Why was Kobe compared to MJ?

[the sea duck]

Every great guard was compared to MJ at the time when Kobe broke in and he had the best longevity amongst them.

He was a similar size as well, a big time scorer, and a mega star like Jordan.

Some folks may have forgotten or weren't around when every intriguing guard prospect was compared to Jordan. With Kobe he actually patterned his game, shamelessly, after Jordan, so there was no way the comp wasn't going to be prominent.

[rk2023]

Multiple reasons.. at a more granular detail, it's easy to spot differences between the two but from a highlight view they play somewhat similar with tough Mid-Range shotmaking being the primary driver of this.

- Both played under Phil Jackson's tutelage / triangle
- Somewhat similar build being 6'5-6' > 200 lb SGs being "big" for their position (albeit MJ's physical profile much more desirable)
- Both psycho-competitors, for better or worse
- Kobe's biggest basketball inspiration, as a well-versed student of NBA History, was Jordan
- The face-value aesthetics of their game and league "looking for its next MJ" likely influencing such comparisons