Bryant didn't take Jordan's comments as an insult.
"It's an accurate statement," Bryant said. "I'm definitely one of the top 10 guards. It could mean two, it could mean one, it could mean four or five. I'm definitely one of the top thousand. Look, I know how he feels about me.
"There have been a lot of great guards to play the game. For me to sit here and say, 'He should have said top five,' that's disrespectful to the other guards that I've watched."
When asked whether Jordan's words were motivating, Bryant said: "That stuff doesn't get to me. You can't motivate me or take me to a place that I'm not already at."
So where does Bryant think he ranks amongst the NBA's best?
"I can't put myself in that position -- I really can't," Bryant said.
Bryant, however, is comfortable revealing how he hopes to be remembered after his career is over. He entered the NBA in 1996 as a No. 13 pick. At that time, only former Lakers general manager Jerry West had visions of Bryant becoming a superstar.
"I've always been comfortable as a kid growing up to think that when my career is over, I want them to think of me as an overachiever despite the talent that I have," Bryant said. "To think of me as a person that's overachieved, that would mean a lot to me. That means I put a lot of work in and squeezed every ounce of juice out of this orange that I could.
"Hopefully, they perceive me as person who did whatever he had to do to win above all else. Above anything. Above stats. ... If they say that about me I'll be happy."
Bryant claims he isn't motivated by trying to match Jordan, but he does respect the elite company he would join by winning his sixth championship. Only 13 NBA players have more than five NBA titles. No Laker has ever won more than five titles with the franchise.
"I don't look at it as motivation," said Bryant, who hasn't talked to Jordan since the Lakers played at Charlotte last season. "I've never given it thought that I wanted to get six to catch Michael. His six and my six are different. That's not to say that his were more challenging than mine because I had to play a different role and do something out of character my first three. They're just different.
"It steps into a territory that only a select few have ever been to. I understand. That's what special to me, that I'm this fortunate to have this opportunity. So, let's try to make the most of it."
Most of the offseason attention has been on the Miami Heat adding LeBron James(notes) and Chris Bosh(notes) to play with Dwyane Wade(notes). But the Lakers also could be better after signing Steve Blake(notes), Matt Barnes(notes) and Theo Ratliff(notes).
"The excitement is warranted," Bryant said. "Obviously, the trophy remains with us. [Other teams] have made steps in the right direction to try to take it from us. That's what makes it exciting. The hype is warranted. But for us, it's business as usual."
The Lakers' biggest concerns center on the health of Bryant and center Andrew Bynum(notes), who both had knee surgery. Bynum isn't expected to be back until the end of November, at the earliest. Bryant struggled in his first four preseason games, averaging 10 points on just 22 percent shooting, before scoring 19 points in the third quarter of Sunday's game against the Utah Jazz.
"I'm pleased with my development," Bryant said. "I feel like I'm getting better every day."
For now, Bryant isn't worried about the Heat. Or Jordan. He's just hungry to chase another championship.
"For me, the special comes in the challenge of it," he said. "That's why last year was so special for me because we were like down and out. I remember doing a press conference when we were down 3-2 [in the NBA Finals] and everyone was saying nail-in-the-coffin stuff. That's what makes it special for me."
Marc Spears is an NBA writer for Yahoo! Sports. Follow him on Twitter.
Send Marc a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
Most people including experts rank Kobe as the number two all time NBA gaurd with a slight chance to catch MJ if he wins more championships. Mj however ranks Kobe as only a top 10 gaurd. Can you name 9 people better than Kobe? Is MJ just being jealous, or trying to persuade the media from putting Kobe in his company?
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Jordan, Kobe, and Lebron Speak on Who is Best?by MrKarmaDude546,457 views
Kobe can never be Jordan. Jordan can never be Kobe. Simple as that.
There would be no Kobe if there wasn't a Jordan to begin with. I sure Kobe admired Jordans championship wins while he was still in highschool.
Im pretty sure Jordan had admired a legendary bball player before his time.
xaxcx3x 6 hours ago
Whatever MJ says after retirement is a joke, this nigga told the Wizards to draft Kwame Brown for christ sakes...that nigga Michael Fuckin Jordan only wanted to go to washington if they got Kwame Shithead Brown!....let that sit for a minute.
ObeyManny 9 hours ago
@mc4christ1
Didn't get passed the Knicks til they got old??? LMAO The Knicks/Bulls rivalry was one of the greatest NBA rivalries of all time. Knicks had one of the greatest Defenses of all time. Every single Knick was in their prime against Jordan and he abused all of them. You don't know shit about basketball mc4christ1. Please just stop...
Kingjd87 23 hours ago
@Kingjd87 - Man please... Jordan got all the calls!!! The NBA needed a hero. Jordan came along at the right time. Rules were changed/ignored. Nike brainwashed us. PLUS he had no rivalry. A great player no doubt... in a watered-down league though.
mc4christ1 1 day ago 2
Jordan... the best? Heck-to-the-NO! He had no comp in his hay-day. Didn't get passed the Knicks til they got old, didn't get passed the Celtics til they got old, beat an aging Laker team. Who'd he beat in the finals, Seattle, Portland, Utah 2x, and Phoenix. Just lambs for the slaughter from the West in those days. The NBA promoted him cuz he's all they had. A 12-year old will always dominate kindergartners. Jordan please hush with your nonsense.
mc4christ1 1 day ago
MJ would rape the shit out of today's league. MJ at 40 was putting in work in this era (back in '02-'03 dropping 50 point games and shit). Imagine MJ in his 20s during this offense catered era. Phil Jackson himself said MJ would avg about 40 in today's game.
Kingjd87 1 day ago
@THETOYOTAable Yes, I do know that. Don't gotta be telling me stats... lol.
BlackStarKeepShining 2 days ago
@BlackStarKeepShining .
mj said kobe today............is because jordan is the only player to lead the league in scoring champs at the age of 30th and jordan he did it 3 time, mj once avge at 30 of age is avg30.2, avg29.8, avg28.6, let see can kobe lead the league in score champs this year 2011-2012 at the age of 30th for the 1st time in his career. kobe #1 right now 2011- 2012 avg28.8ppg, k'durant #2 avg28.0ppg,
THETOYOTAable 2 days ago
Jordan is weird that way. He'll say one thing today, and then another tomorrow. He did recently say that Kobe is one of the greatest players of all time and is the only one in the NBA today that could be compared to him.
BlackStarKeepShining 2 days ago
@joelco92 he has earned it...Kobe was beyond cocky to the point of errogance before he was good
MrOmydamn 3 days ago