Home » The NBA GOAT Debate

The Greatest of All Time (GOAT) Debate has captured the attention of the basketball community for a long time. In every era of basketball, a few players have had the fortune of being the subject of it. But modern basketball has 2 GOAT candidates, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James. Let’s compare the two players in 5 different categories.

Michael Jordan and LeBron James are two of the most prolific basketball players ever, each racking multiple accomplishments over their careers. The two are considered the greatest of all time, and I want to look at their  Accomplishments, Statistics, Longevity, Winning, and the Eye Test to determine the better and more complete player. Here are their profiles:

Overview 

Name Michael Jordan LeBron James
Position Shooting Guard Small Forward
Height 6’6″ 6’9″
Weight 198 lbs 250 lbs
Era 1990s 2010s
 
Jordan was an athletic shooting guard from the 1990s. LeBron James is a physically imposing small forward who is still playing today. Skill plays a big role and it’s hard to argue against LeBron being the more skilled player. He’s a better passer, a better rim finisher, and a better overall shooter than Jordan, while arguably being a better and more versatile defender than Jordan. LeBron has had similar levels of success to Jordan while facing tougher competition than him. It’s really tough because you have the most skilled and the best all-around player ever compared against a man whose résumé is the closest thing to perfect. So let’s get started.

 Accolades

Let’s start with player accomplishments. I have excluded championship wins, because they are better placed in the Winning category. Championships are a sign of team effort rather than individual skill. Hence, I’ve included Finals MVP instead.
 
Accomplishment Michael Jordan LeBron James
League MVPs 5 4
Finals MVPs 6 4
Scoring Titles 10 1
NBA All Defense Selections 9 6
All NBA Selections 11 17
All-Star Selections 14 17
Rookie of the Year 1 1
Defensive Player of the Year 1 0
Jordan has more League MVPs, Finals MVPs, and 9 more scoring titles, and more All NBA Defensive selections. LeBron, on the other hand, has more All NBA selections and more All-Star Game Selections, but this is largely due to him playing more seasons in the NBA. In fact, if you account for injuries, and other complications, Jordan really played 13 seasons, and LeBron played 17 seasons. The shorter timespan MJ played in further magnifies the importance of his accomplishments. So now that I’ve established that Jordan is more accomplished than LeBron, let’s find out who is the statistically better player.

Statistics

I will be using career stats as Michael Jordan is no longer actively playing.

 
Stat Michael Jordan LeBron James
Games Played 1072 1310
Points Per Game 30.1 27.0
Rebounds 6.2 7.4
Assists 5.3 7.4
FG% 49.7 50.4
FG3% 32.7 34.5
FT% 83.5 73.3

LeBron is a better shooter than Jordan, a better playmaker and a better rebounder. He’s far more efficient than Jordan while having played more games and more seasons. LeBron is on track to be the league’s all-time leading scorer by the end of this season, but Jordan would’ve easily been the leading scorer if he didn’t retire twice in the 90s. Hypotheticals aren’t important though, so here are more facts. Jordan is a better winner, he’s a bigger legend, and he is one of the most accomplished players ever! We’ll get to that later, though.

Longevity

LeBron has maintained a high level of excellence for 18 years, and has remained extremely durable, missing significant time to injury in 2019, 2020, and 2021. However, Michael Jordan has played 80+ games in a season a remarkable 11 times, and all 82 games 9 of those 11 times. LeBron has played 80+ games just thrice, and all 82 games just one of those 3 times. While both players are durable and have great longevity, LeBron wins this category because he played 238 more games, 4 more seasons than Jordan and is still playing while maintaining a high level of play. So, this one goes to LeBron.

Winning

Jordan has won 6 championships with a 6-0 Finals record, meaning he’s won in all his NBA Finals appearances. LeBron has a 4-6 record in the Finals, meaning he’s lost more Finals than he’s won! Add the fact that Jordan faced teams that averaged 61 regular season wins compared to LeBron, whose finals opponents averaged 60 wins per season. Jordan faced tougher competition in the finals, and came out victorious every time. This is a huge statement to Jordan as a winner, because he not only faced tougher opponents, but he also beat them every time. Jordan wins this category as well.

The Eye Test

Let’s move on to the Eye Test. The Eye Test is when you just watch a player play, and if he is the best player on the court in every game he plays, then he is the greatest. When MJ played, you undoubtedly would note that he was the best all around player, on the court! With LeBron, however, we can look at the Golden State Warriors. Steph Curry and KD in particular. If you saw them play against LeBron, they would be as good, if not better than him, especially Kevin Durant! Jordan faced tough competition in the 90s, but still outshined his peers. He’s won this category, too.

Conclusion

After all this analysis, it’s safe to say that this debate isn’t much of a debate at all. Michael Jordan is more decorated, is a better winner, and is statistically superior. The only category in which LeBron wins is longevity. Jordan won a total of 4 out 5 categories. LeBron is a great player in his own right, it’s just that he’s not number one, Jordan is.

Who is your GOAT? Let me know in the comments below. If you have suggestions for any other player comparisons, leave a comment. Thanks for reading!

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