Did you know: People love to compare Michael Jordan and LeBron James. It’s true! In fact, there are people who make a great living shouting at each other about whether or not Jordan is the greatest NBA player of all-time. Some people think Jordan is the greatest, some think it’s James, and some even think it’s Kobe Bryant. Oscar Robertson? Bill Russell? Sure, throw those guys into the mix as well! It’s the conversational gift that keeps on giving, and cockroaches will carry on the debate long after the human species has been scorched from the Earth by a nuclear war or the solar flames of dying sun.
Sometimes, when people are feeling very ambitious, they even ask James how he feels about the comparison, and the best reporters will ask the question in a way that will get everyone fired up all over again. For example, on Thursday, a reporter asked James if he has studied Jordan to learn how the former Bulls superstar adapted to the game as he got older. After all, James turns 32 on Friday, and that’s basically middle-aged for most NBA players.
No. He was much more of a scorer. He did a lot of post work at that point in time. But our games are just different. His body is different, my body is different than his. At that age, you recognize his dominance, but there’s no similarities in our game. At all.
The reporter followed up with a question about the turnaround fadeaway.
Nah, it’s different. He had much more lift in his fadeaway than mine. That was definitely a go-to move of his. But nah, our games are completely different.
Shhhhh, do you hear that? In the distance… it’s… it’s Skip Bayless doing his vocal warmups. Shannon Sharpe better study up, because this kind of analysis from one of the game’s all-time greatest players about one of the game’s other all-time greatest players should provide a world class debate-embracer with at least six decades worth of television content.
