Ok I know not a lot of NBA fans on here , but the playoffs have been fantastic this year . Always said that MJ vs Lebron is a no brainer . MJ by a mile . However ..... if Lebron can somehow pull out a miracle and beat the Warriors this year ; I can honestly say the Gap is shrinking . This Cavs team is BAD , far worse than any team MJ won with .
MJ vs Lebron
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Hard to compare the two but Lebron is the best I ever saw
I watched both a lot. I honestly feel that Lebron is a better all around player. MJ was a finesse player. Lebron does not have as many rings but I don’t think that is the end all be all of the equation. It is more to it than that.
I saw an article on ESPN about a week ago that broke down the number of HOF that each played against in the finals. Lebrons was almost double MJ’s. Also Micheal had more HOF on his teams than Lebron does.
I saw an article on ESPN about a week ago that broke down the number of HOF that each played against in the finals. Lebrons was almost double MJ’s. Also Micheal had more HOF on his teams than Lebron does.
Lebron can play any position on the floor. Can’t say that about MJ. I believe Lebron is the best ever.
Jordan was a great scorer and defender, but Lebron can do everything imaginable at an elite level. In the post, on the wing, as the primary ballhandler. You name it, and LeBron is one of the best ever at it.
Plus the knock used to be that "he's not clutch." He has been amazing on game winners for about the past 5 seasons now, as well.
Plus the knock used to be that "he's not clutch." He has been amazing on game winners for about the past 5 seasons now, as well.
LeBron is a monster, but I have to go with MJ as best ever. Possibly a generational thing, but the 80's & 90's was a much better brand of basketball, and Jordan was King.
Jordan always carried his team to victory. It didn't matter if you played with Dennis Rodman or Horrace Grant, Ron Harper or Luck Longley or even Jo Jo English. He was always won. Lebron is 3-4 in NBA finals.
I would also say that LBJ has started to tip the scales. He's definitely more versatile than MJ. He'll catch him in total points sometime next year if he stays healthy.
So hard to compare different eras....there will never be someone quite like MJ but you can say the same for LBJ maybe in a few years.
If they are able to win it all this year it will be very impressive. There is absolutely no way I see that happening, so if it does then it will indeed catapult his status.
So hard to compare different eras....there will never be someone quite like MJ but you can say the same for LBJ maybe in a few years.
If they are able to win it all this year it will be very impressive. There is absolutely no way I see that happening, so if it does then it will indeed catapult his status.
Here is my problem with only counting the finals in this thing and that being the only factor. It takes a team to win a championship not an individual. Lebron has done more with less. Other than when he was in Miami he had not really had a supporting crew. MJ consistently had more than what Lebron has dealt with. MJ played with HOF Lebron not so much.
Guys don’t forget the game was called differently back in Jordan’s day. Advantage went to the defense and they beat on Jordan like crazy. LeBron is bigger and the NBA calls defense fouls if you stare at an offensive star. This allows LBJ to play with scrubs and still be productive. Jordan is still 1A and LBJ is 1B fill in with Byrd, Magic, Kobe. No other NBA players today gets near these guys.
Not only that but MJ made everyone around him better...Labron basically says give me the ball and get out of the way. I still give the edge to MJ. Now a far as a physical specimen...no one in the history of basketball was more intimating then Wilt Chamberlain
MJ lost in the first round, LeBron never has. Also, MJ never won a playoff series without Scottie. Going 1-9 in playoff games before teaming up with another hall of famer.
LeBron's assist numbers dwarf MJ's. LBJ is a way better facilitator.
I thought I would never see the equal of Jordan. But I have. And Lebron might be more versatile. Well, he is more versatile.
Finally, NBA basketball sucks until playoff time. When you get great players wanting to win championships instead of enhancing their next contracts, it's something special. Up until that point, it's not.
Finally, NBA basketball sucks until playoff time. When you get great players wanting to win championships instead of enhancing their next contracts, it's something special. Up until that point, it's not.
You absolutely nailed the problem with the NBA. It's an 82-game warm-up/qualifier for a tournament more than half the teams get into. I'm not sure what the best solution would be, but if only the teams with the 8 best rcords, regardless of conference, made the playoffs, I bet we'd see a much better brand of basketball during the season.
