Today, we're going to find out as we're sending rookie Kobe to 1985 to pair up with rookie Jordan on the Chicago Bulls, giving the two the chance to not only change NBA history as we know it, but also find out who's actually better.

Because eventually, one will rise up as the leader of the team, and the other will fall to just a sidekick.

And in order to find out who is who, we'll be counting up both Kobe and MJ's MVP awards and their finals MVP awards in order to make that decision at the very end of their careers, which just so happens to be the 1998 season, meaning that the two have 14 years to rack up as many awards as possible.

With all that being said, though, we're still only at the beginning stages of the duo, as the first season would see them average 18 points per game each, but be relatively unsuccessful in the postseason.

And as far as year two goes, it would see them both improve on their scoring numbers, around 22 to 23 per game, but once again flop in the playoffs.

But it's those two unsuccessful seasons that set us up nicely for their third, as they would finally make some noise with the two barely separated in the scoring race, around 24 per game each.

Realistically, in order to win the MVP, they'll have to get to around 30, but they've made great progress, especially Kobe, who compared to Jordan, seems more willing to shoot the three, which makes perfect sense considering he's being dropped from the modern game into the 80s.

But most importantly, the two's progress could be best summed up by their appearance in the postseason as a second seed, with the man standing in their way being Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics, the first of many legends that they'll have to take down in their quest for basketball greatness.

This one's obviously the matchup we should be looking out for, which would definitely live up to the hype, as both Jordan and Kobe will put up more than a solid fight against the battle-tested Celtics, as the series would quickly hit a stalemate with a two-to-two tie, which is a more than solid start considering the last few seasons were mostly uneventful.

And if somehow the Bulls can come out on top here, it'll officially stamp them as one of the top young teams in the league, maybe to the point where they go all the way and they can finally add to their trophy cases.

So after a hard-fought battle from Larry, the Bulls duo would get one step closer to doing so, as they take the next two, closing it out at home to advance to the conference finals for the first time, now heading to Philly to challenge an in-shape

Charles Barkley and Dr. J, players similar to both Jordan and Kobe from a previous era, which would ultimately be all the difference, as the veteran presence of Dr. J combined with the athleticism of Chuck would be enough to not only eliminate Kobe and MJ, but take care of them quickly in five games, leaving many fans, including myself, a bit disappointed.

I'm a little bit underwhelmed, man.

I would've thought they would've made the finals by now as Jordan and Kobe, but no.

And what really seems to be the issue is that while the two are fantastic individually, they might not complement each other's games as much as some other duos, as both are going into the game with the same approach, which is to score as much as possible, almost to the point where you might be right to call them ball hogs.

What the team needs now is someone with some passing ability to set the table, and now in their fourth season, they would get just that, as Scottie Pippen would be drafted to the Bulls, forming a young big three out in Chicago, with his skillset as a defender and passer being just what the team needed.

He barely gets a chance to take a shot on the team and might average more points elsewhere, but he is providing enough passing to help MJ, who's now completely bald, average 30, while Kobe, still with a full head of hair, is only a few decimal points away from 31.

But despite all of those encouraging signs, they would still fall short, as they'd run into the Celtics again in the second round, who would get their revenge for last season with old man Larry outshining the athleticism of the Bulls, eliminating them in five.

It's a massive step back for the team, despite adding a young star, and now four seasons in, with no team success to speak of, it makes you wonder one of two things.

Is Kobe's presence on the Bulls somehow holding Jordan back, or is Jordan not willing to share the spotlight with another player on his level?

Either way, we'll get closer to the answer in the duo's fifth season.

It's a crucial one for sure, as there's been a lot of hype for the two, but they've fallen flat in comparison, to the point where everyone's starting to look elsewhere for the next star that's going to leave.

Shaquille O'Neal of the LSU Tigers is coming out today saying that he's unsure of how long he'll be staying in Baton Rouge, but NBA experts are certain that whenever he decides to take the next leap, that he is the megastar the league has been searching for.

Which ultimately is good enough motivation for the two most competitive players ever to have a bounce back season, working even harder than usual, resulting in their best regular season yet, now finishing as the one seed with 63 wins.

But most importantly, it's good enough for one of the two players to finally bring home the MVP and get on the board in our award race.

