looks like Jordan's defense has the upper hand by now officially turning the tide in his favor to somehow take the lead. Jordan almost averaged three blocks per game as a 66 guard, but he's winning another Finals MVP, but whatever. Don't count on Co being out yet, as in the future he will have a great opportunity to return that could seriously change the course of this competition, but for now let's focus on the 1992 season, where both would be equally dominant. as always, finishing with 64 wins as the only SE with the only problem in their plan being the fact that neither of them are winning the regular season MVP and that goes to Clyde Drexler in Portland, instead he prepared perfectly to both of them to take revenge.

A few months later, in the finals, they burst into Clyde's gym and quickly took care of him for the second time, bringing the two their fourth consecutive title, once again proving that they are the team that will overcome the only difference between this title. and the previous ones. Whether it's the fact that Kobe is regaining the spotlight, as his 32 points per game are turning into a whopping 38 by the Finals, leading to him winning his second Finals MVP to completely tie us in all categories and the acquisition of the Chicago Bulls would not end. There, as the two would take their talents to the US Olympic Dream Team, where they would both be the undisputed leaders of the team and with their journey ending with a gold medal, it is seemingly clear that the two have officially reached their prime. and either of the two NBA awards could be determined by the flip of a coin, with the only slight drawback being that it doesn't apply to the regular season MVP as it heads to the Shack in Orlando, where it will eventually be applied, would be the fifth final consecutive of the duo and the second against Utah.

Jazz, which would eventually become a fifth consecutive title for the Kobe and Jordan duo and as far as the coin flip goes, it lands on Kobe who is averaging 37 in the Finals to finish the series in five games, securing his third Finals MVP to give Jordan the lead our competition to find out who is better has now become a competition to discover the greatest player of all time but in Jordan's case he seems to surprisingly not care about Michael Jordan has announced his retirement from basketball after the Bulls' fifth title The 30-year-old plans to pursue a career in Major League Baseball before signing a contract with the Chicago White Sox, which ultimately means Kobe He has to try to lead the Bulls to their sixth straight title on his own and there are two very different ways. that this season he will end up as number one if he loses without Jordan, the media and maybe even you watching this will come to the conclusion that Jordan was the leader of the team all this time, but on the other hand, if he wins his sixth consecutive championship, could be one. one of the craziest titles in league history, considering the circumstances, and it could definitely tip the competition in his favor.

The 1994 season will probably be the most important of all, so let's skip it for now and revisit it in the end. With all that being said, we move on to the 1995 season, where Jordan returns several months into the year with a new issue, mostly picking up where it left off, as it would be extremely unrealistic to expect someone who's been away. of basketball for over a year to immediately average 30 again as he is now only up to 26 per game and while he will definitely bounce back at some point, Kobe is the one leading the way with averages of 32 points, six rebounds and an unmatched five assists. to doubts.

MVP caliber numbers not resulting in the MVP award as he heads to Shaq in Orlando for the second time is definitely an unexpected turn of events and it's only getting crazier a few months later as both MJ and Kobe arethey would find in Orlando during the playoffs. and with both of them only at 6 with six playing at the guard positions, there is nothing they can do but watch Shaq's 7 for one dunk over and over again to his teammates and meanwhile both Kobe and Jordan have five titles combined up to this point, none. That matters now: Shacks leads Orlando to a 3-2 lead and pushes MJ and Kobe to the brink of elimination.

They are in trouble and with that the duo is now tasked with winning the next two games, starting with game six against the Chicago Faithful, aside from their first few seasons the two haven't faced much adversity with their teammates and They have lived up to even the highest expectations, but with Shaq on the other end that could all change as he would continue to dominate proving that his MVPs were There is no coincidence that he ultimately led the magic to a two-point lead with less than 2 minutes left to keep it short. If Jordan and Kobe don't warm up here, this is over and, surprisingly, they'll be sent home.

Orlando leads 3 to 2 in the series, if they win, they send Jordan and Kobe home. Kobe with the elbow pull is good and now we have a tied game and Penny could do it, they could send home aBulls the pass to Nick Anderson comes off Kobe with the board Kobe throws it in front of him driving to the basket the spin move in the lane which is two buckets in a row for Kobe in the final stretch Anderson with the ball Anderson about to pass it to Penny on the left wing, there is Penny completely open for three.

He wasn't expecting him to shoot and that's not really Penny Hardaway's game, but he made the shot anyway. Jordan is running towards the corner. Kobe is about to stop maybe. maybe not driving with the elbow, good defense by Anderson, he's facing Orlando, maybe a bucket away, especially if they hit a three, oh my god, there's the cut to the basket, uh, I forgot, Horus Grant, jeez, wow, this is an absolutely terrible time to forget how to do this. Jordan speaks once again standing in the corner it looks like Kobe is taking this over Kobe taking a step back at mid range that's his shot it's good they can stop the Bulls although it's been back and forth Shaq hasn't touched the ball in the stretch everything has been penny Anderson with the ball Anderson, who is Kobe's man, is completely open Shaq almost grabs the board VJ Armstrong with the most important rebound of his life now that he has the ball both Jordan and Kobe are in the corners they're both coming off a screen Jordan finally takes a shot and misses oh my god and they ended up fouling they sent Horus Grant to the line first free throw he can miss one he makes a first even if he makes it they can still score a three but it's still okay He scored both and with that last free throw the Bulls are now down three with just 13 seconds left and we are now about to answer perhaps the biggest question of the entire game at the line: who will take the final shot?

