Players more skilled than Kobe (all time)?

[HeartBreakKid]

Yeah it really depends on what’s your definition of “skill” is. Based on mine I’d say Kobe is one of the top 5-10 most skilled ever. Phil Jackson said he was more skilled than Michael Jordan. According to some RealGM posters here he is not in the top 20 most skilled ever.

True, Phil Jackson would be way less impartial. It's not like he knows them personally or anything.

[McBubbles]

Yeah it really depends on what’s your definition of “skill” is. Based on mine I’d say Kobe is one of the top 5-10 most skilled ever. Phil Jackson said he was more skilled than Michael Jordan. According to some RealGM posters here he is not in the top 20 most skilled ever.

True, Phil Jackson would be way less impartial. It's not like he knows them personally or anything.

Honestly a lot of the things Phil said regarding Kobe and MJ just seemed like he was trying to placate Kobe's ego.

"If Kobe had MJ's hand size then he'd be the GOAT".

Sure Phil...sure lol.

[AEnigma]

Yeah it really depends on what’s your definition of “skill” is. Based on mine I’d say Kobe is one of the top 5-10 most skilled ever. Phil Jackson said he was more skilled than Michael Jordan. According to some RealGM posters here he is not in the top 20 most skilled ever.

True, Phil Jackson would be way less impartial. It's not like he knows them personally or anything.

Honestly a lot of the things Phil said regarding Kobe and MJ just seemed like he was trying to placate Kobe's ego.

"If Kobe had MJ's hand size then he'd be the GOAT".

Sure Phil...sure lol.

I would entertain bigger hands being enough of a gain to give Kobe an extra ring or two, which is mostly what he would mean by that.

[McBubbles]

True, Phil Jackson would be way less impartial. It's not like he knows them personally or anything.

Honestly a lot of the things Phil said regarding Kobe and MJ just seemed like he was trying to placate Kobe's ego.

"If Kobe had MJ's hand size then he'd be the GOAT".

Sure Phil...sure lol.

I would entertain bigger hands being enough of a gain to give Kobe an extra ring or two, which is mostly what he would mean by that.

I would not Little to none of Kobe's deficiencies compared to MJ's are related to hand size. Hell they're only a quarter of an inch smaller than Lebron's hands.

Make him faster, stronger, with better leaping ability and stamina and sure he'd get extra rings. A 1% increase to his ball security, rebounding and passing lane defence? Not so much.

[Raonak]

In terms of all time greats, I think Curry, Jordan and Kobe are the most skilled.

[Dr Positivity]

Skill is defined differently but if Kobe really was a GOAT skilled player, and had elite level athleticism + team accolades then why isn't he considered a GOAT candidate? I think the idea of skill aligning with how good someone is gets overblown. Kyrie is a good example at times too.

He's not as physically gifted as players like Lebron and Jordan and not as much a basketball genius as a Bird or Magic.

[OhayoKD]

Skill is defined differently but if Kobe really was a GOAT skilled player, and had elite level athleticism + team accolades then why isn't he considered a GOAT candidate? I think the idea of skill aligning with how good someone is gets overblown. Kyrie is a good example at times too.

He's not as physically gifted as players like Lebron and Jordan and not as much a basketball genius as a Bird or Magic.

Kobe is not lacking in iq relative to Bird. Could argue bird is a smarter offensive player(seems more of an era-thing than a skill thing to me) but Kobe was a smarter defender who didn't ball-watch nearly as much while also helping his team devise defensive schemes.

[Dr Positivity]

Skill is defined differently but if Kobe really was a GOAT skilled player, and had elite level athleticism + team accolades then why isn't he considered a GOAT candidate? I think the idea of skill aligning with how good someone is gets overblown. Kyrie is a good example at times too.

He's not as physically gifted as players like Lebron and Jordan and not as much a basketball genius as a Bird or Magic.

Kobe is not lacking in iq relative to Bird. Could argue bird is a smarter offensive player(seems more of an era-thing than a skill thing to me) but Kobe was a smarter defender who didn't ball-watch nearly as much while also helping his team devise defensive schemes.

Isn't Bird's defensive IQ pretty great leading him to those all-D teams?

[Jaqua92]

Jordan
Bird
Magic
Luka
Jokic

This. Minus magic.

[DSMok1]

I guess to me, skill has to do with everything that is not athletic or intangible. So, imagine everyone was the exact same size, exact same weight, exact same athleticism, exact same personality and attitude. Which person's basketball skills would make them the best?

With that in mind, I tend to think of players that were great players despite relatively lesser athleticism. Great shooters and ball handlers mostly... Steve Nash for instance as others have mentioned is one of the most prominent probably.

[Gregoire]

Jordan
Bird
Magic
Luka
Manu
Roy
Irving