LeBron James was supposed to be the man who would surpass Michael Jordan as the GOAT despite the presence of a superstar in LA.
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Even before LeBron James came into the NBA, “the kid from Akron” had the whole country’s expectation to be the next big thing after Michael Jordan.
And by the time he made it to the league in 2003, he was considered the greatest prodigy of all time. An 18-year-old having the stature of a grown man at 6-foot-9, 240-pound came in early after deciding to skip college to play amongst men.
From 2002 by @GrantWahl: Ohio high school junior LeBron James was so good that he was already being mentioned as the heir to Air Jordan https://t.co/My2NPz4jsV
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) August 30, 2022
To this date, even after the social media boom, there has not been anyone in any sport with that kind of hype and expectations behind them.
But by the time he made his debut, there was already a 6ft 6″ 8th-year guard in LA who was the biggest MJ buff ever, and already had a little legacy going on with a 3-title head start to James.
Also read: 37 y/o LeBron James announces he wants to go to a team with Bryce Maximus, NBA Twitter goes wild
Kobe Bryant became the closest thing ever to Michael Jordan despite some up and downs
Although Kobe and the Lakers rode behind a phenom that was Shaquille O’Neal, there would be no three-peat in LA without Bryant or even a double for that matter.
With his work ethic and obsession to be like Mike or even better than him, The Black Mamba tried to make the Lakers his team for two years after the 3-peat and by 2004 rode Shaq and even head coach Phil Jackson out of LA.
But instead of making himself one of the best in the league, he had a massive down year in the 2003-04 season with multiple off-the-court issues to deal with as well. It didn’t take him long to get back on track, though.
Within 2-years, he would have his highest scoring season, averaging well over 35 points per game. He played 80 games and over 41 minutes per outing, displaying every move there was in Jordan’s arsenal and more.
Kobe Bryant stats by month in the 2005-06 season (THREAD) pic.twitter.com/6MyeWsDLM0
— Dom / BBall Talk (@DominickNBA) August 26, 2022
When Kobe showed LeBron James who the real successor of Michael Jordan was
During that season, he and the Lakers met a 20-year-old freak from Cleveland of the nature who was also having the highest scoring season of his career that still is going strong 16 years later.
Despite spraining his wrist in the game and shooting 1/11, Bryant showed 20 yo’ James who was MJ’s real successor while closing out the game with 3 straight crucial shots and a stop on the young King.
Bryant will win two more Championships with the Lakers before LeBron would win his first and both those times lead them there and be the Finals MVP, unlike the last three times.
Also read: Dwyane Wade thought Kobe Bryant was a ‘Psycho’ after a phone call post the 2012 All-Star Game
He’d retire from the NBA after 20 years as one of the GOATs and tragically pass away in a helicopter crash in 2020. Meanwhile, James would start his 20th year a few months from now, still chasing those legacies while creating his own.
