Was Kobe Bryant a Better Scorer Than Michael Jordan?

It is no secret that Kobe Bryant modeled him game after Michael Jordan's. They shared similar scoring styles and moves. Kobe has had some amazing scoring highlights in his career up to his final game, scoring 60 points! He is of course most known for his 81 point game. But is he a better scorer than Michael Jordan? let's look at the stats.

Kobe Bryant Scoring Accolades

• Seasons Played - 20
• Most Points Scored Entire Career - 33,643 (Seasonal Average 1682.15)
• Scoring Titles - 2
• Average Points Per Game - 24.99 (12th on the list all time)
• Career Field Goal Percentage - .447
• Most Points Scored in a single game - 81 (Second highest behind Wilt's 100 pt game)
• Games scored 60 or more points - 6
• Most points scored in the playoffs - 5,640
• Most points scored in the playoff game - 50 (32nd on the list)

Michael Jordan Scoring Accolades

• Seasons Played - 15
• Most Points Scored Entire Career - 32,292 (Seasonal Average 2152.8)
• Scoring Titles - 10 (Most ever by any player)
• Average Points Per Game - 30.12 (1st on the list all time)
• Career Field Goal Percentage - .497
• Most Points Scored in a single game - 69
• Games scored 60 or more points - 5
• Most points scored in the playoffs - 5,987
• Most points scored in a playoff game - 63 (All time leader, double OT) (Jordan has multiple playoff scoring records and appears numerous times on the list ahead of Kobe Bryant with the threshold set at 50 points and higher)

So there you have it, the major scoring accolades broken down. And as you can see Michael Jordan has the advantage. Here are five key takeaways.

1. Kobe played 5 more seasons than Michael but only scored 1,392 more points for most career points scored. Michael has the higher seasonal average.
2. Michael was a much more consistent scorer over his career as he holds the record for most scoring titles and highest ppg avg. at 30.12.
3. Michael also has a better field goal shooting percentage, so he was more efficient.
4. While Kobe scored 81 points in a single game, which is impressive, its only 12 points more than what Michael scored, 69 points in a single game. Not much of a gap to give Kobe the edge.
5. Michael was more dominant scoring in the playoffs, when it really counts. He holds the record for most points ever in the playoffs and he did it against the Boston Celtics, the team with multiple hall of famers and who would win the championship that year. Michael also scored more points in the playoffs in less seasons played.

Here is a highlight video showing young Kobe playing against Michael towards the end of his career.