You know what stinks 2X the long NBA season? MLB regular season (162 games for piss poor teams).
Now back to MJ & LBJ...Scottie Pippen was made by Jordan, plus Steve Kerr and Craig What’s his name.
Great point . Can imagine Jordan if no one could touch him like the rules are now . He would avg 50 in today’s game.
Lebron will never be the shooter MJ was. MJ has plenty of playoff buzzer beaters-Celtics, Cavs, Jazz etc. Lebron is probably better all around and a better post player but he's two inches taller and much heavier-which helps when scoring in paint/rebounding/blocking shots and so forth. Both were/are great athletes. Who would I want to have the ball with a few seconds on the clock? MJ easily.
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They played in different eras under different rules... MJ played in an era where defenders could pound on you for 48 without getting T'ed up.. If you look at LeBron hard, he is shooting free throws...
They weren't allowed to play zone defense in Jordan's day either though, and he's the reason "superstar calls" became a thing.
Also, interestingly, MJ and LBJ both average 8.2 free throw attempts per game for their careers.
Under today's rules Jordan would shoot 20 fts per game. He would also average 50-60 points per game...
I like that people are mentioning lebrons bigger size like that'd somehow be an argument against him
i like Lebron... not he's NOT better than Jordan..i guess time makes the mind more fuzzy
Rings aren't an individual accomplishment in team sports. Again, MJ 1-9 in playoff games without Scottie, and never made it out of the first round. LBJ took a team whose 2nd best player was Drew Gooden (maybe Zydrunas Ilgauskas?) to the NBA Finals.
How do you say he says give me the ball and move out my way, when the man is basically AVERAGING a triple double. He most of the time has ten or more assist a night.
if you think Lebron James is better than Michael Jordan, so be it.... i got nothing else
Why do only rings matter when comparing two individuals in a TEAM sport. This question is for anyone that feels like this.
For those who think there are no players in the NBA today compared to when Jordan played it is pretty plain that you don't watch much basketball. I am an old guy who has been an NBA fan since the 50's and I guarantee you the league has never had as much talent as it presently does. In fact it is debatable whether LeBron is even the best player in the league. There are 5 or 6 young guys playing now who are mortal locks for the HOF....and by the way, LeBron has a future HOF'er on his team in Kevin Love.
In crunch time, when you positively have to score I'll take Kevin Durant..
Curry averages over 30 per game and only plays about 3/4 of the game and he is also sharing the ball with 3 other All Stars...he is, without question, the best shooter to ever play. Durant is 7'0" tall and handles the ball like a guard, rebounds and is also an amazing shooter. James Harden can score 50 any night he feels like it, but he also leads the league in assists. And all of that is without mentioning Russel Westbrook who is probably the most athletic guy in the league and last season became the first guy since Oscar to average a triple double.
There are others, but that is a sample of the talent in the league.
In crunch time, when you positively have to score I'll take Kevin Durant..
Curry averages over 30 per game and only plays about 3/4 of the game and he is also sharing the ball with 3 other All Stars...he is, without question, the best shooter to ever play. Durant is 7'0" tall and handles the ball like a guard, rebounds and is also an amazing shooter. James Harden can score 50 any night he feels like it, but he also leads the league in assists. And all of that is without mentioning Russel Westbrook who is probably the most athletic guy in the league and last season became the first guy since Oscar to average a triple double.
There are others, but that is a sample of the talent in the league.
I'm fine with people choosing either one honestly. It's the people who say it's not close that bother me. I don't fault you choosing MJ (and your posts have been more reasonable than many on this topic), but I also don't like ring counting in team events to measure an individual. Golf, tennis, etc. I get it.
Football and basketball are different animals though. There's no way Trent Dilfer was better than Dan Marino, nor Robert Horry better than Charles Barkley.
Agree 100% and I'll even add one more to your list: Anthony Davis is an extremely special talent. There weren't 7-footers doing the things KD, Davis, Porzingis and Embiid are doing in today's league 20 years ago.
And the "Greek Freak"....( I couldn't spell his name if you spotted me the first six letters.)
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