King James vs His Airness Michael Jordan: A Tale of two different Giants!

For years now we have heard the debate about LeBron James and Michael Jordan, as questions have surfaced regarding who is better? There are those that say without a shadow of doubt that it is Jordan, and there are those that say it is James. Many on the Jordan side say rings are what make Michael the better of the two. This should not be the argument for two players who play completely different styles of basketball. Stats do tell a very loud argument that James is the better of the two. Again, these are two completely different basketball players. Putting biases aside, who do you think is the better all-around player?

His Airness
Michael Jordan hit one of the most iconic shots in NCAA history and thus, the legend was born. He was drafted with the third overall pick in 1984 by the Chicago Bulls as a shooting guard/small forward. Here are what Jordan's career stats look like: 30.1 points per game, 5.3 assists,2.3 steals, 6.2 rebounds. Let's focus on the second stat there, just over 5 assists per game Michael was a scorer we all know this, but was Michael out there to make his teammates better? From all accounts, Michael was not a “pass first player”, and he did not have to be when he wanted to, he could take over games and the other four players were along for the show.  When this happened, Jordan’s mentality was “give me the ball and get out of my way player.” So, was Mike a better basketball player and teammate then LeBron? The answer is yes because it was about winning and not just about stats. He had what a lot of experts call the killer instinct when Michael wanted to take a game over he did and the highlight reels show this to be true. Jordan could just be Jordan with a great surrounding cast that many people forget about Pippen, Rodman, Kerr, Harper, and Grant.
He had other players that were quite capable but at the end of the day, it was Mikes show. The 6-6 guard has the edge on James in scoring titles, rings, finals MVPs (currently). The other thing Michael had that James has never had in his career was a gambling issue that stained the NBA in 1993 an issue that some believe was an alternative factor in Jordan stepping away from basketball along with the loss of his father. Now there is no question that Michael left his mark on the game and made the game better at a time when the NBA was floundering. But, as a basketball player and a teammate, it still goes back to Michael only worried about winning, if that meant he had to score 61 in a playoff game, he would but he used his surrounding cast to the best of his ability. At the end of the game was Michael passing the on a game winning shot? Ask that question to the 1992 Detroit Pistons or the 1998 Utah Jazz, that killer instinct that fans loved so much was in full view. That same killer instinct has been questioned in LeBron James, but let us look a little deeper at the King.

King James
LeBron James drafted first overall in the 2003 draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers has been chasing the “Ghost from Chicago” since he stepped into the league. Looking at James stats: 27.1 points per game, 7.0 assists, 7.3 rebounds, 50.1% field goal percentage, and can play every spot on the court at 6-8 250 pounds. Yes, LeBron only has 3 rings in 7 appearances but one of those 7 appearances is where I want to make my argument. 2007 Cleveland Cavaliers, can you name the roster? LeBron James took the likes of Eric Snow, Larry Hughes, Zydrunas Illgauskas. Yes, that is the supporting cast the LeBron James had when he went to and lost his first finals appearance. He finished that series with 22 points per game adding 7.0 rebounds a game and just under 7 assists, what he did not have and has not had constantly in his career is that killer instinct to go and take a game over and win it by himself. There should be no question LeBron makes his team better not just by scoring but by all the little intangibles he adds to the team on and off the court. The court vision, the freakish ability for a man his size, the knowledge and understanding of the game of basketball. Those are what make James a great basketball player.

The Decision
When Michael came into the league, he was the first of his kind and did not have to chase ghost or compete to be known as the greatest of all time. That title was placed upon his head due to the exceptional things he did. He had an entire generation of wanting to “Be like Mike”. LeBron has been chasing again from his own words “the Ghost in Chicago” since he stepped on an NBA floor. For me it still must be Michael Jordan as the greatest of all time. For one simple reason, everyone who grew up during the Michael Jordan Era wanted to “Be Like Mike” that includes LeBron James, the difference between the rest of us and James is LeBron did it better than the rest of us. On my list, it is Michael number one Kobe number two and LeBron number 3 for the simple fact the first two guys had killer instinct every time they stepped on the floor, sometime in my opinion that killer instinct is not there in LeBron. You know how I feel, who is in your opinion the greatest of all time? Let the debate continue.

Written by
Carlo Guadagnino

Edited by
Daniel Bishop M.A.

References
http://www.landofbasketball.com/player_comparison/lebron_james_vs_michael_jordan.htm
https://www.google.com/amp/sportsworld.nbcsports.com/michael-jordan-vs-lebron-james/amp/
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CLE/2007.html