This is a response to people playing up the LeBron-Jordan comparison following LeBron's much ballyhooed 6-game 30+ points on 60% shooting streak--something I didn't even know people kept track of--which coincidentally overlapped with the week of Jordan's 50th birthday:
How quickly do people, most especially the media, forget? Just a couple of years ago, LeBron got swept in the Finals. We say, fine, that's cool; after all, he was up against the 3-time champion, the great Tim Duncan's San Antonio Spurs. Then he never makes it to the NBA Finals in the next 3 years. He quit in the second half of Game 6 against Orlando in '09. He quit in the entire '10 series against Boston. Then he basically said, screw it, I need to play with my rival/buddy D-Wade to win one. He got his wish and made it to the Finals in '11. In Game 4, with Miami up 2-1 in the series and leading by 9 in the 4th, LeBron, well, LeChoked . Finally, he won a title last year against a talented yet inexperienced Thunder team. (Some people, myself included, think that the result would've been different had the Heat faced the Spurs.) And now people are comparing him to Mike. Really? Did those things never happen? Shouldn't we judge the GOAT based on his whole body of work?
Mike didn't win his first title until his 7th season, true that. But he never quit in any of those playoffs losses either. He never said, "I'm sick of losing in Chicago, I want to play with Barkley or Hakeem." He worked his ass off during off-seasons, challenged teammates in practices, competed night-in and night-out, made adjustments to his game to fit the triangle system, until it all paid off. He built the team from the ground up. The whole Bulls dynasty was basically the house that Michael Jordan built. And at his peak, Mike was the closest thing we'll ever get to "unbeatable," nay, "invincible."
Mike didn't win his first title until his 7th season, true that. But he never quit in any of those playoffs losses either. He never said, "I'm sick of losing in Chicago, I want to play with Barkley or Hakeem." He worked his ass off during off-seasons, challenged teammates in practices, competed night-in and night-out, made adjustments to his game to fit the triangle system, until it all paid off. He built the team from the ground up. The whole Bulls dynasty was basically the house that Michael Jordan built. And at his peak, Mike was the closest thing we'll ever get to "unbeatable," nay, "invincible."
LeBron, without a doubt, is the greatest talent to have graced the basketball court since Mike. He had all the physical tools and the basketball IQ to be like Mike. MJ is probably the best athlete--he was built like Usain Bolt--but LeBron is a freak of nature. Body of a running back with hops like Shawn Kemp circa 1994. All the hype prior to LeBron's arrival in the NBA was well-deserved. But greatness is not just about talent. It's about competing. And when LeBron took his talents to Wade's house/Bosh's pit, he threw away his chance at being the GOAT. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. Even in the midst of his great run, LeBron never exuded the aura of unbeatable-ness. He might be unstoppable, un-guardable, or what have you, but unbeatable he is not. Despite all the talent in his team, the Heat only have the 3rd best record in the league while playing in an inferior conference. Plug in Bosh and Allen to any of Jordan's teams and they would've been pushing 70 wins. It goes back to LeBron's non-competitive nature. He makes the right basketball plays but he is not obsessed with winning the way MJ and Bill Russell were. As further proof: why do you think LeBron refuses to participate in the dunk contest?
To me, LeBron's ceiling is Wilt, depending on the number of titles he wins. Probably Kareem, too, if he plays long enough and wins as many titles. But unless he averages a triple-double or leads the league in both scoring and assists or wins at least 5 more Finals MVPs, he'll never touch Jordan's rarefied air. Maybe not even Magic and Bird's.
