"Kobe Bryant, without question," Michael Jordan once said about which player among all NBA players he would choose to have the ball in his hands at the end of the game. "Definitely Kobe."

That quick reply was given many moons ago, when MJ stepped in to run the Washington Wizards.

It is has only become truer today.

Kobe Bryant's last-second three-pointer to tie Game 2 of the NBA Finals and help the Lakers tie the Pistons 1-1, draws obvious comparisons to the numerous acts of playoff heroism that NBA observers witnessed during Jordan's career.

Still not yet 26 years of age, Kobe is already starting to create his own legend.