Well, I guess my point is, since you made a clear distinction that Kobe is ranked considerably higher than Steph because you believe he impacted the defensive end, I wondered where you hold Magic given his impact on defense doesn't give him any currency in the all-time debate.
And why is it not particularly close?
If you really want to get into it, Magic Johnson was THE MAN on all his teams and backed up his status as the man through his play. Teams didn't seek him out to abuse him on the defensive end, and he gave a young Jordan problems.
Curry does one thing, and does that one thing UNBELIEVABLY. But that is the beginning and end of his effect on the court; he's gets hidden on defense, guarding the weakest guard on the opposing team, and even gets bodied by other guards his size; Kyrie Irving in particular was able to bully him in 2015 in Game 1 of the Finals.
Magic ran one of the most potent offenses the NBA has ever seen, where he was a key component in the movement of the ball, averaging over 11 assists per game NINE YEARS. In addition to being responsible for getting the Lakers' ball movement going, he dropped in 17-24 PPG those years. That's being responsible for more than 44 of his team's points, for nearly his entire career.
Steph is a point guard that allows his small forward to out-assist him every single year for the past six years aside from one year where they were practically tied. Klay guards the other team's best guard, sometimes their best player.
Steph is ineffective in situations where his team cannot support him properly. This is why the Warriors were in the Play-In when Klay was hurt, but went right back to the Finals when he was available. Steph is a great player, but you literally watch the entire Warrior squad attempt to set him a screen to utilize his shooting ability. When he doesn't have a player like Dray or Klay or Wiggins/Poole/Livingston/Iguodala supporting him, he's not as scary.
Magic has 5 championships, where he was indisputably the leader of the team at least three times, to the tune of three Finals MVPs. He's a career 20 PPG player that never took threes, and also gave you 11 assists per game for a career. He actually battled great players and never hid from the best player or assignment. He never needed other players to get his offense off, and could kill you for 30 or put the ball in the hands of Worthy, Coop or Kareem for 30. His game was not one dimensional in the way Curry's game is.
I mean, how much more can I say?
I thought Kobe wasn’t a threat?
