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Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is adding his voice to the long-running debate over where LeBron James ranks among the greatest players in NBA history.
“Some people might say he’s No. 2, but other people like me, I say he’s No. 1 and he’s still going to move forward,” Antetokounmpo told The Athletic’s Joe Walden.
Walden noted that Michael Jordan is usually “the most popular person in barbershop arguments,” but James has been making steady gains over the years. The 2015-16 season was when the tenor of the discussion changed.
James ended Cleveland’s lengthy championship drought and accomplished the goals the Cleveland Cavaliers set when they first selected him in the 2003 draft. He averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game and overcame a 3-1 deficit in the series against the 73-win Golden State Warriors.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne reports that Jordan last dance The timing, coming on the heels of the Cavaliers’ championship, may not be entirely coincidental, although the project had been in the works for a long time before that.
Jordan seemed to sense that LeBron was starting to really challenge his supremacy and wanted to set the record straight by reminding everyone of what he was doing with the Chicago Bulls.
Granted, James responded in kind, winning his fourth championship and four Finals MVPs with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020 before becoming the NBA’s all-time scoring leader in February.
Antetokounmpo’s views are in the minority, but more and more people are embracing the idea. As fewer NBA fans actually watch Jordan play, this trend is bound to increase.
Maybe it’s time for MJ to release a director’s cut last dance.