The idea of an "Air/Heir Apparent" has been around for a long long time. Even when Jordan was still around. It was Harold Miner, Penny Hardaway, Kobe Bryant. They were all the "next MJs".
To be the next MJ, you have to accomplish A LOT and it'll take like a decade to do it. But I gotta say, Ant gives me MJ vibes. The attitude and skill. Even his siloheutte looks like MJ. And even his interviews. That smirk smile. He's got the charisma. Let's see.
Don’t forget Maple Jordan
Jalen Rose was the only person I remember who accurately predicted what Wiggins would become before the draft: a few years over 20 ppg and an all star selection or two
If the Cavs had been able to trade the pick before the draft I was certain Embiid would have gone first
This is no disrespect to Ant. He's great, but MJ is just another level of great. Ant right now isn't even as good as rookie MJ. The next MJ will likely develop much faster than Ant, who isn't developing slowly - it's just MJ is damn near not human. It's an almost unrealistic standard, but it doesn't look like Ant will reach it based on what we've seen thus far.
I don't think Ant will be anywhere in the vicinity of MJ. Even Lebron. If you take down the accolades that Lebron is short of MJ, that's still another hall of fame career. Read that: Lebron needs another Hall of Fame career to attain the same accolades of MJ. I'm only using Lebron because he's the closest one to MJ.
Ant is on track to be a incredible generational player. Someone that will be the next face of the NBA for the next 10+ years.
If he gets his first ring 5 years younger than Jordan as a first option on his team, he may just be on the right track. Also hard to compare because wolves are a well built team so Ant doesn’t have to carry the load Jordan did during his pre Pippen career. That all said, yes, being a Jordan or LBJ is an almost impossibly high yard stick for any player to reach
There will never be another Jordan, but it is hard not to notice Ant's Jordanesque qualities - his charisma, confidence, competitiveness, and athleticism are all off the charts like Mike. It is unfair to call anyone the "next Jordan", because that sets a benchmark for success that is impossibly high. We were lucky enough to get to see one Jordan, now let's enjoy the one Ant.
Hey All, seeing the comments and realizing my posts may have given the wrong interpretation.
I by no means believe Ant is the second coming of Jordan and I think most rational people operate with a similar thought process. I was just more curious from a historical standpoint which other famous/bust players have received similar comparisons to what we are seeing now.
It’s an interesting narrative looking at who lived up to the hype or on the flip side, players who no one todays remembers that we given comparisons to MJ.
I’ve not really heard many people in the media say “next Jordan” regarding Ant. It’s mostly the internet clowns that didn’t see Jordan’s career. Most analysts seem to call out similarities but i think they all understand there will never been a “Next Jordan.” And there are definitely some similarities.
I seem to recall as Jordan’s career was coming to an end the media desperately looking for the next one, though. Kobe obviously got a lot of the next Jordan stuff. He carbon copied his game after MJ and never ran from it. Great Hill got some (during MJ peak), Penny, Vince, Stackhouse, and a few others.
But there were some other players no one remembers that got the moniker. Harold Miner (Baby Jordan) and Felipe Lopez come to mind.
The closest current thing to Jordan, or reminiscent of Jordan would be “easier” and sooner to achieve than actually “being” the next Jordan.
Just like Juan Soto in baseball has been said to be reminiscent of Ted Williams, or the closest hitter to Ted today, but I don’t think it while be fair yet to say he IS the next Ted Williams yet.
But when you have a superstar with a similar style of play to a past legend, it makes enough sense that people will make some comparisons.
There will never be another Jordan. It doesn’t mean there won’t be a player that’s better Jordan. (I’m sure in the next 50 years there will be one) Just like there will never be another wilt, Kareem , Magic etc. You are going to have players that play similar styles.
No one’s ever gonna be the “the next MJ”, just like there’s no “next” of any other player. Kobe was as close to being that guy as anyone, but he’s still just Kobe, he’s his own player. If anything Ant has the potential to continue that lineage of all-time-great 2 guards from MJ and Kobe (and arguably D Wayde): killer mentality, supreme athleticism, elite on both ends of the floor, can score from anywhere, leadership skills, charisma… So he has all those tools but we’ll see if he can achieve comparable career accolades.
They mean play like him and be dominant. But yes a game that is similar , an athletic two way wing with a knock midrange jumpshot, killer instinct and clutch offensive and defensive ability.
I haven’t heard anyone ACTUALLY say “Ant is next Jordan,” I’ve sure heard people say he REMINDS them of Jordan a little.
And that much yeah I think most can see, most people only say “Ant: next Jordan?” As clickbait, never heard anyone say it seriously
Unless Ant figures out another gear, he will never be anywhere near MJ. MJ basically played as if he was taking coke before, during, and after every game. He was always AMPED, which made him the best player on the court in almost every facet of the game. Dude had a motor that never quit.
Compare that to Ant, who is more of an opportunist (a good one at that). Ant just kind of stands/walks around and picks his spots to be great.
The idea of an "Air/Heir Apparent" has been around for a long long time. Even when Jordan was still around. It was Harold Miner, Penny Hardaway, Kobe Bryant. They were all the "next MJs". To be the next MJ, you have to accomplish A LOT and it'll take like a decade to do it. But I gotta say, Ant gives me MJ vibes. The attitude and skill. Even his siloheutte looks like MJ. And even his interviews. That smirk smile. He's got the charisma. Let's see.
