Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant? Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas debates

It is a discussion that will literally never go away. Our species can be on the last spaceship off of Earth to a new planet where we'll restart civilization, and one of the space-refugees will inevitably turn to another and make small talk with one question: "So, who you got? Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant?"

Some get frustrated by the unending debate, but it's all in good fun. Different generations want to vouch for "their guy," and different people value different things in their favorite NBA players. And even guys who have been in the league aren't immune to the argument. Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas addressed the topic on his Instagram account this week -- and in pretty deep detail:

Arenas' conclusion: Jordan is the G.O.A.T., but Bryant is the G.O.A.T. of hard work:

"Kobe just wasn't gifted the way MJ was but u have to give him his credit for working his ass off [to] get mentioned in the same lane as this (unhumanman)."

It's a really thoughtful and compelling argument from Arenas. He doesn't bring up the way the defensive rules have changed, which might limit Jordan's mid-range dominance. On the other hand, is there any question that Jordan would have embraced getting to the rim and the 3-point shot if he played today? He didn't get a chance to "update his software," as Arenas put it, but if he had the chance, he'd still be the greatest.