And to keep it short, while both take about the same amount of shots per game,

Kobe's willingness early on when it came to the three ball is causing him to average 33 compared to Jordan's 30.

And it's that defining trait that's ultimately giving him the edge to strike first in our race to find out who's better.

The three point shooting, that's going to be interesting, man, because we're dropping him from the modern game into the old game.

And all that momentum would continue into the playoffs as the one seeded Bulls would dismantle New York,

Philly, the team that eliminated them earlier, and the Bad Boy Pistons to quickly make it to their first finals up against the Portland Trail Blazers.

And with both MJ and Kobe leading the way, putting up shot after shot and dunk after dunk, they would take a quick three to one lead and eventually seal the deal at home.

All capped off by a 38 point performance with four threes made from Kobe, it was ultimately finishing with his first finals MVP to give him a one to one lead for both awards.

Kobe striking first, the pressure is now really on Jordan.

And we'll shortly see how he responds to that pressure as we answer their sixth season together.

And right now it's clear that MJ needs some kind of trait similar to Kobe's shooting that'll give him a statistical edge for him to win a major award.

Because right now the rest of their games are eerily similar.

He could take on more of a passing role, but that would be a major adjustment that he might not be willing to make.

And as far as three point shooting goes, it'll take him some time to catch up.

So in the end, MJ would decide to make himself the best two way player in the league as he's locking up the opponent's best player on defense and of course causing havoc on offense as usual.

So while Kobe might be the more complete offensive player from now, especially with his shooting from deep,

MJ stamping himself on the other end, resulting in an all defensive team appearance, which would be a fantastic sign for the duo as they would make it to their second straight finals.

This time against Utah, where the best player,

Karl Malone, with the help of Jordan, would get locked up.

And while no six game series can really be called easy, this one would be pretty close to that.

As it wasn't ever in doubt, resulting in a repeat championship for the Bulls and the rise of a new finals MVP.

That being Michael Jordan, who's proving that he's still a force to be reckoned with.

If you counted him out earlier, you made a mistake, because it's far from over.

So with that, we're now moving on to season seven, where very quickly it's becoming clear that Jordan stole the show.

Now with regular season averages of 36 and four, along with over two steals and a block, which might've been the difference, considering Kobe is also averaging 30.

As in the end, it would be MJ winning his second consecutive award and his first regular season MVP, tying up that category one to one.

The defensive stats are wild.

Also he's shooting 61%, which is equally as crazy.

And with that, we would be onto the playoffs where the two would be chasing a historic three P.

And in their pursuit, they take care of the first three rounds easily for a finals matchup with the Seattle Sonics.

They do have Gary Payton, a future Hall of Fame player, and Sean Kemp, a future Hall of Very Good player.

But in the end, the Bulls have two future all-time great players, who might even be good enough for that status right now, as the series wasn't even close.

The Bulls are three-peating easily, with Jordan ultimately taking home his second finals MVP.

Kobe averaged more points during the finals, but it seems like Jordan's defense has the edge for now, officially turning the tide in his favor to take the lead.

Somehow Jordan almost averaged three blocks per game as a 6'6 shooting guard, but he's winning another finals MVP.

But whatever you do, don't count Kobe out just yet, as down the line, he'll have a major opportunity to make a comeback that could seriously change the tide of this competition.

But for now, let's focus back on the 1992 season where the two would be as dominant as ever, finishing with 64 wins as the one seed.

With the only blip in their plan being the fact that none of the two are winning the regular season MVP, with it going to Clyde Drexler out in Portland instead, perfectly setting up the two to get revenge a few months later in the finals, as they'd storm into Clyde's gym and quickly take care of him for a second time, now bringing the two their fourth straight title, once again proving that they are the team to beat.

The only difference between this title and past ones would be the fact that it's Kobe taking the spotlight back, as his 32 points per game is turning into a whopping 38 for the finals, resulting in him winning his second finals MVP to completely tie us up in all categories.

And the Chicago Bulls takeover wouldn't end there, as the two would be taking their talents to the USA Olympic Dream Team, where they would both be the unquestionable leaders of the squad.

