OPINION

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By Aaron Moore

When people talk about the NBA, one of the most prevalent arguments is always: Who is the Greatest Player of All Time? (The GOAT?) The debate has been around for decades, since the time of Kareem Abdul-Jabar, Bill Russell, and Wilt Chamberlain. Then, in 1984, Michael Jordan made his NBA debut. He was a player like nobody had ever seen, and he took over the argument of about the GOAT. After Jordan’s reign ended in 2003, LeBron James joined the NBA, becoming one of the most dominant players of the 2000s and complicating the argument. In 2020, for many fans the question of the GOAT has been narrowed down to these two players. With James winning his fourth ring in this year’s 2020 NBA finals, the discussion has become even more complicated. I believe that Jordan is still the best basketball player ever.

Chicago Bulls’ Michael Jordan in 1997. Photo credit: Jordan Lipofsky.

73% of NBA fans are in favor of Jordan as the GOAT, according to a poll taken by ESPN. While it seems that this stat could easily be skewed by the generation gap between James and Jordan, ESPN made sure to split the respondents into even groups by age. 50% of those polled were over the age of 35, and the other half between 18-35. The majority of NBA fans believe that Jordan is the better player, and there are many stats that prove this point.

In terms of points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, turnovers, minutes, field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and free throw percentage per game, Jordan is superior in four areas: points per game, steals, free throw percentage, and turnovers. However, when you look closer, the stats lean in Jordan’s favor.

LeBron James on the USA World Team. Photo credit: Tim Shelby via Wikimedia Commons.

While Jordan has better stats in four categories, he is tied with James in two categories: blocks and minutes. Jordan being tied with James in blocks is impressive, because Jordan is three inches shorter than James, making it harder for him to block shots. Also, the difference of .1 minutes is essentially a tie, because .1 minutes is equal to a minuscule six seconds. James being superior in rebounds can be attributed to his size. James is 250 pounds currently, and Jordan, when he was in the league, was around 210 pounds. This difference in weight and the fact that James is three inches taller makes James more able to block out defenders around the rim and get higher to grab the ball.

I believe that, in general, James is a better passer than Jordan. James has an amazing ability to find an open player wherever he is on the court. Whether it is behind two centers, or on the other side of the court, he is able to get the ball to them. In the end, James is also superior in four categories. 

Postseason performance and record is another important factor in the determination of the GOAT. An NBA players’ ultimate goal is to win a championship and place the winning ring on their finger. Of Jordan’s six appearances in the NBA Finals, he has won all six. In James’ ten appearances, he has only won four. This is a 100% success rate, versus a 40% success rate. Also, of the stats above, Jordan had better stats in five areas and is tied with James in two areas. James is only superior in rebounds, assists, and field goal percentage, and rebounds can be contributed to their difference in size. Overall, Jordan’s playoff career was much more impressive than James’.

NBA fan Trevor Lundgren of Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School says, “Jordan was the best to ever do it in an era that featured some of the greatest and toughest players in NBA history.” These conditions were unlike any era of NBA basketball. The Jordan era of basketball was filled with aggressive defense and extremely tough players. The 1988-1990 Detroit Pistons are a prime example of these harsh conditions. Their starting five, consisting of John Salley, Isiah Thomas, Rick Mahorn, Dennis Rodman, and Bill Laimbeer, were known as the “Bad Boys” of the NBA. Bleacher Report’s Kyle Gibson described these five core players as, “Physically aggressive and defense-oriented.”

As featured in the 2020 ESPN/Netflix documentary The Last Dance, which covers Jordan’s rise to fame and the Bulls’ championships, when Jordan played the Detroit Pistons during those years he faced the infamous “Jordan Rules.” They were put in place after the Pistons started losing to the Bulls because they were not able to guard Jordan. There were four simple rules. “If he is on the wings, push him to the elbow and don’t let him drive baseline. When he is up top, force him to his left. When he gets the ball in the low post, trap him from the top. If he gets into the paint, knock him to the ground.” Essentially, the goal was to stop Jordan at any means necessary.

Against all the odds and the harsh “Jordan Rules,” Jordan was still able to win. Jacob Bullock, a senior at Bridge Academy and also an NBA fan, says, “Jordan had the Mamba Mentality before it was even a thing.” Bullock is referring to the mentality of Laker legend Kobe Bryant, who wrote a whole book about training all hours of the day and doing everything in his power to win. The Last Dance describes Jordan as beat up and tired, but in the end, he still always won in the finals. Many of these tactics used against Jordan would be called fouls in today’s NBA. However, when in place against Jordan, they were rarely called, making scoring even harder for him. Since this time, rules have been put in place to reduce the amount of contact against shooters in game.

Finally, is the difference in the players’ defense. James has never won Defensive Player of the Year, while Jordan won one and was known as a defensive presence on the court. Darko Mihajlovski of Bleacher Report wrote that “He had quick hands that he used to strip the ball and cause many fast breaks.” Also, Jordan was on the All-Defensive 1st Team nine times, while James was only on it five times, and Jordan was the league’s steals leader three times, while James has never held that position. 

While I believe that Jordan is clearly the best player of all time, I believe that James is the most precise player of all time. The difference between these is that James is a well-rounded player. He has some of the best passes ever seen in the NBA, his driving ability is impeccable, and his ability to shoot from anywhere on the court makes him a dangerous player. James is the type of player that his team is missing during a game. He can do this because he can essentially play any position.

At the end, when the game is on the line, James has the ability to play like Jordan. He can carry his team to victory in the most high-pressure situations. However, Jordan played like there was something to lose in every single game. James can be a Jordan when he needs to be, but Jordan always played with full force at all times.