© Paolo Dala
Goat Debates
...But this final chapter James is putting together, this curtain call for the ages that is ravaging the record books, is enough to convince me that the age-old GOAT debate is over. Not because James is the winner, though, but because their stories have become so different that the endless comparisons are becoming more pointless with every passing year.
Jordan’s two retirements - the first coming after his father, James, was killed in July 1993, and the second after he won his sixth title in 1998 - meant that he missed four seasons in all during the 19-year span of his career. We can play the what-if game from here until eternity, but it won’t change the fact that Jordan’s body of work is vastly different from James’ when it comes to staying power and longevity.
James, meanwhile, has somehow managed to live up to all of that “Chosen One” hype while surviving the increased scrutiny that came with the internet age along the way - for two straight decades. He took a far different path than Jordan, becoming one of just four players to win titles with three different franchises in the Cavs, Heat and Lakers (and none of the others - John Salley, Robert Horry and Danny Green - were leading men, so to speak).
What’s more, the GOAT construct is tired and flawed in ways that do a disservice to them both. Contrary to popular belief, it’s OK to appreciate Picasso and Da Vinci at the same time and just leave it at that. There are enough flowers to go around.
Alas, even with these differences that should silence this discussion, the debate that typically inspires two distinctly different camps will rage on. On one side, there are the people who focus purely on championships when comparing these two. Jordan’s six eclipses James’ four, and he has the best playoff scoring average of all time (33.45 points per game; James is sixth at 28.45), so that’s that.
On the other side, there are those who look at the totality of James’ résumé and finally relent to the truth he is making it so impossible to ignore. No one - not Air Jordan, Kareem, Wilt, Russell, Kobe or anyone else - has ever played the game at this level for this long. Just take a quick glance at this season as the latest proof...
Sam Amick As LeBron James Hits 40,000-point Threshold, the Age-old GOAT Debate has Shifted The Athletic
