sinicalypse wrote:
but obviously, like jorr said, the greatest player in NBA history is m-jeff.
That's not really what I said. I have no problem with those who claim Michael was the "greatest of all-time". He's obviously a legitimate candidate. My beef is with those that will brook no disagreement and act as if anyone who believe otherwise is a moron. Talking to basketball fans of the Jordan generation can be as frustrating as talking with Baby Boomers about music because so many of them believe the Beatles are the greatest that ever were and the greatest that ever will be and no argument can be considered.
FavreFan wrote:
That's probably because it was debatable before 1998.
And it is still debatable to this day and likely always will be.
Boilermaker Rick wrote:
Ever heard of a guy named Babe Ruth?
I'm talking about basketball. Other sports have had guys who were so dominant over their peers as to erase all question, i.e. Ruth, Gretzky, Nicklaus, Gable. There is no one in basketball like that. Certainly not Michael Jordan. In fact, the closest thing to it is likely Wilt Chamberlain.
Hatchetman wrote:
faster than derrick rose
more powerful than wilt chamberlain
better passer than magic
better shooter than bird
most dominant physical specimen the earth has ever seen...well since T-Rex got killed by the asteroids.
Even assuming that were all true, LeBron is clearly lacking something that all the great players of the post-center era have shared- the ability and willingness to be the man making the decisions with the games on the line. Note I said "games" plural. Sure, LeBron sometimes takes over a game and puts his team on his back. He just doesn't do it consistently. Guys like Jordan, Kobe, Isiah, and Magic weren't looking to someone like Dwyane Wade to make the decisions with the games on the line, let alone someone like Mario Chalmers. They did it every game. For a long. long time. There are all kinds of guys who take over games here and there. Jeremy Lin has done it on several occasions and he's a laughing stock on B&b. But on those occasion when LeBron does it, danny b. wants to throw him a parade.
And I don't mean simply passing the ball. Magic often passed the ball. But he passed it with a purpose, with a result in mind. He wasn't passing it so someone else could make the fourth quarter decisions. There's the famous huddle in the fourth quarter of Game 5 in the '91 Finals where Phil asked, "Who's open out there?" Nobody answered and he asked again. And finally Michael said, "Pax is wide open." And Phil just said, "Okay then." Michael got Paxson the ball and he scored ten points in the last seven or eight minutes. Championship. But ultimately Michael made the decision. And it was his decision to make. Phil didn't say, "Hey, Pax is open. Pass him the ball!" He guided Jordan. That's why he was a great coach.
And that's why I don't hold the 1.8 seconds against Scottie. Yeah, I'll bust OKC's balls about his favorite player, but Scottie had a point. He had grown up in a culture where the guy who was "The Man" made those decisions. Now, after being a loyal soldier and playing his role, he was finally "The Man". And Phil was going to give the ball to Toni Kukoc? I think Phil knew afterward that he was wrong. And Scottie wanted to be a guy who was in the conversation of the greatest of all-time. He was short of that, but he wasn't afraid of it or unwilling to attempt it. Unlike LeBron James who often seems to be.
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