I think most people who think Kobe is the better player think it's because he's more "clutch." I don't know if that's really true though, because I've seen Lebron come through in a lot of big moments, including carrying a D-League team to the Finals a few years ago.
RIDICULOUS statement. Unless he (Lebron) plans on winning 6 Championships and 5 MVP's among countless other accolades in that 2-3 year span you're talking about it's not gonna happen. LBJ is great but lets not get ahead of ourselves. Granted Lebron is still young and will only improve there's still only ONE MJ! There's a reason why these guys like Kobe, LBJ, Wade are being compared to Jordan... he's the MAN. Kobe came the closest last year in terms of comparison to Jordan before he ran into the Celtics in the finals last year. It shows just how hard it is to win one Ring let alone 6 and solidifies the the amazing body of work Jordan has provided throughout his career for those old enough to have watched him. Not just in his later years with the Bulls and Wizards but Jordan in the mid to late 80's and early 90's was FREAKISH.
"THE MAN" as you call him had the great fortune to be playing with one of the best coaching minds in the history of the league (PJ), one of the best rebounders and defenders in history (Rodman) and one of the most versatile and top players ever in his own right (Pippen). I'm not demeaning MJ at all, but the fact is most people talk like about his six rings like he won it all by himself, he didn't. MJ had one of the best supporting teams ever, and one of the major differences between him and KB was that MJ learned to balance between relying on his team mates and taking games over by himself. MJ also had the great fortune to be playing basketball when it hasn't taken off like right now. Guys might be fundamentally more sound back then, but the overall talent of the league during MJ's time is a joke compared to the talent now. Comparing LBJ to MJ is not ridiculous at all, especially when you consider LBJ has the body of Karl Malone but who can run, pass and shoot like he does. In a game of one on one pickup basketball LBJ right now at 23/24 yrs old would absolutely destroy MJ in his prime, unless you're saying someone 6'6 and 215 pounds could guard a 6'8 250 (now rumored to be 260+) pound behemoth. Barring major injuries (and maybe Durant lol), LBJ right now is on track to becoming the most dominant perimeter player in league history, and saying he's gonna be better than MJ is not ridiculous at all.
watever wade already got his finals mvp trophy and ring already. Dont feel too bad about him on a crappy heat. Already an accomplished superstar
"kobe is the best player in our league" - Lebron James Lebron will get his turn in the future but now kobe bryant is the better of the 3. However lbj and wade are not too behind.
In terms of individual stats and accolades alone, yes LBJ could be just as good or better then MJ. Keep in mind MJ averaged 37 pts and 35 pts in 2 different seasons, LBJ hasn't done that yet. Also MJ was a nine time all defensive team selection, LBJ hasn't made one yet. In terms of team success in relation to being in the conversations of GOATs, MJ will always rule that unless LBJ matches or comes close to those 6 rings. If LBJ doesn't win any rings, he will never be above MJ in the greatest of all time conversations IMO. Even if he wins 1 or 2 rings, I would still say MJ was better. 4 dominant seasons with 4 rings as results, LBJ can be in the discussion with MJ as GOAT. Keep in mind Kobe has 3 rings and 1 MVP, and MJ > Kobe is still the consensus.
I really have to disagree with this. Throughout most of MJ's career, there were fewer teams in the league, so the talent was less watered down than it is now. Not to mention the fact that MJ didn't play in an era where any touching on the perimeter was an automatic foul call.