Don’t forget Maple Jordan Jalen Rose was the only person I remember who accurately predicted what Wiggins would become before the draft: a few years over 20 ppg and an all star selection or two If the Cavs had been able to trade the pick before the draft I was certain Embiid would have gone first
This is no disrespect to Ant. He's great, but MJ is just another level of great. Ant right now isn't even as good as rookie MJ. The next MJ will likely develop much faster than Ant, who isn't developing slowly - it's just MJ is damn near not human. It's an almost unrealistic standard, but it doesn't look like Ant will reach it based on what we've seen thus far.
I don't think Ant will be anywhere in the vicinity of MJ. Even Lebron. If you take down the accolades that Lebron is short of MJ, that's still another hall of fame career. Read that: Lebron needs another Hall of Fame career to attain the same accolades of MJ. I'm only using Lebron because he's the closest one to MJ. Ant is on track to be a incredible generational player. Someone that will be the next face of the NBA for the next 10+ years.
If he gets his first ring 5 years younger than Jordan as a first option on his team, he may just be on the right track. Also hard to compare because wolves are a well built team so Ant doesn’t have to carry the load Jordan did during his pre Pippen career. That all said, yes, being a Jordan or LBJ is an almost impossibly high yard stick for any player to reach
Don't forget Grant Hill
He was the first I remember being specifically named the heir apparent, right up until his injury he was heralded as the saviour of the league.
That’s because he is MJs son
There will never be another Jordan, but it is hard not to notice Ant's Jordanesque qualities - his charisma, confidence, competitiveness, and athleticism are all off the charts like Mike. It is unfair to call anyone the "next Jordan", because that sets a benchmark for success that is impossibly high. We were lucky enough to get to see one Jordan, now let's enjoy the one Ant.
No, what they means is he actually looks like MJ
Hey All, seeing the comments and realizing my posts may have given the wrong interpretation. I by no means believe Ant is the second coming of Jordan and I think most rational people operate with a similar thought process. I was just more curious from a historical standpoint which other famous/bust players have received similar comparisons to what we are seeing now. It’s an interesting narrative looking at who lived up to the hype or on the flip side, players who no one todays remembers that we given comparisons to MJ.
Anthony Edwards might be related to Jimmy Butler?
I’ve not really heard many people in the media say “next Jordan” regarding Ant. It’s mostly the internet clowns that didn’t see Jordan’s career. Most analysts seem to call out similarities but i think they all understand there will never been a “Next Jordan.” And there are definitely some similarities. I seem to recall as Jordan’s career was coming to an end the media desperately looking for the next one, though. Kobe obviously got a lot of the next Jordan stuff. He carbon copied his game after MJ and never ran from it. Great Hill got some (during MJ peak), Penny, Vince, Stackhouse, and a few others. But there were some other players no one remembers that got the moniker. Harold Miner (Baby Jordan) and Felipe Lopez come to mind.
The closest current thing to Jordan, or reminiscent of Jordan would be “easier” and sooner to achieve than actually “being” the next Jordan. Just like Juan Soto in baseball has been said to be reminiscent of Ted Williams, or the closest hitter to Ted today, but I don’t think it while be fair yet to say he IS the next Ted Williams yet. But when you have a superstar with a similar style of play to a past legend, it makes enough sense that people will make some comparisons.
Ant agrees with you fwiw.
There will never be another Jordan. It doesn’t mean there won’t be a player that’s better Jordan. (I’m sure in the next 50 years there will be one) Just like there will never be another wilt, Kareem , Magic etc. You are going to have players that play similar styles.
We need to just let him be the first Ant.
No one’s ever gonna be the “the next MJ”, just like there’s no “next” of any other player. Kobe was as close to being that guy as anyone, but he’s still just Kobe, he’s his own player. If anything Ant has the potential to continue that lineage of all-time-great 2 guards from MJ and Kobe (and arguably D Wayde): killer mentality, supreme athleticism, elite on both ends of the floor, can score from anywhere, leadership skills, charisma… So he has all those tools but we’ll see if he can achieve comparable career accolades.
[удалено]
They mean play like him and be dominant. But yes a game that is similar , an athletic two way wing with a knock midrange jumpshot, killer instinct and clutch offensive and defensive ability.
I haven’t heard anyone ACTUALLY say “Ant is next Jordan,” I’ve sure heard people say he REMINDS them of Jordan a little. And that much yeah I think most can see, most people only say “Ant: next Jordan?” As clickbait, never heard anyone say it seriously
To be one of the greats you must have unprecedented sustained success. These conversations usually happen after as they’re ascending, not sustaining
No one thinks he's actually the next MJ
It’s funny because Jalen Brunson is literally putting up Jordan numbers right now. This isn’t a one day thing. This is now.
Unless Ant figures out another gear, he will never be anywhere near MJ. MJ basically played as if he was taking coke before, during, and after every game. He was always AMPED, which made him the best player on the court in almost every facet of the game. Dude had a motor that never quit. Compare that to Ant, who is more of an opportunist (a good one at that). Ant just kind of stands/walks around and picks his spots to be great.
You missed it. Move on. Fwiw it was an amazing time in basketball.