Better player Michael Jordan or LeBron James

[HacheMan]

Some people's memories are just too short.

I've seen enough Of LeBron James that nothing can change my mind.

Michael Jordan dominated every single night despite playing in an era where defense mattered, and was double & triple teamed relentlessly.

MJ also played when there was many other Superstars in the league, making for actual competition.

Who does LeBron have to compete against besides Kevin Durant & Kobe before he left?

Just because James pulls down a few more rebounds & maybe puts out a few more assists doesn't make him 'better'.

There's MJ and then there's everyone else in the running for 2nd like LeBron, Kobe, Bird, and whoever else you want to throw in there...

 

[festeringZit]

Some people's memories are just too short.

I've seen enough Of LeBron James that nothing can change my mind.

Michael Jordan dominated every single night despite playing in an era where defense mattered, and was double & triple teamed relentlessly.

MJ also played when there was many other Superstars in the league, making for actual competition.

Who does LeBron have to compete against besides Kevin Durant & Kobe before he left?

Just because James pulls down a few more rebounds & maybe puts out a few more assists doesn't make him 'better'.

There's MJ and then there's everyone else in the running for 2nd like LeBron, Kobe, Bird, and whoever else you want to throw in there...

Michael played in an era when they actually could play defense, i.e. body/push you without you going to the line w/ a ticky-tack foul.

Like Ray Allen said, if MJ played in the LeBron (no-defense) era, he'd average 45 EASILY.

AND, Michael was a defensive fucking superstar - winning the defensive player of the year, the same year he won MVP. Think about
that one for a bit.

 

[HacheMan]

Michael played in an era when they actually could play defense, i.e. body/push you without you going to the line w/ a ticky-tack foul.

Like Ray Allen said, if MJ played in the LeBron (no-defense) era, he'd average 45 EASILY.

AND, Michael was a defensive fucking superstar - winning the defensive player of the year, the same year he won MVP. Think about
that one for a bit.

Without a doubt 100% fact

At least 40 for sure

 

[PatsFan1283]

Chris Mullin averaged 25 when MJ played, how many would he get today? Nique averaged 28-30.

Are they better than LeBron? If MJ would average 30-40% more pts on similar efficiency then why wouldn't other guys from that era?

If their offensive output would be that much better, then many of them would have a higher intrinsic value than LeBron. I don't see how he is even top 30 all time then.

 

[HacheMan]

Michael played in an era when they actually could play defense, i.e. body/push you without you going to the line w/ a ticky-tack foul.

Like Ray Allen said, if MJ played in the LeBron (no-defense) era, he'd average 45 EASILY.

AND, Michael was a defensive fucking superstar - winning the defensive player of the year, the same year he won MVP. Think about
that one for a bit.

You know the more I think about it, John Stockton is the NBA's all-time assist leader.

Imagine how many he'd be putting up today in this shame of a league.

Would probably have more steals too to since he owns that record also.

 

[HacheMan]

You know the more I think about it, John Stockton is the NBA's all-time assist leader.

Imagine how many he'd be putting up today in this shame of a league.

Would probably have more steals too to since he owns that record also.

Because simple put, Michael was unstoppable.

He averaged 30 despite being double & tripled nightly.

Pats, I know you remember MJ routinely splitting or going around 2-3 defenders play after play, night after night.

So the point is in the league today catering to offense, the goat would feast.

And as Zit mentioned, all-time great defender too.

I'll never understand the comparison I really won't/don't.

I'm not even sure I'd pick LeBron over Kobe & Bird, much less Jordan.

He's a great all-around player, but again, that doesn't make him better, if that makes any sense.

 

[PatsFan1283]

If he would dominate that much more now than he did then, then how isn't Karl Malone better than LeBron?

He dominated in this significantly more difficult time period to play as well. He just didn't win rings because MJ was around. Ditto for Ewing and countless others.

If the degree of difficulty was that much greater then how isn't he better?

How many points a game would Dominique average if he played in today's NBA? 35? How isn't he better than LeBron then?

 

[HacheMan]

If he would dominate that much more now than he did then, then how isn't Karl Malone better than LeBron?

He dominated in this significantly more difficult time period to play as well. He just didn't win rings because MJ was around. Ditto for Ewing and countless others.

If the degree of difficulty was that much greater then how isn't he better?

How many points a game would Dominique average if he played in today's NBA? 35?

Others probably would avg more, you're right.

Let's say you and I play against high school kids for a year in a YMCA league, and then the following year against Jr. High kids.

Things would seem a lot easier for us wouldn't it?

It's not secret that players nor the league focuses on defense as it used to and I'd go as far to say that the players aren't near as tough either.

 

[PatsFan1283]

Others probably would avg more, you're right.

Let's say you and I play against high school kids for a year in a YMCA league, and then the following year against Jr. High kids.

Things would seem a lot easier for us wouldn't it?

It's not secret that players nor the league focuses on defense as it used to and I'd go as far to say that the players aren't near as tough either.

So then how is LeBron even in the top 30? Tons of guys would smash this weakass era in your opinion.

So instead of saying MJ > Bron, why not argue Karl Malone and Dominique are better than him? These guys putup huge numbers with a significantly higher degree of difficulty. Countless others did as well.

 

[PatsFan1283]

Clyde Drexler from '87-92 crushed. Took 2 teams to the finals that didn't have a 2nd all star. Look at his numbers then.

How isn't he better than LeBron? Perhaps not longevity but atleast peak. What would he average today? 37?

https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/drexlcl01.html

 

[HacheMan]

We seemed to have gotten focused on points alone because of what Festering posted.

