On Thursday, The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced its honorees for the 2020 Hall of Fame inductees.

Among the presenters, Michael Jordan is the biggest name, and he will be honoring the late Kobe Bryant by announcing his induction to the Hall of Fame.

In early 2020, Bryant passed away in a fatal helicopter crash. During his memorial service, Jordan spoke about the Lakers’ legend. “Kobe was my dear friend, he was like a little brother,” Jordan said. “When Kobe died, a little piece of me died. This kid had passion as you would never know, as I got to know him, I wanted to be the best big brother that I could be.”

Growing up, Bryant idolized the Chicago Bulls legend and sought to emulate Jordan’s game. Once Bryant made it to the NBA, he dedicated his early career to learning from Jordan on and off the court. At first, MJ was irked about Bryant’s constant questioning, but it soon faded as a bond was formed between them. “At first, it was an aggravation,” Jordan said. “Then it became a passion.”

The two formed a sibling bond. “He was really like a big brother, and whether it’s because we similarly see things in terms of our competitive spirit or fire or whatever the case may be, there’s an understanding that we have a connection that we have,” Bryant once said of Jordan.

Jordan will be the only Hall of Famer to be presenting multiple people in the ceremony. The Chicago legend will also be presenting women’s coach Kim Mulkey in the Hall of Fame ceremony.

The other inductees and their presenters are the following:

• Patrick Baumann, presented by Russ Granik and Vlade Divac  
• Tamika Catchings, presented by Alonzo Mourning and Dawn Staley 
• Tim Duncan, presented by David Robinson 
• Kevin Garnett, presented by Isiah Thomas
• Barbara Stevens, presented by Geno Auriemma and Muffet McGraw 
• Eddie Sutton, presented by John Calipari, Bill Self and Sidney Moncrief
• Rudy Tomjanovich, presented by Calvin Murphy and Hakeem Olajuwon 

Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander put the team up for sale in July, and now one of the team’s former stars has emerged as a potential part-owner of the franchise: Hakeem Olajuwon.

Hakeem Olajuwon Rockets Ownership Stake

“I’m buying it,” the Hall of Famer joked Tuesday, before getting more serious about the matter.

“Many groups now have called me and want me involved,” said Olajuwon, now a Rockets team ambassador. “With two of the groups, I’m doing my background check to see if that is a possibility. Just an association would be great.

“I’m still with the organization now. I have a contract with the Rockets, not to be in an ownership position. But if the opportunity opens itself, it will be something great.”

Olaujwon helped lead the Rockets to their only two championships, which came in consecutive years (1994, 1995) after Alexander first bought the franchise in 1993.

Houston has drawn interest from many other NBA teams and players in recent weeks, including veteran New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, who has listed the franchise as his preferred destination. The Rockets’ Mike D’Antoni was named Coach of the Year and All-Star guard James Harden was the MVP runner-up this year. Houston also bolstered its roster this offseason by signing veteran point guard Chris Paul in a blockbuster deal with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Besdies Olajuwon, another rumored potential part-owner of the Rockets is Grammy-winning artist Beyonce, who is a Houston native. Bloomberg first reported Beyonce was a possible part-owner.

“I think they were a championship team last year,” said Olajuwon, who now lives in the United Kingdom where his children are in school and he is involved with a basketball club in the city of Birmingham. “That series we lost against San Antonio, I think we could have given Golden State a better series than San Antonio did.”

“I believe that I’ve never played one season thinking we cannot win a championship. It’s open in the playoffs — I believe if this team plays with confidence and plays their game, they have a chance,” Olajuwon continued.

“I’ve always believed that if you have a legitimate team like Houston, with one of the best records in the league, they are a championship team. But of course, the West is so strong that you have to go against Golden State or San Antonio. But I think they can beat San Antonio.”

The Rockets lost to the San Antonio Spurs in six games in this year’s Conference Semifinals. Houston has not won a Conference title since 1995.

According to ESPN’s Darren Rovell, the Rockets will sell for about $1.9 billion.

12 Jul 1996: Center Hakeem Olajuwon of Dream Team III stretches prior to the USA’s 118-77 victory over Australia at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mandatory Credit: Jed Jacobsohn /Allsport

A debate that has been discussed for the better part of a decade has finally been settled: Lebron James, not Michael Jordan, is the greatest basketball player of all time.

There are plenty of people out there that would disagree.

Some would say the argument for Lebron is clouded by his recent heroics. It’s a fair point considering just how monumental his performance in the 2016 NBA Finals was, not only for the city of Cleveland, but for basketball, nationally and internationally.

James averaged 29.7 points 11.3 Rebounds and 8.9 assists in the most recent edition of the NBA’s finest three weeks. The 6-foot-8, Akron, Ohio native, saved his finest performance for last, notching a triple-double in the series deciding game, posting 27 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists. King James carried his team from down 3-1, to victory in a Game 7.

2016 NBA FINALS HIGHLIGHTS

That alone is cause for elevation within the pantheon of the basketball’s most prolific players. But with a closer look, his star rises further.

1. COMPETITION

The Cleveland Cavaliers became the first team in the history of the NBA to overcome a 3-1 deficit to win the title. Cleveland exacted revenge against a Golden State Warrior squad that had set a league record, finishing 73-9 in the regular season, after falling to the Dubs in the 2015 Finals.

Did MJ ever play a 73-win team? Ok, we knew that answer. How about a 70-win team? Nope.

65?  Not once, not never.

Twice Jordan faced a 64-win team in the Finals, beating the Seattle Supersonics (1996) and Utah Jazz in six games (1997), but those were the best regular season records he had to contend with, a far cry from a 73-win, defending champion Warriors team.

2. ALL-AROUND PLAYER

If we were debating who is the best scorer of all time, hands down Jordan takes it. As he would handle the competition for the most exciting player of all time, or the best dunker.

MICHAEL JORDAN’S TOP 10 DUNKS

His Airness can never be diminished. But he just wasn’t the same quality of all-around player that James has become.

In the 1996-97 playoffs, Jordan averaged 31.1 points per game and added 7.9 rebounds per contest.

That was Jordan’s most productive playoff run in terms of rebounding, about eight boards a game. His next highest playoff average was 7.2 in the 1990 NBA Playoffs.

James averages 8.8 rebounds for his career in the playoffs, to go with 6.8 assists per game. MJ averaged 5.7 assists for his playoff career.

3. DEFENSE

Jordan was an all-world defender, earning Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1988 and stands as a 9-time All-Defensive First Team.

James is a 5-time All-Defensive First Team selection, though he has never won Defensive POY.

No matter, because unlike MJ, Lebron can match up with any player on the court, at any time.

King James can guard any player in the league for that matter and that is not an overstatement. Watch him lockdown Kevin Garnett in the 2007 NBA Finals.

LEBRON BLOCKS KEVIN GARNETT

Could Michael guard Hakeem Olajuwon? Or Kareem Adbul-Jabbar? No.

MJ would be hard-pressed to ‘D’ up Magic Johnson. It’s not a knock, it’s just a reflection of his size.

Keep in mind that Bron-Bron averaged 2.6 steals and 2.6 blocks in the 2016 finals, numbers Jordan never even approached in a championship series.

“THE BLOCK”

Look, it is not an easy realization to come to grips with, especially if you grew up with Michael Jordan, especially if you wore a No. 23 Bulls jersey even though you were a Knicks fan, and especially if you watched “Air Time” on repeat with your friends.

If you have one shot to take, Michael is taking the shot.

But if you have one play to make, you want the ball in Lebron’s hands.

MJ, is still His Airness, one of a kind, basketball royalty.

But when it comes down to the Greatest, Lebron is King.