Metta World Peace took to Twitter just before midnight last night and asked fans if they wanted to know who he feels was/is the toughest player to guard between Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
He eventually revealed that the toughest opponent would have to be Michael Jordan, and gave his thoughts on the other matchups as well:
The reason I say Jordan is because he gave me 40 in my defensive prime. He was 40 yrs old. In my prime there was no better defender ever.
— Metta World Peace (@MettaWorldPeace) May 3, 2013
I believe , potentially , Durant should be my toughest cover because of his length. Obviously LBJ and Kobe are pretty good
— Metta World Peace (@MettaWorldPeace) May 3, 2013
When asked about Kobe’s one-on-one abilities, Metta responded: “Kobe is different. I think he will never be duplicated,” and then provided some more insight:
Lebron is further along physically. Skill wise Kobe has both Durant n King J beat. Jordan has the best fundies. Jordan is all 3 in 1.
— Metta World Peace (@MettaWorldPeace) May 3, 2013
Then, of course, in true World Peace fashion, Metta made another assertion:
I do believe if Kobe wins 6 then he is up for discussion with MJ. They both would have 6rings
— Metta World Peace (@MettaWorldPeace) May 3, 2013
Yes, because an extra ring would make Kobe a tougher cover, right?
Anyway, it’s true that Michael Jordan dropped 40 points (41, actually) on then Ron Artest’s Pacers at 39 years old (it was a month prior to his 40th birthday), but Ron didn’t actually play in that game:
However, Jordan averaged 27.0 points against the Pacers in four games that season; plus there’s this video of Michael Jordan playing against the Pacers with Ron Artest on the floor:
Artest reportedly cracked Jordan’s ribs prior to his 2001-2002 season comeback, while Jordan was trying to get back into game shape.
However, Jordan still managed to put up consecutive high-scoring games at one point in the 2001-2002 season, as hedropped 51 and 45 points, respectively, at age 38.
Speaking of old guys putting up big numbers, Kobe Bryant, at age 34, had a legendary 17th season this past year.
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Certainly, when players who are that advanced in their respective careers can still manage to put up big numbers and still have the jump on their competition, it’s a huge testament to their greatness.
Although James and Durant are widely considered the best in the business at the current time, longevity and the ability to be consistently effective over time are traits World Peace seems to admire–that and multiple championship rings.