Obviously, it's much more than that.

 

[PatsFan1283]

If you're scoring 35 a game on good efficiency then you're going to be better than a prime LeBron James who can't really come close to doing that. You're going to be the best player in the NBA.

Unless you play D like Enes Kanter or something. But none of the aforementioned guys did. So logically, they should all be better than LeBron.

 

[JustinCruise]

Some people's memories are just too short.

I've seen enough Of LeBron James that nothing can change my mind.

Michael Jordan dominated every single night despite playing in an era where defense mattered, and was double & triple teamed relentlessly.

MJ also played when there was many other Superstars in the league, making for actual competition.

Who does LeBron have to compete against besides Kevin Durant & Kobe before he left?

Just because James pulls down a few more rebounds & maybe puts out a few more assists doesn't make him 'better'.

There's MJ and then there's everyone else in the running for 2nd like LeBron, Kobe, Bird, and whoever else you want to throw in there...

Actually it's the opposite. People tend to glorify the past.

 

[festeringZit]

Chris Mullin averaged 25 when MJ played, how many would he get today? Nique averaged 28-30.

Are they better than LeBron? If MJ would average 30-40% more pts on similar efficiency then why wouldn't other guys from that era?

If their offensive output would be that much better, then many of them would have a higher intrinsic value than LeBron. I don't see how he is even top 30 all time then.

Nique's defense was always the laughing stock of the league.

[FONT=&quot]The Atlanta Hawks unveiled a statue of the franchise's all-time leading scorer, Dominique Wilkins, on Thursday at an event that featured speeches from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Julius Erving, and a video message from Larry Bird.

[/FONT]Larry Bird on video says of Wilkins statue: "I'm pretty sure it's not made in a defensive stance."[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT]

 

[PatsFan1283]

Nobody really played any defense in the 80's contrary to the belief of some. And now that there is ample video of this for everyone to see at all hours of the day, saying stuff like "The 80's and 90's were different" just sounds awful. People really gotta cut that 80's part out and just say 90's. The 90's is the defense era people. Conflating the two is incorrect.

Even Michael Jordan himself posted much better individual numbers in the 80's/early 90's than the mid/late 90's because it was just guys running up and down the court. The sets, movements, everything is so simple. The players are a solid 10 pounds of muscle smaller than the 90's and they look practically prepubescent compared to now. It's just inferior in every way.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_stats.html

And they called several more fouls then, contrary to the belief of Ray Allen.

 

[road2perdition]

Jordan was better. This thread is a joke.

 

[festeringZit]

Nobody really played any defense in the 80's contrary to the belief of some. And now that there is ample video of this for everyone to see at all hours of the day, saying stuff like "The 80's and 90's were different" just sounds awful. People really gotta cut that 80's part out and just say 90's. The 90's is the defense era people. Conflating the two is incorrect.

Even Michael Jordan himself posted much better individual numbers in the 80's/early 90's than the mid/late 90's because it was just guys running up and down the court. The sets, movements, everything is so simple. The players are a solid 10 pounds of muscle smaller than the 90's and they look practically prepubescent compared to now. It's just inferior in every way.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_stats.html

And they called several more fouls then, contrary to the belief of Ray Allen.

People think more about the Detroit Pistons "Bad Boys" era, where they bragged that if you came into the lane, you were going to get decked.

[h=3]1980–1994: The "Bad Boys" era https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detroit_Pistons[/h]

1. And when it came to defending the “Bad Boys” moniker, no player was safe.
   Not Barkley, not Bird and especially not Michael Jordan.
   Detroit’s initial inability to successfully defend “His Airness” led to Pistons head coach Chuck Daly instituting the “Jordan Rules.”
   Daly vowed that Jordan himself would never defeat the Pistons again.
   Essentially the “Jordan Rules” indicated that No. 23 was to be stopped by any means necessary.
   Ultimately, it was this mentality to win by any means necessary that allowed the Detroit Pistons to steamroll opponents.
   The 1988-89 and 1989-90 Detroit Pistons teams are considered by most to be some of the greatest in NBA history. The ‘88-'89 Pistons dominated the regular season, finishing with a 63-19 record.
   
   
   
   

 

[HacheMan]

People think more about the Detroit Pistons "Bad Boys" era, where they bragged that if you came into the lane, you were going to get decked.

[h=3]1980–1994: The "Bad Boys" era https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detroit_Pistons[/h]

1. And when it came to defending the “Bad Boys” moniker, no player was safe.
   Not Barkley, not Bird and especially not Michael Jordan.
   Detroit’s initial inability to successfully defend “His Airness” led to Pistons head coach Chuck Daly instituting the “Jordan Rules.”
   Daly vowed that Jordan himself would never defeat the Pistons again.
   Essentially the “Jordan Rules” indicated that No. 23 was to be stopped by any means necessary.
   Ultimately, it was this mentality to win by any means necessary that allowed the Detroit Pistons to steamroll opponents.
   The 1988-89 and 1989-90 Detroit Pistons teams are considered by most to be some of the greatest in NBA history. The ‘88-'89 Pistons dominated the regular season, finishing with a 63-19 record.
   
   
   
   

Can you even begin to imagine the reaction from LeBron after getting decked for the first time in that era against those defenses?!!?

 

[JustinCruise]

Can you even begin to imagine the reaction from LeBron after getting decked for the first time in that era against those defenses?!!?

You do realize lebron is 6' 8" 250 right?

 

[festeringZit]

You do realize lebron is 6' 8" 250 right?

He might be 6' 8" 250, but the way the pussy flops, you'd think he was Sean Bradley.