Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan had some exciting battles in the few years they both played in the NBA.
Bryant was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996, shortly after Jordan won his fourth of six NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls.
They competed against each other four times in the next two seasons, and another four times when Jordan came out of retirement to play for the Washington Wizards.
The pair rose to the occasion against the other, putting in some elite performances, but perhaps the most impressive thing about their on-court rivalry was what Bryant said in high school.
Kobe Bryant predicted what would happen in Michael Jordan matchups
Bryant was an exceptional talent in high school and was expected to be drafted by an NBA team when the opportunity arose.
He was fortunate enough to train with the Philadelphia 76ers in his time at Lower Merion, where he asked the players about playing against Jordan.
The 76ers were evidently fearful of MJ but that didn’t stop Bryant from predicting that he would “go at” him at the NBA level.
“When I was in high school, I used to work out with the Philadelphia 76ers. I used to ask them, ‘What’s it like to guard Mike?’
“[76ers players replied:] ‘Mike, you mean Black Jesus?’ ‘I’m like, what the f—? Black who? I’m going to call him f—— Mike, that’s his f—— name.
“So the level of fear that he inspired in others was insane. And I would tell them, ‘When I face him, we’re going to go at it.
“[They said:] ‘Ah, you don’t want to do that.’ I’m like, ‘What, you don’t know me, man.’ So when we matched up, I think he understood that.”
Kobe Bryant vs Michael Jordan head-to-head stats
Bryant and Jordan had eight encounters in the NBA, with the Los Angeles Lakers legend winning five of them.
While Jordan was coming to the end of his professional basketball career, Bryant had not yet entered his prime, so the comparisons are reasonable.
| Wins | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FG% | |
| Kobe Bryant | 5 | 22.8 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 46.6 |
| Michael Jordan | 3 | 24.5 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 43.6 |
The pair averaged similar stats in these games, with Jordan putting up slightly more points on slightly worse efficiency.
Considering the win/loss column, it’s hard to argue that Bryant didn’t get the better of his idol, just like he thought he would back in high school.
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