“Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant were unguardable”: Former All-Star Mark Jackson talks about the toughest players he played against

Former NBA player turned ESPN presenter, Mark Jackson talks about the greatness of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

Former Warriors coach Mark Jackon recently shed some light on how great Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant were in their respective primes. Jackson believes MJ and Kobe were one of a kind, attacking the floor every night. These legends had an unquestionable work ethic.

Jackson would narrate how MJ single-handedly took down the New York Knicks during the 1991 playoffs.

“Michael Jordan single-handedly won series, I can remember 1991, my last year with the Knicks, we were beating them up, we had physical guys at every single position. We were loaded and on a mission to single-handedly beat them up.”

The ESPN broadcaster felt MJ and Kobe could leave it all on the court even if it meant dropping dead on the floor. Jackson was witness to MJ and Kobe being at the pinnacle of their prime, especially Jordan. Jackson had seen MJ play during latter’s days in North Carolina.

Also read: “Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Larry Bird, and …Nikola Jokic?”: 2021 NBA MVP joins Magic Johnson and other GOATs on advanced stat list of most impactful players

Both Jordan and Kobe had an unfathomable competitive zeal to succeed. The two legends were fearless and never shied away from any opponents.

Mark Jackson talks about the two most difficult players to guard: Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant

In the 42 games he played against Jordan, Jackson won only 11 of them. The former Knicks players averaged 10.6 PPG, 8.4 APG, and 1.2 SPG in those meetings. Jackson was a witness to the greatness of the Black Mamba as well.

In his 19 meetings against the Lakers legend, Jackson 6 games. The former Knicks point guard averaged 7.3 PPG, 5.7 APG, and 2.7 RPG against Kobe.

On the other hand, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant averaged 29.6 PPG and 19.4 PPG against Jackson, respectively.

“Mike and Kobe just thought ‘attack’ every single moment on the floor. The mentality and the way they wear you down with their approach was like none other.”

Having played against MJ during college, Jackson had no idea the Bulls superstar would turn into an icon of the game. The same would go for Kobe, who was the closest thing to Jordan. The Black Mamba emulated many moves of the Bulls legend.

Also read: “Sometimes I look at them in practice, Michael Jordan and Scottie were like Baryshnikov”: When Dennis Rodman credited the Bulls legends with saving his life, admitted that he fanboyed for them in practice

Both MJ and Kobe played the guard position and had a lot of similarities in their style of play, with the Mamba admitting to stealing some moves from his Airness. These legends had an unquestionable work ethic and competitiveness, missing from the players of today.