Michael Jordan will celebrate his 50th birthday tomorrow. Combine that with the upcoming NBA All-Star weekend in Houston and the tear that Lebron James is on and the media world starts the comparison war.
Will Lebron James be better than Michael Jordan? Could Michael Jordan taken Lebron's Cavalier team to the NBA finals?
I have often been criticized for my personal feelings about the "Chosen One". To be totally fair, I have been harsh towards King James' on the court talent not adding up to more than league MVPs and endorsements. I basked in his defeat in the finals against the Dallas Mavericks, and watching Dirk Nowitzki outplay him. I ridiculed his "taking my talents to South Beach" press conference in a Miami sports bar, of all places, while watching the event live.
Yet, I have never turned down the opportunity to interview him after a game. He has always been respectful in answering my questions no matter how basic they may have been. He even got me on ESPN Sportscenter during last years finals answering my question. Thanks Lebron.
With all that said, taking any personal feeling I have about Lebron out of the equation, he is not Michael Jordan because nobody is. We often get caught up in the moment and forget about the past. The pure basketball domination that James is showing this season is remarkable. But is not Jordan.
Being compared to Jordan is highest any basketball player at any level could receive for his or her individual talents on the court. No doubt, Lebron is putting together a hall-of-fame resume that could be listed with some of the greats.
Let's not forget about how we felt about Jordan during his prime. There was no comparisons made of Jordan to anyone, because unanimously we all knew what we were seeing was the best.
Throughout NBA history their have been "All-time Greats". Names like Russell, Chamberlain, Johnson, Robertson, Cousy, Bird, O'Neal and more than I can name have all been at one time heralded as the best we have ever seen. Lebron James will join that list also, but he is not Michael Jordan.
Lebron James took to twitter ltoday to say, "I'm not MJ, I'm LJ"
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