Jordan, Bryant, James: NBA Star Michael Jordan says, "5 beats 1," Prefers Kobe Over Lebron

Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, has chosen Kobe Bryant over LeBron James in the biggest NBA debate in recent years. The question is a big one: Who is the better player, and Jordan feels that Bryant's 5 championship rings speak louder than James' 1. Michael Jordan, who turns 50 on Sunday, has 6 championship rings and is the current owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. This is all coming from an upcoming NBA TV interview, where Jordan responds to the choice between today's 2 greats with:

"If you had to pick between the two, that would be a tough choice, but five beats one every time I look at it, and not that he [LeBron James] won't get five, he may get more than that, but five is bigger than one."

There are plenty of ways to look at the "Bryant vs James"/"James vs Bryant" discussion, but Jordan went the easy route and just counted their rings. You could look at the argument from the point of view of who would win a one-on-one game or who was better at a certain point in their respective careers, for instance, but the approach that Jordan took is still a valid enough evaluation. Of course, it is not exactly hard to believe that the 34-year-old Kobe Bryant has achieved more success than the 28-year-old James. Surely, this debate will be a hot topic as LeBron continues his success and perhaps even gains more championship rings.

Upon hearing of Jordan's choice of Bryant over him, James responded with the following:

"It doesn't matter to me. If you take Kobe one and I go second, it doesn't matter. I don't get too involved in what guys say about me or if you take Kobe or if you take LeBron. As long as I'm on the floor and I make plays for my teammates, I don't do what I do for other people's approval."

LeBron James is the NBA's reigning MVP and has shot over 60% from the field and scored over 30 points in six consecutive games, which is the first time that has been done in the history of the association. In 2012 he won MVP, Finals MVP, his first NBA title, an Olympic gold medal and Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year award. Clearly James is on an impressive streak of success, garnering him comparison to Jordan as well as Bryant. When he was being compared to Jordan earlier this week, James took to Twitter with the following tweet:

I'm not MJ, I'm LJ

— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 13, 2013

So go ahead and compare James and Kobe and Jordan however you feel appropriate, just be aware that James is still young and tearing it up, Bryant is a little older but not slowing down, and Jordan is, well, Michael Jordan. This classic quote from NBA great Magic Johnson pretty much sums up any comparisons to Jordan:

"There's Michael Jordan and then there is the rest of us."