Basketball GOAT Debate

For many years there has been a debate asking who’s better: Michael Jordan (a man who has 6 rings with 3 of those rings being in a row and also a 5 mvp time player) or Lebron James (who has just recently passed and made the new all time scoring record with 4 MVPs and 4 finals MVPs)?  With all of this being said, people are for the most part split 50/50.

Now I do understand why there is a debate. Some say it’s because MJ’s era had harder defense, others say if MJ played now, he wouldn’t be dominant and that he wouldn’t even compare.

(Picture of MJ Dunking)

What makes someone the GOAT of a sport? It’s how much impact they had on the sport.  The people in favor of MJ as the best player of his generation may be because his name Jordan is everywhere from shoes to clothes. He has not only made an impact on basketball, but on our culture. But we’re talking about who’s the best in basketball.

So when it comes to why people say Jordan is better than LBJ, it comes down to the fact that MJ has two whole rings more than LBJ but MJ had major help. I’m not saying Lebron didn’t. Of course he had his Kyrie Irvings and D Wades, but MJ had Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman when in 2016, going up against a superteam with the best players in the league against the Golden State Warriors came back from 0-3 deficit for the first time in the league’s history in the finals and then won those very same finals. That just says a lot in of it itself. But enough of that, let’s look at the stats.

LBJ has 10 finals appearances, whilst MJ has 6. But out of those 10, LBJ has only won 4 and Jordan has won 6. LBJ has more play appearances at 14, one more than MJ. LBJ has 4 MVPs and Jordan has 5 MVPs. For finals MVPs LBJ has 4 and Jordan with 6. In all NBA MJ has 11 and LBJ has 19. For all stars MJ has 14 and Lebron with 19. For all defense LBJ has 6 and MJ with 9. Now for scoring titles. Jordan sits at the number 10 seat and LBJ at the number 1. These are just the accolades.

(Picture of LJ Throwing Powder In the Air)

Now MJ had 15 seasons and Lebron had 21 seasons. Some say that MJ accomplished more with less time and while that is somewhat true, we have to consider the era, the time, and rules they both played in. That’s why it’s hard to put these two up against each other. It goes above skill, but I’d say Lebron has played against tougher opponents, has a better rebound, field goal percentage, and assist percentage compared to MJ. But LBJ compared. When MJ played for The Wizards at the age of 39, LBJ had better stats.

All and all I can understand both sides, but I personally think LBJ is the best. He has done more, broken records, went up against better competition, and he can still do more in the time he has left.