Over the years, the battle for basketball supremacy has formed through classic rivalries like the Celtics vs. Lakers, Warriors vs. Cavaliers, and even Wilt Chamberlain vs. Bill Russell. Currently, the clash has moved away from the court and towards the angry thumbs of Twitter users and the loud mouths of ESPN analysts. The war for the coveted title, “Greatest of All Time,” is being waged by the two basketball legends, LeBron James and Michael Jordan. LeBron has claimed this title due to the talent he has dealt with both on and off his team on top of his more impressive career stats.

  Both legends played under different eras which has a direct correlation to the surrounding talent opposing each player. It is common sense that the natural progression of basketball includes the increased ability by all of its players. We acknowledge Wilt Chamberlain’s greatness, but it is known that he might not even make the NBA by today’s intense standards. While Michael was posting up against relatively scrawny white guards, LeBron has faced freak athletes including Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant. They are both seven feet tall, prolific shooters, and dominant against today’s insane NBA talent. If they were placed into the basketball world of thirty years ago, there is no question that they would dominate. Therefore, LeBron is regularly playing against freak basketball athletes while still earning better statistics than Michael Jordan. One might argue that 90’s style of “bully ball” created a tougher environment for Michael to score, but LeBron is so physically dominant by today’s standard that he would easily overcome any “hand check.”

  Michael Jordan has had the luxury of immense talent surrounding him in his career on the Bulls. He had seven time all star, Scottie Pippen, in his prime accompanied by one of the greatest big man of all time, Dennis Rodman. When Michael Jordan left the Bull’s for two years during the 93-94 season, the team was a still a playoff contender. In fact, they went all the way to the 1994 Eastern Conference Semifinals without the help of MJ. However, when LeBron left the Cavaliers in 2010, the Cavaliers finished the regular season with only 19 wins and 63 loses, which is a sharp contrast to the 61-21 season in 2009. Also, LeBron dragged the Cavaliers to the finals in 2018, but the next season they had a meager 17 wins after he left. LeBron has had to carry lackluster teams to the finals, whereas Jordan had immense talent that still performed at a high caliber without him.

  The major discrepancy in the career accolades for both basketball titans can be found in their respective finals records. MJ has the impressive record of winning all of the six finals he has appeared in while LeBron has won three and lost six. In all six of his wins, Michael Jordan was the favorite whereas LeBron was the underdog in seven of his nine finals appearances. Championships are important, but they are not the definitive value of a player’s career. Robert Horry was a bench player that won seven NBA championship, which would make him better than Michael Jordan and LeBron according to the rings-over-everything logic. If we are talking about the excellence of one player over the other, it is clear that Jordan wins over LeBron. But, Jordan is not even the most excellent player of all time because that belongs to fourteen time NBA champion, Bill Russell. While LeBron’s finals record is lackluster, he is still the most impactful player to ever play the game.

  The stats clearly illustrate that LeBron’s greatness on the court. At the age of of thirty-three, LeBron passed Michael Jordan in all time career scoring making him fourth all time. He still has another five or more years to rack up even more points, and he is on pace to have the most points of all time. He also has more rebounds and assists per game and more overall assists and rebounds compared to Jordan. However, LeBron has played more games and more seasons than Jordan due to Jordan’s two year hiatus. Arguably, the longevity of LeBron’s career is much more impressive than Jordan’s high scoring (30.1 ppg). He carried lackluster teams through grueling playoff games to nine straight NBA finals. His ability to stay healthy and physically dominant is just another testimony to his greatness.

  The battle for “Greatest of All Time” continues to rage in the minds of a new generation of basketball fanatics. While LeBron’s game is constantly compared to Jordan’s, his work off the court has inspired millions. By refusing to “shut up and dribble,” he uses his platform to speak up for those less fortunate. From building a school for underprivileged youth to chasing down Iguodala is a game seven, LeBron’s greatness is something everyone can look up too.