It was less watered down, but I'm talking about overall talent in the league. Not downplaying MJ's greatness, but I really do feel that he was like a man playing with boys-apart from a select few like 'Nique, Magic, Bird (who were from another generation altogether) and Drexler, there were really few players who were as talented and/or athletic like him. Nowadays almost every team has a perimeter superstar, and almost everyone of them are almost as athletic as Jordan was in his prime. You have Kobe, Joe Johnson, LBJ, Deron Williams, CP3, Wade, Durant, Rose, Carmelo etc. and most of these guys are hall of fame caliber talent playing in the league right now. Like I said basketball back then have more fundamentally sound and skilled players, but in terms of overall talent and athletic ability its not even close. I'd say that the average player back then wouldn't even make the d-league nowadays. I don't think the hardball defence back then would be a deterrent to King James' reign. In fact, the soft defence today prevents LBJ from using his strength to his full potential. You're talking about a defensive linebacker going up against skinny guards and forwards, you think LBJ would mind the contact? If allowed to, I'm sure LBJ would like nothing better than to crush the guys he'd be guarding. As I said before, LBJ would destroy MJ in a game of one on one, especially if hardball play is allowed.
Yes LBJ hasn't done some of the things MJ had done, but keep in mind this guy is only 23/24 yrs old. At that particular point in time MJ is not as good back then as LBJ is now, so its probably logical to assume LBJ will be even better when he reaches his prime. LBJ had already done a lot of things that MJ hasn't done, like be the youngest to score 12,000 pts, youngest player in the All NBA first team, youngest to record a triple double. He's also the only other person besides Oscar Robertson to average 27, 6, 6. I believe that using rings as end all be all of discussion is really unfair, because getting a ring is much harder nowadays than before. In the old days, you can have rivalries and actually predict who will match up with whom in the playoffs (I believe the bulls and the pistons met each other for a long time), while now winning three rings every other year (like what the Spurs have done) is already a dynasty. As I already mentioned, MJ was part of the most stacked team in history, while LBJ has been playing with a crap to average team his entire career. Wait till 2010 and he has wade/bosh/melo by his side I really do feel like MJ is a tad overrated by a lot of people. He's a great player, and definitely one of the best ever but I doubt you can really call him GOAT without question. Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Oscar Robertson and Wilt Chamberlain are some of the guys that I feel are just or are more deserving of that title, and if you're talking about accomplishments then no one can really top Russell's.
Agree with you. MJ won 6 championships, was a 5-time MVP, 10-time scoring champion (including 7 in a row), All-defensive team 9 times, etc. All LeBron has done so far is reach the Finals once. He has a long way to go. If LeBron doesn't win multiple championships, he will have a tough time getting serious consideration in GOAT conversations. He's young and anything can happen, but the task is tall. Kobe is much later in his career and is clearly below MJ. If you only compare skillset (which is a mistake), Kobe is right up there with him. But when you compare their leadership, effect on other players and ability to take over games, MJ blows Kobe away. MJ didn't have the hangups with PJ or his teammates, nor did he ever let utter selfishness come before winning. Between the ears, MJ>>>>>>Kobe. This is the primary difference.
I don't know if it's logical to assume that Lebron will keep improving and that he won't peak until he's in his late 20's. It could be that all the wear and tear he has suffered relative to a player that went to college will just shift his peak years to a younger age (I read an article about this recently, but I can't recall where). MJ is a little overrated by the type of people who say that nobody can ever compare to him no matter what. But as it stands now, he is the best that has ever played the game. He was more individually dominant than any player ever except Wilt, and he was able to do that while also playing a winning game. If anyone is overrated, it's Bill Russell. Just considering his skill as a basketball player, he wasn't really that great. He was a monster on defense and the boards, but he was nothing special offensively. He was an incredible leader however. (I'm just going on what I've heard here, because I'm far too young to have ever watched him play.)
D-Wade is all that and I would love to have him on the Rockets, but that "mofo" gets away with more bull**** calls then anyone I've ever seen. The NBA basically handed the Heat that championship, but I'm not gonna complain about anything that hurts those pansies in Dallas. The way D-Wade flops on offense is just downright embarassing.
Are you kidding me? Lebron hasn't been able to destroy Kobe 1 on 1 in a game yet. And you think LBJ can guard Jordan in his prime? I say, a 39-year-old Jordan can still get LBJ's young butt out there.
