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If you think youāre tired of the LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan, GOAT argument, imagine being a retired NBA player. As your immediate relevancy fades, all you have is the presumed expertise of your playing experience to apply to the biggest questions of the day. So when youāre hocking a new flavor of beef jerky or making a guest appearance on some podcast, youāre going to get the question: Who do you think is the GOAT, Michael Jordan or LeBron James?
(For now, letās ignore the fact that the question is always presented as a binary choice, excluding players like Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Jordan Crawford.)
Every time the question is answered itās met by a flurry of aggregation, basketball media (FanSided included) rushing to add one more opinion to the historical record. It can be exhausting but it also makes for an archive of opinions that can actually be collated. Itās been done before but nearly every day thereās a new addition so itās always worth updating.
Below, I have collected every quote I could find from a retired or active NBA player about their Jordan, LeBron preference. Some are clear, some are vague. Some are old, some are fresh. But I did my best to collect them all, translate the sportspeak platitudes and come up with a tally of who their peers actually favor.
Which NBA stars, past and present, prefer Michael Jordan and which prefer LeBron James?
Gary Payton:Ā āIf you ask me whoās a better all-around basketball player? LeBron James by far ⦠Two totally different basketball players. Jordan was a guy that he was going to make big shots. Heās going to take the ball every time and shoot it every time he has to. I think LeBron is an all-around basketball player.ā
Shaq:Ā āI think LeBron is looking to tie Kobe and tie Jordan with championships. If he tied Mike, I think people will probably lean a little bit more towards LeBron being the best player in the world.ā
Charles Barkley:Ā āIn my opinion, Michael the GOAT. And LeBron, to me, Iāve always said heās closer to Magic Johnson than he is to Michael.ā
Dwyane Wade:Ā āI come from a Jordan era. I am biased and Iām going to be biased until the day I pass away. Michael Jordan will be my GOAT. Iām not taking anything away from LeBron. LeBron is amazing. But Michael Jordan is my GOAT.ā
Allen Iverson:Ā āAs much as I love Michael Jordan, like, dawg, man, LeBron James is the one, dawg. He the one, man. That mother f*****r is the one, man.ā
Kevin Garnett:Ā āAre yāall serious? Are you serious? Are yāall serious? Michael Jordan was probably the most ā out of professional sports ā he was here (holds hand up high) while everybody else was here (holds hand way lower). Michael Jordan was revered as a machine. He was selfish. He didnāt trust anybody else, and he still won. You said he couldnāt do it, and he came out he won. And you was like you know what, Iām rolling with this kid here. You saw how hard he wanted it. You saw how hard he was going. And this was with Magic and Bird still in the league!!!!
Paul Pierce:Ā āItās not easy to make an NBA Finals, and for him to be able to do it 10 times, heās moving up there in my rankings. Iām gonna keep it real. IfĀ LeBron James ⦠wins a title this year, Iāll put him right behind Michael Jordan.ā
Chauncey Billups:Ā āI love that he [LeBron] has done that [proclaiming himself as the best ever]. He is on Mount Rushmore but I canāt put him at the top. There is no way I can put him at the top [ā¦] Maybe if he had hit that shot that Kyrie [Irving] hit, I could see him saying that [ā¦] but I canāt go there, Iām sorry.ā
Bill Laimbeer:Ā āIām very vocal. I think LeBron is the best player thatās every played the game. Heās 6-foot-8, 285 pounds, runs like the wind and jumps out of the gym, and more importantly, when he came in the league, from day one, he knew how to involve his teammates to win. And thatās something that Jordan had to learn for a long time.ā
Chris Webber:Ā āMagic was, to me, one of the greatest players that you wanted to play with because of his skillset, along with [Steve] Nash, because they got you involved. Jordan came in and the whole narrative changed that you have to be this killer, you have to do it yourselfāsix-time Defensive Player of the Year, you have to check everyone.Ā When LeBron came in passingā¦people questioned his heart and soul. What I love about LeBron is that he didnāt change his personality, and if kids emulate him theyāll have to be a team player. Period. So I put him as probablyāI donāt like saying this over Magicābut the greatest team player of all time. By far.ā
Tracy McGrady:Ā āI think if you want to start a team, Iām going to go with LeBron because of him being able to take lesser talent and elevate those guys⦠Because of his pass-first mentality, being able to elevate his team in terms of their style of play. Mike is going out there trying to get 30 and 40 points. Heās not looking to make his team better.ā
Magic Johnson: āLeBron James is well on his way. If he wins one more [championship], Michael and him are going to be right there together. If he gets that next [championship], itās going to be hard not to say heās right there with MJ. I said theĀ next one, which will be five [for LeBron], because with six [for Jordan] and four [for James], itās hard to say heās overtaken Michael at four championships. I think once he wins [a fifth title] and repeats ā the key word isĀ repeat āĀ thatās a good argument right there.ā
Kevin Durant:Ā āThatās crazyā¦ā [responding to a random fan calling LeBron the GOAT)
Zion Williamson:Ā āMe personally, Iād go with Jordan⦠thatās my opinion. Jordanās my G.O.A.T., thatās what my parents taught me.ā
The 2018 Rookie Class:Ā Jaren Jackson Jr., Wendell Carter Jr.,Ā Kevin Knox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Deandre Ayton picked LeBron (or appear to, given the video editing). Aaron Holiday, Luka Doncic, Grayson Allen, and Marvin Bagley picked Jordan. Jerome Robinson wouldnāt choose.
