LeBron James: Is he right to claim the GOAT title for himself?

LeBron James recently proclaimed himself as the Greatest of All Time. Do you agree with his self-assesment?

I have to give LeBron James credit, the man knows how to self promote in Hollywood. I want everyone to know, for the record, that this is not a bad thing.

Everyone should be doing the same thing if they had business ventures in the entertainment capital of the world being Los Angeles, California.

I was befuddled when his dunk got blocked by Jarrett Allen of the Brooklyn Nets. That one play alone basically shut down social media. ESPN had a complete breakdown of the play and ran it over and over again.

Then, in episode 3 of his HBO show, “The Shop” he makes one comment about NFL owners that made news and blew up on Twitter.

LeBron James shocks the HBO airwaves with episode 3 of “The Shop!”

LeBron James had his third installment of his show on HBO called "The Shop" . This episode sent shockwaves over what he called the NFL owners!

That was nothing compared to the firestorm that was started off of this statement.

"“That one right there made me the greatest player of all time,” James said on ESPN’s “More Than An Athlete”series about a career that is now in its 16th season. “That’s what I felt. I was super, super ecstatic to win one for Cleveland because of the 52-year drought. Like, I was ecstatic. That day, the first wave of emotion was, everyone saw me crying, that was all for 52 years of everything sports that have gone on in Cleveland. And after I stopped, I was like ‘That one right there made you the greatest player of all time.’ “Everybody was talking about how they [the Warriors] were the greatest team of all time. Like, they were the greatest team ever assembled, and for us to come back, the way we came back in that fashion, I was like ‘You did something special.’ That was, like, one of the only times in my career I felt like ‘Oh s—, you did something special.’ I haven’t really had time to really sit back and think, but that, that was a moment.”"

https://twitter.com/uninterrupted/status/1079526745730998272

This was a powerful take by LeBron James considering the context of this very broad subject. There is no disputing that James is the best player of this era. Nobody has accomplished more with the hype and scrutiny that this guy has before he laced up his sneakers in 2003. Even playing at his 16th year, LeBron James is easily considered a top 5 talent in the NBA.

But his opinionated statement did not go without backlash. This piece will break down the comment along with statements from other people from the media to former players…

Let’s get into who LeBron James is being compared to…

The “Ghost” that LeBron James is chasing…

What is LeBron James’ motivation?

"“My motivation,” James says, “is this ghost I’m chasing. The ghost played in Chicago.”"

Well, LeBron James is not alone in his chase for greatness. Before LeBron James had a chance to get his run in 2003, it was no question who was the king of the hill.

We heard what LeBron James had to say about being the greatest of all time, let’s listen to what Michael Jordan had to say back in 2009…

We need to put this whole thing in to context. Michael Jordan is basically saying that it is impossible to figure out who the G.O.A.T. really is based on the fact there are so many eras in NBA history. Now think about how many great players that have been in this great league over the years. If you noticed, Jordan mentioned actual “LAKERS” players in his list that he gave homage to (Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West) that he has respect for by not receiving the title of being the best.

It is a foregone conclusion that LeBron James will pass Jordan on the NBA’s all time scoring list when he gets back from injury. But in the analytical age we play in today, younger fans that watch James not only on the court, but the 24/7/365 social media cycle will believe this to be true.

Sorry it is not.

Basketball is about more than scoring. Basketball is about leadership, competition and championships. Most importantly, it about respect of your peers.

Well some of his peers had a little bit of an issue with LeBron James and his self-proclamation…

Chris Webber, Isiah Thomas and Kevin McHale have words about the subject…

These three great players had a discussion on what was said by James on his show…

Here are some highlighted points starting with Chris Webber…

"“I’ve never heard one of the greatest’s say they were the greatest of all-time,” Webber said. “[James must realize] part of your greatness is not answering haters. You don’t have to respond to anybody. You’re one of the best. Stay humble.”"

Webber is one of the more “politically correct” analysts on NBA TV, to be honest. But even he had the awkward look of someone that knew that was not the move LeBron James should have made. There is a responsibility that LeBron James has not to participate in this type of behavior.

Is it wrong for LeBron James to believe this? No. He’d better have a insurmountable amount of belief in himself to perform at this level for 16 years. Confidence is the ingredient to survive on any basketball court, not just in the NBA. But this comment came off as arrogant.

Let’s break down Kevin McHale’s comments…

"“You don’t need to say that about yourself. Let other people say that for you,” McHale said. “It’s disrespectful to the great, great, great players that came before you. I didn’t like how [his comments] sounded.”"

Let’s just skip Jordan and take him out of the equation. Let’s just talk about the organization that LeBron plays for now…the Los Angeles Lakers.

He is not better than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA’s all time leading scorer with six NBA championships. He brought five to Los Angeles. He was considered one of the two best players in the “Showtime” era days  (We’ll get to the other player in a second!). The “Skyhook” was consider the most unstoppable offensive weapon in all sports at the time. I hear all the time about the usage rate of LeBron James at 34. The “Captain” was killing people at 38.

Oh that other player I was talking about…

LeBron James is not better than Magic Johnson.

Magic Johnson has five titles right along with Kareem. LeBron James has never saved the NBA! Before this man and a certain player in Boston named Larry Bird came along, the NBA was on life support. Before this man came into the NBA, the NBA Finals was on tape delay!

