LeBron vs Jordan

[tarheelsxxiii]

LBJ entered the league much younger. Jordan took time off to pursue the highest level of another sport because he was such a boss. He also seemed to care less about legacy than LBJ does... seriously. He was a crazy gambler, pursued baseball, etc. -- he just happened to have one of the wildest competitive drives we have seen in sports coupled with once-in-a-generation athleticism/skill.

[Kane3387]

To me the coolest thing about Jordan and his reign was all the hall of famers he prevented from getting rings. That's why it's called the Jordan era. Lol. Dude has an era named after him. It's just stupid how dominant he was when you think about it. These dudes were perennial all stars and all time players. Their only crime? Playing in the Jordan era. A couple of those guys did have chances to win but they only made it to finals once Jordan retired. Gary Payton avoids this list because he won as a bench player on a vet min deal and Olajuwon & Drexler avoid it bc they won when Jordan was basically out of the league.


Stockton
Ewing
Barkley
Malone
Miller
Kemp
Mullin
Mutombo

Several of lebron's contemporaries have already won without him being a teammate. Curry Wade Kawhi Klay Draymond. Old legends like Dirk and Duncan have also won at his expense. Lebrons greatness just doesn't smother the league like Jordan's greatness did.

I mean Stockton Malone Barkley Ewing and Miller are all hall of famers and some of the best ever. It's incredible they all have zero combined rings.

[tarheelsxxiii]

TP, Kane. Hit the nail on the head.

[Banner18now!]

Looks like someone else had a similar idea:


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[meangreenmachine]

Looks like someone else had a similar idea:


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The main take-away is the exclamation mark at the end of the picture: LeBron's lost more Finals than he's won. There is a big difference between winning 43% of your Finals appearances, having a losing record on the biggest stage, and being undefeated in six appearances.

If not for the murder of Jordan's father, Jordan likely would have won EIGHT straight Finals. Think about that and then consider all of the Hall of Famers he prevented from winning a championship. Malone and Stockton are the best pick-and-roll duo in history, but they have zero championships because of Jordan. Miller is one of the best shooters of all-time, but zero championships because of Jordan.

Without clutch threes from Ray Allen and Kyrie Irving, LeBron could be sitting on a Jerry West-like record of 1-6 in the Finals.

Yes, LeBron is the best all-around player of the 2010s, and probably still the best active player today, but he is nowhere close to touching 1990s Jordan nor will he ever be unless he wins the next four or five Finals in a row. I would bet everything I own that will not happen.

By the way, I do not understand comparing by age. Are we going to claim Kobe is the GOAT because he won three championships at age 23? I think not.