The GOAT debate has been a recurrent topic around the NBA for quite some time now. The league shutdown led people to restart the debate about the greatest player of all time, especially after Michael Jordan’s 10-part docu-series ‘The Last Dance’.
For most people, there will be always three names fighting for the GOAT title, Michael Jordan, LeBron James and the late Kobe Bryant. People say you should never call yourself a GOAT but Kobe wasn’t about that. In March of 2019, he appeared on the Late Late Show with James Corden, where he was challenged to rank himself in comparison with Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
It was either that or eating cow tongue for Kobe, and he took the easiest path, putting himself ahead of MJ and the King.
We made @KobeBryant choose between eating a cow tongue OR ranking himself, @KingJames and Michael Jordan from best to worst 😬 pic.twitter.com/ktKDemDlQf
— The Late Late Show with James Corden (@latelateshow) March 27, 2019
“I’m the best, Michael’s second-best, LeBron’s third-best.”
That is classic Kobe, not even his mentor or inspiration was going to take that spot. He was very close friends with both Jordan and LeBron, but when it comes to basketball, Kobe had no friends. He was very competitive and even after retirement, he always displayed that Mamba mentality.
This was more for comedy than anything but even joking, Kobe won’t be putting himself behind anybody. During his career, he won five championships, one MVP award and two Finals MVP among other accolades. The former Laker will be remembered as one of the greatest to ever play this game and for that desire to always be better and not let anybody beat him.