For the people that do not understand, there was no NBA League Pass. There was no TNT, ESPN or Fox Sports airing NBA basketball. The games were played after the 11:00 news! It is widely known that Magic Johnson and his rivalry with Larry Bird saved the NBA and set the course for the excitement fans enjoy today. Magic Johnson is the orchestrator to a playing style that LeBron’s team is still trying to figure out now!

How about Kobe Bryant?

I mean he played 20 years and has two jerseys retired. He has a mentality that is now considered sports psychology. Oh by the way…Kobe won 5 rings too!

Honorable mentions…

Eligin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West.

As for Isiah Thomas…

He has gone on record saying that LeBron James is a better player than Michael Jordan on numerous occasions. If you can look up Scottie Pippen’s rebuttal to that claim, it is worth the time to look. But for Thomas to actually come out and critique LeBron James, that’s really saying something.

We have heard comments from LeBron James, Michael Jordan and former players. But the real question is why?

Does LeBron James have an agenda here? 

We have heard from the other players stating their opinions on what LeBron James said about his position being the greatest. Now let’s go to the other side of the spectrum.

Danny Ainge compared James’ position to wait for it…Donald Trump.

"“His career’s not over,” Ainge said on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher & Rich.” “I’d just like to — why he’s saying that, I don’t know. Maybe he thinks that that sells. Maybe he’s taking the Donald Trump approach and trying to sell himself. I don’t know.”"

Man I need a Celtics/Lakers NBA finals series now! But then he got diplomatic on his opinion on the G.O.A.T. discussion overall.

"“Obviously LeBron is in every conversation with who is the greatest player of all time,” Ainge said. “But time will tell. I don’t know if anyone knows who the greatest of all time is, because the years are so different.”"

For the record, Ainge did place LeBron James above Larry Bird on his all-time list.

But let’s go deeper into this analogy…

Let’s be perfectly clear here. LeBron James is no where near being like Donald Trump. This is not the narrative. It’s about the platforms that LeBron James has right now. It is clear that he has a growing media empire right now…

But is he using these platforms to pat himself on the back? I mentioned in a piece about his first episode of his HBO show, “The Shop” about editing and how things can be construed. But for the sake of debate, listen to what Chris Broussard and Rob Parker says about what LeBron James is trying to accomplish in their opinion…

Nobody in NBA history has the understanding of the media like LeBron James. He dominates social media and knows how to manipulate it for his benefit. Is this a bad thing? No. It’s a great thing. LeBron James is well on his way to being the first active NBA billionaire.

With these platforms his message can get out to his fans quite easier than when Jordan, Magic and players before this era were around. In the old days, the reputation was made grassroots style. Now with social media, everything is instantaneous!

Let’s go deeper into 2016 shall we?

Let’s put this in context. What is really being said here?

Nobody can take that title away from the Cleveland Cavaliers. History was made being down 3-1 in the Finals and finding a way to win defeating a team in the Golden State Warriors that won 73 games. That’s not the point here.

The point is, you are not going to find the LeBron James Cavaliers defeating the Warriors in the history books. You will find the Cleveland Cavaliers defeating the Warriors in the history books.

The point…this was a team effort with a lot of circumstances that had to align themselves for this to happen.

What about Kyrie Irving going nuclear in the last three games? Oh yeah, he hit the game-winner too.

The Draymond Green suspension? Just for calling LeBron the “B” word?

The Cavaliers were in trouble in the second half of game 7 seven before J.R. Smith (Look this was before the timeout thing!) knocked down eight points in a row to get the run started.

LeBron James is right, Cleveland was struggling before he showed up in 2003. But that 52-year drought was not because the Cavaliers did not have good teams. Mark Price, Brad Daugherty, Gerald Wilkins led a pretty good Cleveland team in the early 90’s. They just had one problem…

Michael Jordan.

James brought the city a championship. Jordan brought Chicago a dynasty. Seen the Bulls lately? Management is still eating off the success Jordan gave them in the 90’s. Check that, the entire NBA (that includes LeBron) is still eating off the success Jordan dished out in the 90’s.

LeBron James is a icon that is known worldwide. Jordan blazed the trail. That is the only way LeBron can compete.

Plus…that was three years ago.

Since then, the Warriors ran the Cavaliers out of the last two NBA finals in a combined nine games. LeBron James since left Cleveland to come to Los Angeles. The Warriors are still considered heavy favorites to win the title…again!

Does it really matter? Why can’t we just enjoy the ride…

For the record, neither player is at the top of my list of great players. Mine is Bill Russell. Russell was the greatest winner in ALL sports. Plus he has the respect of every NBA player you can think of.

LeBron James went down this road before with the Mount Rushmore thing. This is why they call the man, Mr. Russell…

"“Hey, thank you for leaving me off your Mount Rushmore. I’m glad you did. Basketball is a team game, it’s not for individual honors. I won back-to-back state championships in high school, back-to-back NCAA championships in college. I won an NBA championship my first year in the league, an NBA championship in my last year, and nine in between. That, Mr. James, is etched in stone.”"

I’ll add the Olympic Gold Medal in there somewhere too.

But here’s the spoiler alert…

The great players in the NBA pantheon really don’t care. They know this news buzz is nothing but a marketing ploy for the media and the NBA. This debate is for the fans and we should just enjoy the fun of watching the games and great athletes.

Is LeBron James a great player. Sure. I enjoy watching him play and he has done things that many people, forget NBA players have accomplished. But I hope this episode does not set him up for failure going forward.

He’s now a Laker at the back end of his career. With this statement of being the self proclaimed G.O.A.T. he had be ready to back it up.

Every night going forward.