Here we go, 14 seconds. I left Chicago down three have to get a three maybe or a quick two preferably a three I feel like they're probably going to shoot a three that's making the final shot they give it to Kobe everyone leaves oh my god that's the worst shot I've ever seen what it was like, Shaq got fouled, bro, Shaq got fouled, what's happening right now, there's no way Shaq's making these free throws, dude, they might still be alive, Shaq shooting normally, what is that animation that is not his? What 2K if he makes both free throws you have to do some explaining Shaq makes both free throws oh my god and at the end they are coming up short Kobe showed flashes of dominance down the stretch but missed the last shot while Jordan did absolutely nothing, no It's clear who the blame should fall on him, but with Shaq finally breaking through and winning the Finals, the NBA world is now crowning him the best player in the League.

The only way the two can recover from this is if they end up responding in 1996, 97 and 98. Seasons, which are the last three, the two will play together and as far as a 96 season goes, their chances of recovering would increase 10 times, as future Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman would join the team and since he's good at everything except scoring, he fits in perfectly with Jordan, now 33, and Kobe, now 29, but as far as his competition goes, it would be Jordan's old man game shining as he now wears the right size and perhaps his most iconic shoes, leading to his most iconic. season today as he is averaging career highs in both points and rebounds with 34 and 8 to help lead the Bulls to a record 78 wins and with a resume like that it is only fair that he is winning MVP number two .

Jordan definitely had the best season between them. or Kobe so far and his acquisition wouldn't end there as the Bulls of course are returning to the finals bouncing back from last year's tragedy at Showdown with rockets Hakeem Le and while he too is in the midst of his prime and Without a Hall of Fame-bound Dudo, the Bulls are too good to even think about losing, especially when led by Jordan, who leads the way with 36 points per game and ultimately finishes with a gentleman's sweep that ends with Mike winning Finals MVP number three, but behind the celebration would be someone as dominant as now as we enter the 1997 season, we would see the tide turn once again, as while Jordan is well known for his work ethic , Kobe could be even better, resulting in him taking over the team again, leading the team and scoring. while helping them to 74 wins, ending with, you guessed it, another MVP, we only have this season and next and that's it, and to no one's surprise, the Bulls are back in the finals for a third matchup with the Seattle Sonics, who are not there at the moment.

Scaring anyone, both Kobe and MJ now have a second victory, all because of their heartbreaking loss to Orlando a couple of years ago and with the Bulls winning another title, the coin toss is once again falling in Kobe's favor, giving him now the advantage in the MVP of the final with only one. With one more season to go, the two have won a combined seven championships in just 13 years together and now, in their final season, with all the momentum in the world, they can secure number eight. We're so close to finding out who the goat is and it's all just beginning.

Jordan averaged 318 and six, while Kobe would be very close at 317 and 5. Once again, both have put up MVP-caliber stats and the Bulls are winning over 70 games, an unprecedented amount of success, but only one can walk away with the MVP, with Jordan winning his third MVP, giving him the lead in that respective category. Okay, we still have to wait for the playoffs, but right now Jordan is winning his latest MVP in his final season and I'm not going to waste anyone's time. The Bulls are back in Seattle for the second straight time and fourth overall. Sean Kemp is a really good player and so is Gary Payon, but in the end, as always, the Bulls would easily take care of them to win title number eight in just 14 seasons and Considering the fact that this time he

played

his last game to retire really, it's only fair that Jordan closes his time in the league with the number four Finals MVP to time with Kobe and if our competition ended here because of his extra.

With the MVP award we can definitely crown him as the greatest of all time, but unfortunately for him, this one is not over yet as we still have to look back at the 1994 season which was his first retirement because if Kobe won any award himself same during this time, it's only fair that they be added to his total once again, if he falls short here it will officially crown Jordan as the greatest of all time as he's in the league right now, but if Kobe can turn around course with an iconic season, could indicate that he was the leader and better all this time.

Either way, the main difference Kobe sees as a result of being alone is the fact that he has the ball much more than usual, there is about 20 more shots per game available and as long as I can.” If he doesn't take them all, he has no choice but to take more as he would have by far his highest scoring in the regular season with 36 points to go along with seven rebounds and, amazingly, as a result of countless double teams, seven assists per game and, when combined with two steals and a block per game playing a ton of minutes at the number one spot, it's no surprise that he's tying Jordan for regular season MVP now at 3 to 3 Kobe for MVP now that we're in the playoffs should be interesting Let's see how he does it for himself, but before we find out what happens, we have to check the score, as you can see that the regular season MVP is completely tied up and can no longer change the changeup, meaning it is the only prize left that can be exchanged. is the MVP of the finals, if all this time Kobe had an extra title over Jordan, it gives a whole new meaning to the last three p together and on top of that, in the Five Seasons prior to this, the Bulls had won a title In every meaning that Kobe tries to give Chicago his six-year tenure, the meaning of past and future seasons will be affected by Kobe's solo run in the playoffs, which begins with him defeating the older Bad Boy Pistons, the Hawks with Dominique Wilkins and the Cavs who are stuck in a decades-long title drought will easily advance to another finals.

Kobe appears to have not missed a beat without MJ and is now four wins away from winning a title of his own. The stakes are high. and the competition is about to end, but not before he attempts to defeat one last opponent which is Charles Barkley and the Phoenix Sons. Kobe went from a high-flying, unproven rookie to one of the most skilled players of all time and it's that growth that's finally giving him one last edge.