Former NBA All-Star Tracy McGrady says the late Kobe Bryant is one of the five best players in NBA history

NBA great Kobe Bryant is one of the most overlooked superstars in the greatest player conversation.

Despite his impressive resume, Bryant often falls short of LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Former All-Star Tracy McGrady says it just adds to disrespect Bryant has received over the years.

During a recent Instagram post, McGrady called Bryant one of the top five players of all-time.

“They so disrespectful when it comes to Bean, bro,” McGrady said. “They talking about he ain’t better than MJ… He’s the closest thing to MJ.”

In his argument, McGrady addressed the notion that Bryant’s legacy was diminished because he won three NBA titles playing alongside Shaquille O’Neal with the Los Angeles Lakers. McGrady responded to that by saying no one criticized Johnson and Abdul-Jabbar when they teamed up to win championships in the 1980s with Los Angeles.

Bryant’s accomplishments merit consideration based on numbers alone. After winning alongside O’Neal, he won two more titles in the leading role for the Lakers. His five championships are more than James’ four with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Lakers.

In McGrady’s eyes, Bryant is the closest player the NBA has seen to Jordan. Their games were so similar, with both possessing that killer instinct.

“Who else is close to MJ? Ain’t nobody else close to MJ,” McGrady said. “So how was [Bryant] excluded out of this conversation if he’s close to MJ, and MJ is the greatest of all time? Help me understand that.”