“A new generation of stars, thanks to the rapid evolution of the game and the passage of time, has been allowed to blossom, unfettered by trite comparisons. So Russ Westbrook is just Russ Westbrook, Steph is just Steph, and the quest to reincarnate MJ is mercifully over.”
I’m a huge basketball fan, but here’s something I just realized after reading this Bleacher Report article — no NBA players are declared the “Next Michael Jordan” any more.
The piece does a fascinating job of breaking down the reasons why this has happened and puts in context just how big a shift this represents. For example, the phrase was used in newspapers more than 3,000 times between 1990–2010 and has all but vanished now.