Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen formed one of the greatest duos in NBA history as they led the Chicago Bulls to 6 NBA championships in the 1990s. They put the Bulls on the map, as the team had never even been to an NBA Finals before the two of them showed up in the 1980s.
Jordan, in particular, would inspire an entire generation of hoopers who idolized him, and one of those individuals was Kobe Bryant. Kobe would take over as the face of the league from Jordan in the mid-2000s, and he would then pass on the baton to LeBron James, and he holds the title even today despite getting up there in years.
Lakers Fans Discuss Who Would Win A 2 On 2 Matchup Of LeBron James And Kobe Bryant vs. Michael Jordan And Scottie Pippen
LeBron has been the face of the league for over a decade at this point, after establishing himself as the best player in the league in the 2010s. James recently signed an extension with the Lakers, and their owner Jeanie Buss stated that she wanted LeBron to retire with the team. While it remains to be seen if he will do so, LeBron is the big dog in LA at the moment, and u/craigp5986 on the Lakers subreddit came up with an interesting topic of conversation. He posed a question to the fandom on who they believe will come out on top in a 2-on-2 matchup of LeBron and Kobe, their last two megastars, vs. Jordan and Pippen.
“Damn, Kobe and Bron would be the most devastating duo ever seen”
“It’s actually not close if you’re honest with yourself. Kobe and Lebron all day. Pipp weighs 220 on a good day. Lebron weighs 270 Bbq chicken”
“After seeing that clip of what Magic did to Jordan in the post, I can’t imagine what LBJ would do if Kobe set a screen and forced the switch. Not to mention what Kobe could do, greatest one on one player ever.”
“Kobe and Lebron. MJ and Kobe are almost a wash in terms of defense, scoring, rebounding and passing. Lebron is better passer, rebounder and scorer than Pippen. Pippen is better at defense than Lebron. But he wouldn’t be able to contain Lebron who would post him up and score on pick and rolls.”
“I don’t see why everyone is saying Kobe and LeBron… MJ has the edge over Kobe, and there’s no world where Pippen couldn’t effectively guard LeBron one on one. This is basketball, not football. You have the best scorer ever, and two of the best defenders ever in MJ/Pippen, and they know how to play together. LeBron and Kobe are both ball dominant, and Kobe is not as ‘deferential’ as D-Wade.”
“Kobe and Bron and I’m an MJ fan boy”
“Lakers. Feels like the difference between LeBron and Pippen would be greater than the difference between MJ and Kobe.”
“Tbh 2v2 often boils down to 1v1 in the end…so I got Jordan and Pip.”
“This ain’t even close bean and bron easily”
“I’ll pick Jordan and Pippen because they actually played together.”
“The benefits of Kobe and Jordan would cancel each other, which leaves Bron as the clear winner over Pippen. Pippen is an all time great defender, but defending a small forward with the weight of a Center is a different challenge.”
“Is this real? Kobe and Lebron by a margin.”
“Downvotes inc, but definitely the goat and pippen.”
“You could be the biggest “Michael Jordan is the GOAT” stan on the planet and still recognize that this is a hilarious mismatch. Kobe and LeBron take this.”
“Lebron is cooking pippen, Kobe will go shot for shot with MJ. I take Kobe and LeBron any day.”
“Scottie and mike no doubt stop playing on my feed”
“Kobe Bron. Both good 3 point shooters and I think lebron would just out muscle them.”
“I’m taking MJ and Pip. Both better defensive players. Defense wins games.”
“Much respect to Pip, but LeBron is just too damn big. Pip 100% is one of the best defenders to ever play the game, but I highly doubt he’s the one person who’s randomly strong and fast enough to actually stop the L Train.. also Kobe will match MJ because he’s like that. “
A large majority definitely goes with LeBron and Kobe, as you might expect when you pose this question to Lakers fans. They aren’t completely out of bounds when they say this, though, as Pippen is a tier below these three despite being as great as he was.
Jordan and LeBron are widely regarded as the two best players in the history of the league, and Bryant is considered by many to be a top 10 player of all time, while Pippen is probably top 50. Regardless, this would have been an incredible matchup to witness.