Damian Lillard: āI donāt think ppl will ever be able to admit someone is better than Jordan even if they are lolā¦ā
J.J. Redick: He called LeBron the āgreatest player to ever play.ā
Oscar Robertson:Ā āIs Barkley trying to say that he thinks LeBron is not as good as Michael Jordan? Come on.Ā LeBronās in a class by himself.ā
Isiah Thomas:Ā āFor me, I look at the total body of work, what LeBron James is as a basketball player, and if I had to pick one over the other, right now, Iām picking LeBron James over Michael Jordan. Because Jordan would beat you scoring, but this guy beats you at everything.ā
Penny Hardaway:Ā āHonestly, I hate to compare these guys. But right now, to me, Michael is the GOAT and LeBron is not too far behind.ā
Jalen Rose:Ā āI believe Michael Jordan is the GOAT over LeBron James. Here are five categories I want everybody to always pay attention to: MVP, Finals MVP, scoring title, Defensive Player of the Year, and not only did your team win the championship, you won Finals MVP.ā
Gilbert Arenas:Ā āThe reason I feel LeBron is the GOAT is because during pressure times he still makes the actual right decision versus what us fans and the public wants him to do. Thatās what separates him from Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. If you give Jordan and Kobe those Cavs teams, they would not have made it to the playoffs, they would not have made it to the championship because Jordan would have averaged 60 and said the āhell with itā.ā
Ray Allen:Ā In my opinion, M.J. is the GOAT. LeBron is a product of M.J., so a lot of whatās in LeBron ā in his DNA ā comes from Michael. For anybody that says that LeBron is the GOAT, theyāre growing up in todayās era, and they believe what they believe based on how it feels and what he means to them, and thatās OK. But the way M.J. affected the game, man, he had a stranglehold on the league and he struck fear in everyone because he was an unstoppable player.
Jerry Stackhouse:Ā āI donāt think it would be fair to give a comparison on them. I played with LeBron at the prime of his career and I played with Michael in the last year of his career. I just think both are unbelievable players. Theyāre probably one and two in the history of the game. Thatās where Iāll leave it.ā
Shawn Kemp:Ā āIāmma say Michael Jordan. I think LeBron James has done great, but only thing Michael Jordan ever did was win. Thereās players as myself who havenāt won a championshipĀ that were very good. Thereās guys who Iāve seen win championships, theyāre good players, but they had a good team also around them. And I look at Michael Jordan, he played with the Bulls, and he had Scottie Pippen. But without Michael being there, the Bulls wasnāt gonna win the championship. It came from Michael Jordan.ā
Hakeem Olajuwon:Ā āWhen people start comparing him with Jordan, then thatās not a fair comparison. Jordan was a far more superior player in a very tough league, and he was very creative. Thatās not taking away anything from LeBron because he is a great player, but it is not a fair comparison because Jordan is a far superior player.ā
Collin Sexton:Ā There are three of them, you canāt really say one is the GOAT because of the different time eras. Gotta say Kobe, LeBron, MJ. Donāt think thereās just one person, donāt know how LeBron wouldāve played in MJās era or Kobe in MJās era. Theyāre the GOATs in their eras.
Metta World Peace: ā@KingJamesĀ is the goat. Never thought I would say that over my brother 24 and my favorite mj. I was an Allstar in mj Jersey 23. I changed my number for one season to honor a legend. But the King is the greatest athlete to ever touch this galaxy. Better than the aliens tooā
Draymond Green:Ā āI think LeBron yields a lot of power. As he should, I think arguably the greatest player of all time. If you look at his resume, itās flawless. The things that heās been able to do on the court, obviously spectacular. But itās more important, the things that heās been able to accomplish off the court. and thatās where he gets the utmost respect from me.ā
Cedric Maxwell:Ā āLeBron James is the GOAT now. Heās the GOAT because, not only on the basketball side, but social issues: Heās been involved in every social issue that we look at.ā
FINAL COUNT:
Michael Jordan (18): Shaq, Charles Barkley, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Chauncey Billups, Magic Johnson, Kevin Durant, Zion Williamson, Luka Doncic, Aaron Holiday, Grayson Allen, Marvin Bagley, Penny Hardaway, Jalen Rose, Ray Allen, Shawn Kemp, Hakeem Olajuwon.
LeBron James (15): Gary Payton, Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Jaren Jackson Jr., Wendell Carter Jr., Kevin Knox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Deandre Ayton, Oscar Robertson, Isiah Thomas, Bill Laimbeer, J.J. Redick, Cedric Maxwell, Draymond Green, Metta World Peace.
Too diplomatic to choose (5): Chris Webber, Jerome Robinson, Damian Lillard, Jerry Stackhouse, Collin Sexton.
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