Skip Bayless just never runs out of hot takes, but his latest one could draw the ire of a whole NBA fan base: the fans of the Los Angeles Lakers.
When talking about Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard and his ability to defend, score and take over games, Bayless couldn’t help but compare him to Michael Jordan. While he did acknowledge that Kobe Bryant is the closest to His Airness when it comes to similarities in playing style, the Fox Sports commentator thinks Leonard has more Jordan genes in him.
Bayless, amusingly, also called Kawhi a better jump-shooter than Kobe was. Not to end there, the veteran broadcaster also highlighted why he thinks Leonard is a better NBA player than LeBron James–emphasizing their NBA Finals records, with LeBron going 6-4 in his career.
Kawhi is the closest thing to Jordan we've had since Jordan. As a jump shooter, he's even better than Kobe was at that. @undisputed. 9:30 AM-Noon ET. FS1. https://t.co/0exveHnntw
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) September 6, 2021
While Skip Bayless has a point when it comes to comparing Michael Jordan and Kawhi Leonard, he might have forgotten how dominant Kobe Bryant was on both sides of the floor. While a lot has been said about Kobe’s scoring, his defense is often overlooked despite being part of the All-NBA Defensive Teams a total of 12 times in his career.
When it comes to leading teams to the NBA Finals, LeBron James is undoubtedly on par with Jordan. Records aside, there is no doubt that MJ and LBJ are two of the most transcendent players of their generations.
As for Kawhi, he has yet to lead the Clippers to the promised land even with the help of Paul George. Leonard is one of the best two-way players in the NBA and will go down as a Hall of Famer when it’s all said and done. Nonetheless, it might be too early to say he’s the “closest thing” to Jordan given the number of players who have accomplished more in their careers.
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