Asimov was in many ways an originator, we often forget that the "Foundation" series was truly ground-breaking in its scope for the early 1940s when the first three books were published in sci-fi mags. He was truly an influential innovator.
Crichton is an excellant author who has done a few commercial works but also written some very good science fiction. He does not, in my opinion, qualify as a true originator, rather his books tend to crystallize, solidify and further expound on concepts found in older sci-fi, which is admirable in itself.
Innovators in Sci-fi include authors like Asimov, Clarke, and for newer authors people like William Gibson and Vernor Vinge.
IMHO one of the problems with many sci-fi writers is that they rely too heavily, at times, on technology and innovative concepts while putting aside deep charecterizations and to a lesser extent, a good, stong plot. This is were an author like Crichton excels.
I guess what I'm saying is that its not really a fair comparison for either author, a better comparison might be Asimov/Clarke.
