Old vs New Generation : Comparisons
As we all know, things change, people change and styles change and all of this is a result of time changing. The NBA is in a much better place now than probably 30 years ago. The money an average player makes annually in the current times is way more than what some of the better players back in the good old days would make comparatively. But, basketball is more than just that, it's about legacies, drama, greatness and so on. We sometimes fail to understand that the players now would be considered old grandpa's by our kids 20 years down the line and no one would have heard of some one like a Larry Bird, an Isaiah Thomas, a Bill Russell or even someone like Kareem Abdul Jabbar. But it's our job as people who love watching basketball for all its glory and the joy and happiness it brings us every day to make sure that the annals of basketball greatness live on and will never be forgotten.
Modern day basketball players are influenced largely by their predecessors and this article is a comparative study on which players are similar in the new (Current) generation to the old one. Without any further explanation let's dive in.
1. Michel Jordan and Kobe Bryant
Now, before I say anything more, no player in the world is better than MJ but I think its safe to assume that Kobe Bryant is the next best thing. I heard someone saying once "If Michael is the original version, then Kobe Bryant is the remix" and that is so true. MJ is obviously more accomplished than Kobe but when all of us felt like a part of us died when MJ retired, Kobe stepped in and made our transition of MJ's departure much more bearable. Kobe Bryant echoed similar sentiments people had about MJ in his glory days. Both Kobe and MJ had those tremendous fade away shots in their arsenal that every body jumped when seeing it go in. Also, how can we forget those drive in lay ups and airborne dunks over the players heads and also the tongue sticking out as if they both were snakes sensing the direction of their opponents and attacking the rim , which became the reason why Kobe ended up being nicknamed the "Black Mamba". Michael Jordan himself has said "Kobe is a competitor like me, and he is just as much cursed as I am" . Enough said.
2. Magic Johnson vs Lebron James
I got enormous respect for both these players, not only for how they played/play the game but also the amount of philanthropic causes they participate in. They are both one of a kind players whose game just elevated as years went on being of the most consistent players in the history of the NBA. Overall, Magic is more accomplished as he's won more championship, created more assists and generated more steals but individual accomplishments has Lebron a tad better than Magic, Lebron has 4 league MVP titles to Magic's 3 and both are tied 3 a piece when it comes to finals MVP trophies. Magic has expressed his feelings about Lebron stating that he would go down as one of the four in his Mt. Rushmore of greats, Lebron, Kobe, Tim Duncan and MJ. Both these players have very similar basketball traits, Good IQ, creating plays out of nowhere, inspiring others and most of all, love for the game.
3. Reggie Miller and Stephen Curry
The league is shifting to a more shooting friendly game. Good shooters are in a demand now more than ever. But the first great shooter to evolve from the game ever since the 3-point system was introduced was Reggie Miller. Reggie Miller held all of the three point records when he first came into the league and during the end of the 90's era he was undoubtedly known by everyone as the greatest shooter of all time. Reggie had the unique ability finding himself open to take the three very easily by being quick on his feet even though being very tall. He helped the pacers reach some success largely due to his shooting and his credited with being the greatest Pacer of all time. But on the topic of the greatest shooter there was a certain ] someone who did shoot better than him and he was Ray Allen and was then considered the greatest shooter during the 2000's but it can be safely said that now Stephen curry is the greatest shooter because of all the things he's done so far and the records he's taken away from both of them and he is on a frightening pace to overtake both Reggie Miller and Ray Allen for all time scoring leader very shortly. Both have very similar styles, high arc and sizing the basket in their mind by creating a mental image of how the shot must follow through. Reggie Miller has often been a little critical on Steph arguably being the greatest shooter ever but has said this " Right now, he's the best shooter in the league and has been for the last couple of years and he could very well go on to become the Greatest of All Time but that would largely depend on whether he can perform the way he's performing over a longer period of time".
4. Scottie Pippen and Kawhi Leonard
Now, this comparison is widely accepted by everybody. Although Scottie Pippen overall is still the better player but a very good argument can be made that Kawhi is the better defender hands down by winning The best defensive player award 2 times and playing a key role in 2012 finals by grabbing the finals MVP trophy. Two of these awards which Scottie throughout his career. Scottie has more championships to back his talk but he has also leads kawhi in many of the stat sheets for which Kawhi will have to remain consistent in order to get past. Both players are renowned for their impressive defensive ability on the court whether it being blocking shots, setting screens, they both have a savvy way in which they approach the game, they are also known for their high basketball IQ. Scottie has openly accepted in the media about the comparisons between him and Kawhi and Scottie has also said that he may even have the ability to take over Jordan if he continued the way he's playing for years to come.
5. Charles Barkley and Kevin Durant
Now, both players aren't necessarily in good terms with each other but that doesn't mean that they don't have a lot of things in common. On the contrary, the similarities are quite eye opening. Let's start off. Both are league MVP's in their own right, Although Barkley has been a rebounds leader, Durant has lead the league in Scoring, Both have won Olympic Gold medals, both left their first team, in order to chase a ring, Kevin from OKC to GSW and Barkley from 76ers to Suns, but even though Barkley hasn't won a championship it could be quite the opposite for Durant. Barkley was well known for his attacking mindset near the rim and so is Durant. Both of them get entangled in the media for all sorts of reason which are unknown even by them.
So that's all. It was fun assembling all of this together but what is more fun is the fact that icons such as these only come around every so often and we should be glad that we're living in a time where we can witness greatness unfold. Bye!
