Jordan's Hands

[The Main Event]

After watching the Ultimate Jordan DVD set for the billionth time I've come to one conclusion as to what physically seperates Jordan from Kobe; his hands. The ball is basically glued to Jordans hands when he has posession of the ball, which allows him to fake, pass, and shoot remarkably well. Im not sure if he had a superior grip or if it was because his hands were actually big for his size but it's amazing to see the level of control of the ball that he had with one hand.

I can't confirm this as fact but i've heard from a few reliable sources that Kobe doesn't have big hands for a person his size. When you watch footage of Kobe controlling the ball the difference becomes clear. Kobe has developed an arsenal of jab steps, fakes and other footwork related moves but you never really see the ball glued to his hand the way it was for MJ.

The point of this thread is not to start a Kobe vs MJ debate but to acknowledge a major physical asset of Jordan that gave him unprecedented control of the ball and set the groundwork for him to dominate the game.

[ropjhk]

I can believe this. Jordan had this excellent move where he would fake a jump shot, get his defender in the air and pull the ball back to him with just one hand.

[draft]

I think MJ's biggest asset was his quickness. He blew by defenders and got to the rim at will. Nobody could stay with him.

[Rasho Brezec]

His hands were always the one thing that stood out to me. It was exactly as you said, as if the ball was glued to his hands.

[TsunamiZC]

I think MJ's biggest asset was his quickness. He blew by defenders and got to the rim at will. Nobody could stay with him.

I dont think you remember Jordan very well if you think that asset was his biggest, especially considering bought time the second three peat came around he transformed his game to a point he didnt have to rely on his pure athleticsim that he often used in his younger years, younger years that he wasnt winning championships i'd like to point out.

[The Main Event]

I realize that Jordan had an array of skills including speed but i feel like his hands are what really seperate him from the pack.
His hands were what gave him longevity and allowed him to not have to rely so much on his athleticism later in his career.

[tracey_nice]

Jordan was alright...

[manun]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqHmv8aQe7Q

[Frosty]

Yes he had big hands. One year he was grabbing rebounds one handed. You'd see a bunch of guys go up then 1 hand would reach up and tear it down.

I don't think that's the biggest difference between the two though.

[The Main Event]

Yes he had big hands. One year he was grabbing rebounds one handed. You'd see a bunch of guys go up then 1 hand would reach up and tear it down.

I don't think that's the biggest difference between the two though.

Please elaborate. I think that their hands are the biggest physical difference that seperates their skill sets. Otherwise they are both extremely similar to one another in terms of skills.
"

[RapsGM]

His hands to seem really big, but that might have not been the only thing that seperated them physically. Jordan also seemed to be thicker than Kobe does.

[Frosty]

Yes he had big hands. One year he was grabbing rebounds one handed. You'd see a bunch of guys go up then 1 hand would reach up and tear it down.

I don't think that's the biggest difference between the two though.

Please elaborate. I think that their hands are the biggest physical difference that seperates their skill sets. Otherwise they are both extremely similar to one another in terms of skills.
"

Depends on if you consider the brain physical.

I think the biggest is basketball IQ. Jordan would take whatever the defense gave him. He could find a seam in the defense like no other and exploit it. Kobe tends to try and force himself on the defense.

I mean you can compare VC to Jordan physically. Physique isn't what made Jordan the player he was.

[magicman1978]

I think Jordan's quickness/athleticism contributes to his superior basketball IQ. What I mean is that Jordan was able to beat his defenders more easily without having to use a series of fakes like Kobe does. He also had more stamina to continuously attack the defense. While Kobe tends to tire out and rely on his jumpshot more.

[Heat3]

Didn't Phil Jackson say Jordan had bigger hands when describing the differences between him and Kobe? Interesting that something like that is what stood out to PJ. I can believe it, he had large hands it seems. How do they compare to Dr. J's hands? Dr. J's hands are huge! I bet bigger than Jordan's. Every time I see highlights of him, he grabs the basketball like it was a tennis ball.

[The Red Army]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JysLN_tCVUw


Kobe talks about his hands here with Ahmad Rashad.

Also, in last weeks "Phil Jackson says Kobe is more skilled than MJ" thread, Phil discusses MJ's hands saying they were "million dollar hands".


EDIT: I'm not trying to make this a Kobe vs. MJ debate.

[The Main Event]

Didn't Phil Jackson say Jordan had bigger hands when describing the differences between him and Kobe? Interesting that something like that is what stood out to PJ. I can believe it, he had large hands it seems. How do they compare to Dr. J's hands? Dr. J's hands are huge! I bet bigger than Jordan's. Every time I see highlights of him, he grabs the basketball like it was a tennis ball.

Exactly! thanks for pointing that out. I love how people are claiming that it was MJ's quickness, athleticism, etc that seperates him from Kobe when in reality, these are the areas they are most similar!

Im telling you, the hands are what seperates the two. It's undeniable. Every facet of their games are so similar that it's hard to determine where the difference lies. It's in the hands, theres no doubt about it.

[HarlemHeat37]

sure, he had great hands..

he's also a better player..more athletic..higher basketball IQ..better leader..better shot selection..better defender..

[Optimism Prime]

If I remember right, in his autobiography, Hakeem mentioned that Jordan's hands were as big as his own.

[The Main Event]

sure, he had great hands..

he's also a better player..more athletic..higher basketball IQ..better leader..better shot selection..better defender..

ok, ok, but these are subject to interpretation. Kobe homers will refute them to the day they die. To them there is no evidence to suggest that Jordan is physically a better player than Kobe, which is why i made this thread.
Jordans hands are what give him an edge on Kobe.

[Loose Cannon]

Wow.