2. Kobe Bryant
In the ‘90s absolutely everyone tried to be, “Like Mike”, and the media was all over it proclaiming Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, and even Grant Hill as the next Jordan. However, the only one audacious enough to actually imitate MJ’s signature tongue wag, talk like him, walk like him, perform all of his moves on the court and even win three championships in a row like Mike, but at an even younger age was the late, great Kobe Bryant.
Kobe Bryant was the closest to Michael Jordan we will ever see in terms of competitive fire and even the signature fadeaway jump shot, but most important was the killer mentality they shared in being able to take shots no one else would take to win the game leading to 11 championships between the two players.
Many forget that before LeBron James became the media darling he is today some people and analysts were already claiming Kobe to be better than Jordan after his fifth championship in 2010 while he was in his prime. At Kobe Bryant’s Celebration of Life in the Staples Center on February 24th, 2020, Michael Jordan stood in front of Kobe’s two illuminated jerseys letting the world know that he considered Kobe his little brother and that Kobe made him a better person.
Everyone has always wondered about their relationship and knowing how epic Jordan’s speech about Kobe being his little brother was, especially considering they got to play against each other in the ‘90s, it will be truly incredible and heartwarming to hear one of Kobe’s last interviews ever as he discloses about his big brother closing the chapter on the most enticing relationship in NBA history.