The Next Michael Jordan
In this post I will try to determine as best as I can with my basketball analytical abilities who the "Next Michael Jordan" will be. Ever since Michael retired unexpectedly the first time around, there have been rumblings about the need for the NBA to have an heir apparent, someone to take over the throne, someone to lead us to the future promised-land. Many young players have been proclaimed as such, and have been labeled the neo-messiah of the too-kays. However, as everyone knows, there is only one Michael, and most of these young tattoo-sporting, afro-wearing, third-person using, veteran-disrespecting, referee-headbutting, owner-mocking, free agency-loving players have come up short in filling the void left by the great one, much less living up to their own respective potentials. Perhaps I am engaging in a fruitless exercise. Most likely I am - as there can never be another of such divine abilities.
It's like the teeny-bopper sensation that fills MTV programming these days. Britney Spears was the first to come to the stage - the first to break through the dark grunge-dominated landscape of popular music. Just as Michael lifted the NBA to a whole new level of popularity, Britney gave middle school kids everywhere a voice, singing happy-go-lucky tunes and dancing around in suggestive school girl outfits. Just as Michael decided to change his ways in the middle of his career by hitting the weight room, Britney decided to hit the operating room. To augment her own assets. Needless to say, it payed off for both.
Nowdays, whenever any young teen with a voice and the ability to wiggle comes along, comparisons with the voluptuous Britney inevitably arise. But all of them fall short. No matter what gimmicks or special features or other refinements the other teen goddesses use, they never seem to be quite as generously endowed as Ms. Spears. None are quite as bustacious. None seem to have her level of bootology. None are as callipygous. None have moves as poontangical. This is just as true with the young guns of the NBA. But it is entertaining to draw comparisons at the least. In order of most likely to replace Michael Jordan to least likely:
1)Vince Carter - What can I say? This guy is flat out amazing. His legend rose to a whole other level at the all-star game. After all, the dunk contest had been discontinued in recent years by a less than exciting "two-ball" contest featuring the WNBA all-stars. The Vinsanity single-handedly brought back the magic that Michael and Dominique had forged in the mid 80's. Although it may be heresy to say so, I don't think that Michael could have done the between the legs dunk. Vince is the most explosive player in the league, and he has a great jumper. When he hit that fallaway 3-pointer at the buzzer to beat Boston, I thought that Neo had arrived. In addition to that game, Vince has hit 8 shots to win games at the buzzer this season alone. And his team was in 3rd place in the East the last time I checked.
2)Kobe Bryant - A pure talent who made a great decision by jumping directly to the NBA out of high school. While not quite as explosive as Carter, he has a better finesse game. He has long arms and great ups, but he can also finish with a finger-roll in traffic or put just the right amount of spin on a reverse layup. He also probably has a better repertoire of shots than Vince. However, in his young career he has had a couple of instances of choking big when it counts. Anyone remember the two airballs at the end of the game against Utah 3 years ago in the playoffs? Or how about dribbling it off his leg in the playoffs last year? He seems to care more about showing off and giving his patented side-of-the-face smirk than about winning. With LA as the highest seed in the league, this year will provide a true test of his greatness.
3)Allen Iverson - Although undersized, Iverson is the most skilled player in the league. No one else can score in as many ways as he can. He can hit floaters from the baseline, scoop shots from 8 feet out, the 3 pointer, reverse layups, etc... However, his size is a detriment on defense. People say he is a great player on D, and he does have a lot of steals; however, he can't really "body-up" a player on D. The best D players know how to body-up the opponent. They anticipate where the player is going to be and position their feet squarely in front of them. This is what make such underrated defenders as Derek McKey and PJ Brown so good. Iverson on the other hand is a gambling defender who will get a few steals a game but will also get burned regularly. And Iverson comes up short in another aspect - his ball hogging. He breaks one of the Ten Commandments of Basketball - "Thou shall not covet the ball." He regularly shoots ~20 shots a game making only 42%. I think it is a detriment to have him play the 2 instead of the point, but Larry Brown is much smarter than me.
4)Grant Hill - the boy scout of the NBA. He is the type of player David Stern loves. He finished college, got his degree, and brought a mature game to the NBA. He knows all the right things to say - when asked in his rookie season how it felt to play in the all-star game, he replied "I'm really quite embarrassed." He is not quite as athletic as Vince or Kobe nor does he have as great an outside shot. I really think that the Duke system took away a lot of his raw athletic instinct because it emphasizes such a team-oriented approach to the game. However, what he stands out in is his completeness as a player. Sure he scores - they all do - but he also rebounds, dishes, plays D, and gets his teammates involved.
5)Jerry Stackhouse - Ever since he put up 29 points in the McDonald's All-American High School game in his senior year, comparisons between him and Jordan have been drawn. There is also the fabled one-on-one game between the two that supposedly occurred during a UNC summer camp. However, he is the least likely to be the next Jordan for one reason - his game. Although a strong driver, he is more of a straight ahead type guy with little agility or side-to-side movement. Ask yourself this question ladies and gentleman, "When was the last time I saw Jerry Stackhouse do any kind of crossover or change of direction on anyone?" He also lacks the raw athletic ability of the other players due to his heavy-set, stocky frame. He has shown some signs of brilliance this year, but nothing Jordanesque.
This completes my attempt to determine the player most likely to be deemed Next Michael Jordan. This was a difficult process and my musings have been based purely on anecdotal impressions of the relatively few number of games that I watch each season. What have I learned? That nobody will ever really replace Michael Jordan. The rest are just a bunch of Jessica Simpsons and Mandy Moores. That is not to say they are not fun to watch. Heck, even I sometimes find myself singing along to Christina Aguilera's "What a girl wants." In the same fashion, whenever Vince does a 360 dunk or Iverson drives on someone 8 inches taller than him, I sit back in my chair and await the day this next generation comes of age. |
