long time guy wrote:
leashyourkids wrote:
You just sound ridiculous when you say things like "nowhere near." You're basing it off completely cherry-picked stats like "scoring per 100 possessions." Well, no shit... Jordan took way more shots. Give us the stats on efficiency.
LeBron has dragged teams to the Finals with different casts of characters. It seems like you invent a different reason to not acknowledge this every year.
And I won't say he's better at this point. But I will continue to laugh at people who say there's no comparison or that Jordan was "clearly more dominant." All you have to do is watch LeBron play to see that no one in NBA history is "clearly better."
Lebron has closed the gap but what makes it difficult in terms of assessment is the level of competition that he is currently competing against. He isn't nor has ever had to dominate an all time great player and the closest that he came to it was last year during the finals and arguably he was outplayed by Durant.
The guy he happens to be "dominating" is a rookie drafted late first round. How hard is that?
When Jordan was good he had to matchup with guys like
1. Drexler
2. Dumars
3. Miller
4. Harper
5. Richmond
This was just at his position. It was easier to gauge his greatness because he had to outplay other great players. Lebron doesn't have to do that. Who was he matched up against in the first series? Can anyone remember?
The level of separation that he is establishing is relative to the guys he happens to be playing against. That has to be factored into the discussion.
You want to talk teammates? look at those shitty ass Bulls teams pre Pippen.
Guys like Sam Vincent, Gene Banks, Dave Corzine. All in the starting lineup.
Lebron is playing with an All Star in Love and also plays on a team with the highest payroll in the league. Before the season started a number of pundits lauded the Cavs for having a first and second unit that was capable of making the playoffs. Now the supporting cast isn't shit because they just have to protect and further enrich the legacy of Lebron.
Basketball is not about 1 on 1 matchups like yoh make it. They often don't guard each other, and even if they do it's a team effort - especially today.
That said, even if we went by your very flawed method, you're cherry-picking the matchups. He rarely played Richmond or Drexler, and Reggie Miller was a terrible defender. Joe Dumars was there on teams that beat Jordan with the exception of one.
A more approriate list in the playoffs would be Craig Ehlo, John Starks, Nick Anderson, and Bryon Russell. In perhaps his greatest Finals appearance, his matchup was a broken down Dan Majerle.
You are quite frankly wrong on this one.
Tried to tell you that he took it personal as many of them often do. Also told you how Drexler was regarded as one of the two best players in the league at the time. Not just best 2 guard.