And with their journey ending with a gold medal, it's apparently clear that the two have officially hit their primes, and any of the two NBA awards could be determined by a coin flip.

With the only small catch being that it's not applying to the regular season MVP, as it's heading over to Shaq in Orlando.

Where it will eventually apply would be the duo's fifth straight final and second against the Utah Jazz, which would eventually turn into a fifth straight title for the Kobe and Jordan duo.

And as far as that coin flip goes, it's landing on Kobe, who's averaging 37 in the finals to finish the series in five games, securing his third finals MVP to give him the lead over Jordan.

Our competition to find out who's better has now turned into a competition to discover the greatest player of all time.

But in Jordan's case, it seems like he doesn't care.

Michael Jordan has shockingly announced his retirement from basketball after the Bulls' fifth title.

The 30-year-old plans to pursue a major league baseball career in the meantime, signing a contract with the Chicago White Sox.

Which ultimately means that Kobe has to try to lead the Bulls to their sixth straight title alone.

And there's two very different ways that this season will end.

Number one, if he loses without Jordan, the media, and maybe even you watching this, will come to the conclusion that Jordan was the team's leader this entire time.

But on the flip side, if he wins their sixth straight championship, it might be one of the craziest titles in league history considering the circumstances.

And it could definitely sway the competition in his favor.

The 1994 season will most likely be the most important of all, which is why we're going to skip past it for now and revisit it at the very end.

So with all that being said, we're moving on to the 1995 season where Jordan's making his return several months into the year, wearing a new number, mostly picking up where he left off.

As it would be extremely unrealistic to expect someone who's been out of basketball for over a year to immediately average 30 again, as he's now down to only 26 per game.

And while it'll definitely bounce back at some point,

Kobe's the one leading the way with averages of 32 points, six rebounds, and five assists.

Without a doubt, MVP caliber numbers that are not resulting in the MVP award, as it's heading to Shaq in Orlando for a second time.

Definitely an unexpected turn of events, and it's only getting crazier a few months later, as both MJ and Kobe would find themselves in Orlando during the playoffs.

And with the two only standing at six with six, playing the guard positions, there's nothing they can really do other than watch the 7-for-1 Shaq dunk over and over on their teammates.

And while both Kobe and Jordan have a combined five titles at this point, none of that matters now.

Shaq's leading Orlando to a three to two lead, pushing both MJ and Kobe to the brink of elimination.

They're in trouble.

And with that, the duo is now tasked with winning the next two games, starting with game six in front of the Chicago Faithful.

Aside from their first few seasons, the two haven't faced much adversity as teammates and have lived up to even the highest of expectations.

But with Shaq on the other end, that might all change, as he would continue to dominate, proving that his MVPs were no fluke, eventually leading the Magic to a two-point lead with less than two minutes remaining.

To keep it short, if Jordan and Kobe don't heat up here, this one's over, and they're shockingly going to get sent home.

Orlando's up three to two in the series.

If they win, they send Jordan and Kobe home.

Kobe with the pull-up at the elbow, it's good.

And now we have a tie game.

Shaq and Penny might be able to do it.

They might be able to send home the Bulls.

The pass over to Nick Anderson, it's off.

Kobe with the board.

Kobe throws it out in front of him, driving to the basket, the spin move in the lane.

That's two straight buckets for Kobe now on the stretch.

Anderson with the ball.

Anderson about to pass it over to Penny on the left wing.

There it is.

Penny wide open for three.

I did not expect him to shoot it, and he, what?

That is not really Penny Hardaway's game, but he made the shot anyways.

Jordan's running to the corner.

Kobe's about to pull up, maybe, maybe not.

Driving on the elbow.

Good defense from Anderson, it's off.

Orlando maybe one bucket away, especially if they hit a three to, oh my God, there it is.

The cut, the basket.

I forgot Horace Grant.

Jeez, man, wow.

Absolutely terrible time to forget how to speak.

Jordan once again standing in the corner.

It seems like Kobe's taking this one over.

Kobe driving the step back mid-range.

That's the shot, it's good.

Can the Bulls get a stop though?

It's been back and forth.

Shaq hasn't touched the ball down the stretch.

It's been all Penny.

Anderson with the ball.

Jordan Anderson, who's Kobe's man, is wide open.