One of the biggest questions in NBA history has been the question of who is the greatest of all-time? LeBron James or Michael Jordan? This question has been thrown around quite a lot, especially in recent years, and there have been many NBA greats, sports analysts, and NBA fans sharing their own opinions. But one question that has also been asked a lot -- though not as frequently -- is who's better between Kobe and LeBron? A lot of people think this question is more valid than comparing King James to His Airness.
This very question was posed to Michael Jordan at one of his recent basketball camps.
Michael Jordan never fails to give his young audience answers to the questions they ask him, and that’s exactly what he did.
Jordan answers the ‘Kobe or LeBron’ question
Michael Jordan was asked to choose between Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James. MJ made sure to confirm that the question was the comparison between the two stars on an all-time scale rather than right now. And Jordan gave a response:
"Would I rank LeBron over Kobe in terms of best of all-time? No. There's something about five that beats three. Now he may be better than that, but Kobe won five championships. LeBron won three. Although he’s been to seven [straight] finals.”
This response is very similar to the answer Michael gave to this question in 2012, when he said Kobe is better than LeBron James because “five beats one." It seems that Jordan completely ignores other accolades and likes to focus on who has more rings when it comes to reaching a decision.
Is Jordan afraid of James?
Every year, LeBron James breaks more and more records and accomplishes more and more feats -- often records and feats that were previously held by Michael Jordan himself. It seems obvious to many that Jordan is secretly afraid that King James could one day be regarded as the "greatest player of all-time." Jordan prefers to keep the conversation on the topic of rings, and seems determined to stick to the notion that the player that has more championship trophies is the better one -- and that could be a way to defend his own legacy.
LeBron may not reach the level of owning 6 NBA championship rings, something that MJ has attained. That said, however -- and following that logic -- does Robert Horry’s seven championships make him a better player than Michael Jordan? After all, 7 rings beats 6 rings, doesn't it?
