Tracy McGrady was one of the most electrifying scorers of his era and had his fair share of battles with Kobe Bryant in the 2000s. While Kobe collected five rings, McGrady never won one, a fact that has long shadowed his legacy. Despite being a two-time scoring champ and seven-time All-Star, he often lacked the support—and later, the health—to make deep playoff runs. Still, critics never let him off the hook. So last week, when McGrady made a bold comment defending his career, the backlash came fast. And now, he’s stepping back in to clear the air.

On June 20, Tracy McGrady joined First Take and dropped a take that got plenty of people talking. “Replace me with Kobe with Shaq, I don’t win a championship?” he asked. “You don’t think I can carry the Lakers to a championship? I’ve never had the opportunity. I felt like if I was put in that position to win a championship, I damn sure would show up and do what I do in the playoffs to elevate my team to that level.” The comment sparked some backlash, but McGrady has since clarified—he wasn’t trying to take anything away from Bryant.

Tracy McGrady is clearing the air—and doing it with heart. While talking on Timeless Sports, he circled back to his First Take comments that sparked backlash, especially from Kobe fans. “To go back to those comments—I never should have said ‘replace,’” McGrady admitted. “I think replacing Kobe… I don’t want to say I’m replacing Kobe. I will stand on playing with Shaq, though.” He made it clear he wasn’t comparing careers, just pointing to a very specific era: “We’re not talking about an overall, you know, career head matchup… we’re only talking about a specific moment in an era—like 2000 to 2007-2008. When I was in Orlando and they were three-peating, Shaq was the most dominant player in our game… I believe if I’m playing with that big guy, I can win a championship. And the story is told differently.”

But McGrady didn’t stop there—he made sure his respect for Kobe was unmistakable. “Everybody know Kobe’s my man, bro. Kobe’s my brother, bro,” he said. “There’s no way in hell I will ever, ever disrespect my brother like that. Yes, it came out as me replacing… I never said I was better than Kobe. Never. Never. And I would never say that. I’m on the front line—I’m on the front line of advocating for my brother always.”

Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal were nearly unstoppable together. From 1999 to 2000, Kobe averaged 25.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.3 assists across 313 games with Shaq, and the duo powered the Lakers to a historic three-peat from 2000 to 2002—Shaq dominating the 2002 Finals while Kobe grabbed All-Star Game MVP that year.

But when they went their separate ways in 2004, the rivalry only grew louder. Shaq won his fourth ring in 2006 with the Heat, but Kobe came back stronger, winning two more titles in 2009 and 2010 to finish with five, one more than the Diesel. After Kobe’s Game 7 win over Boston in 2010, Shaq told ESPN, “Well, I guess I’m still relevant… Kobe is still thinking about me, I guess. I’m still someone to be measured against.” So while Tracy stands by his belief about playing with Shaq, the real question remains—could he have truly won more rings alongside the Diesel? We’ll never know.

Tracy McGrady on the Kobe-Jordan legacy debate

Tracy McGrady’s always had strong opinions about greatness—but when the ‘replacing Kobe’ controversy blew up online, T-Mac doubled down with a message loud and clear: “Compare Bean to MJ and no one else!!! They’re in a separate class than any other hooper!” he wrote on Instagram. And for McGrady, this wasn’t about stirring the pot—it was about giving Kobe Bryant his flowers. He wanted to make it known that both Michael Jordan and Kobe live in their own basketball universe, untouchable and unmatched in how they approached the game.

And this isn’t a new take from Tracy. He’s said it before, and he means it. In an interview promoting his One Basketball League, McGrady boldly said, “I’m going with Kob… because I think Kobe was the most skilled basketball player I’ve ever seen. I think he took what MJ was and enhanced that skill set.” Still, T-Mac made it clear—this wasn’t about crowning Kobe the GOAT over MJ. “We talk about who is the GOAT of basketball. It’s MJ, LeBron, and I always have to throw Kobe in there.” For McGrady, the respect ran deep, and so did his belief that Kobe wasn’t just a Jordan regen—he was an evolution of him.

McGrady’s admiration for Kobe also came with some real behind-the-scenes insight. In Kobe: The Making of a Legend, he recalled, “He didn’t give a s— what they thought. He didn’t care. He’s about this basketball, about his craft. Like, he’s real serious about this. And all the time, I used to hear, ‘I am better than Michael Jordan.’ Like, he used to say that faithfully… I was like, this dude is insane.” And maybe that mindset rubbed off on Tracy, too. At LAX once, McGrady didn’t even hesitate when asked who was the tougher matchup—Kobe or MJ? “Not even close,” he said. “Kobe Bryant is a much tougher opponent than his Airness.” Coming from someone who guarded both legends at their peak, that’s not just a hot take—it’s a lived one.