Monday 27 February 2012

Why LeBron Is Better Than MJ

"Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game, but I may go as far as to say LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game." That was a quote by Michael Jordan's basketball sidekick and former teammate Scottie Pippen. When Pippen said this many people were outraged, and strongly disagreed. I thought Pippen was crazy at first, but as compared the two players I started to see where he's coming from. I believe that Michael's ability in crunch time and competitiveness get's brings him above LeBron, but the comparison is close. Jordan's a better shooter and winner (by far), while LeBron's a better passer, rebounder and defender. If LeBron can figure out his clutch problems, which he will throughout his career, he will become the best ever.


Scoring: 
Lebron: Career stats: 27.7 ppg -- .482 FG% -- .331 3P% 
Early in LeBron's career with the Cavs he had no help on the offensive end. He was relied on almost every time down the floor which resulted in him taking some bad shots. Even with the lack of help he managed to shoot .474 FG% with the Caveliers in his seven years there. He has improved his FG % every year but one throughout his career, including shooting over 50% in the last three seasons. This year James is on pace to have a better FG% then Jordan ever had in his career, and a 3 point percentage Jordan only did better then once in his career. 
Jordan: Career stats: 30.1 ppg -- .497 FG% -- .327 3P%
Michael Jordan was a natural scorer. He averaged over 30 points eight times during his career while LeBron has done that just twice. Jordan was a whole step above his competition during his career, getting ten regular season scoring titles. 
Analysis: Jordan has the edge because of the amount of points he averaged, but if LeBron can continue to shoot well over 50% for the rest of his career he will surpass Jordan in this comparison.
Score: 10-9 Jordan

Passing:
LeBron: Career stats: 7.0 Apg -- 3.34 Turnovers per game
LeBron is an exceptional passer. He always gets his teammates involved, and uses his intimidation over defenders to bring double teams and then send the ball out for the open bucket. He makes his teammates better (i.e Mo Williams, Anthony Parker), and is one of the few stars ever to honestly be "team first" when it comes to scoring. If he feels someone else has the hot hand he'll feed them instead of demanding he take the shot. LeBron averaged 8.6 Apg (assists per game) in his last season with the Cavs which is absolutely amazing, because he did that with a team that without him lost 26 games in a row the next season. The turnovers often come because he's trying to set up his teammates a little too much.
Jordan: Career stats: 5.3 Apg -- 2.73 Turnovers PG
Micheal Jordan wasn't a bad passer, but he wasn't a great one either. 5.3 assists per game would be an impressive amount an for the average small forward, but not for a guy like Jordan. MJ played almost every minute of every game he played in and had the ball in his hands for most of the time during the games. When you always have the ball and have a guy like Scottie Pippen on your team you should average more then 5.3 Apg. 
Analysis: LeBron is a much better passer then Jordan. Although he now has wade to pass to, Jordan had Pippen, so it evens out. LeBron gets his teamates involved more, and is better at making his teammates look good then Jordan is. Jordan's 2.73 turnovers per game compared to LeBron's 3.34 is impressive, but that is largely due to how Jordan didn't pass as much as LeBron.
Score: 10-7 LeBron
Defense: 
LeBron: Career stats/achievements: 1.7 Steals per game -- 0.8 Blocks per game -- 3 All NBA Defense Team --
Defensively just looking at the stats above LeBron's defense does not seem too impressive. But when you think about that LeBron either has to play defense as an undersized power forward, or is defending the opponents best player, it seems he's doing a bit of a better job. LeBron's steals and blocks go up come playoff time, as he's really shut down opponents star players in recent playoff series'.
Jordan: Career stats/achievements: 2.35 steals per game -- 0.8 Blocks per game -- 9 All NBA Defense Team -- 1 Defensive Player of the Year --
Michael Jordan made a huge impact on the game with his scoring, but also with his defense. He had a knack for getting steals. He did an unbelievable job of picking the pockets of the players he was guarding, and the guys he was guarding were often the games best. Jordan often turned defense into offence with those steals, which was why he had the ability to bring his team back in any game.
Analysis: Both these players are world class defenders, and they were both experts at certain aspects of defending. Jordan was the master at forcing turnovers and turning offence into defence. LeBron was the best at just plain stopping his man. He didn't force as many turnovers as Jordan but he did play as good defence, shown by his higher Defensive Rating then Jordan.
Score: 10-9 Jordan
Rebounding:
LeBron: Career stats: 7.1 Rebounds per game
When LeBron entered the NBA it was thought that rebounding would be a large problem with him, but that certainly has not been the case. LeBron has improved his rebounds per game every year since he came to the NBA. The lack of a real center on the Heat has forced LeBron to take on more of a rebounding role, which he has embraced. LeBron is averaging 8.1 rebounds per game this year, which is very impressive due to the fact that he's a small forward. 
Jordan: Career stats: 6.2 Rebounds per game
Unlike LeBron Michael Jordans Rebounds per game went down every season since his rookie season. Whether it was lack of rebounding effort or not having the energy to rebound, Jordan never came close to the 8 rebound per game pace he set as a rookie. As Jordans career he virtually stopped rebounding and starting using all his energy on defense and scoring instead of rebounding.
Analysis: LeBron may be slightly taller then Jordan but that's not why he's such a better rebounder. LeBron decided to put effort into rebounding for his team, while Jordan didn't nearly as much. It's as simple as that. 
Score: 10-6 LeBron
Winning:
LeBron: Career stats: .635 regular season win perc -- .608% playoff win perc.
LeBrons biggest problem has been the ability to win big games. Eight times LeBron has brought his team to the playoffs with high hopes, and eight times LeBron's team has lost in the playoffs. His teams have lost twice in the finals, including the 2010-11 finals when he played awfully in the fourth quarter of the games. When LeBron was faced with a big shot in the finals he deferred to his teammates instead of taking the big shot. Except for the finals in 2010-11 LeBron has actually been a clutch player throughout his career, but the fact that he played so badly on the biggest stage cannot be denied.
Jordan: Career stats: .659 regular season win perc -- .665 playoff win perc.
Michael Jordan is a winner, plain and simple. 6 NBA championships and 6 finals MVP awards should show just how good Michael Jordan was when it came to big games. Jordan hit 25 game winners throughout his career, including many in the playoffs that were the reason his team was able to have the success they had.
Analysis: . Michael Jordan has more titles, more games won, and has more finals MVP's than LeBron. Michael Jordan has had success in the end of big games, while LeBron hasn't. This doesn't meen LeBron isn't a winner though. He still has a very good .635% regular season win percentage and .608% playoff win percentage. He has been the reason his team has one so many games but he just needs to perform better on the big stage to become widely known as a winer.
Score: 10-4 Jordan
OVERALL Score:
43-42 Jordan-- If LeBron can improve his performance in the clutch and win some championships, which he very likely will, he will become the best ever.


63 comments:

  1. hahahaha...this has to be a joke right?

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  2. I can't believe I read the entire thing...

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  3. Hi.....lar....i.....ous

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  4. We are all dumber for reading this.

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  5. Do you know how to add?

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  6. Stat wise comparison, sure, but....Jordan has 6 rings
    Jordan won 6 NBA titles - 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998.

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  7. This kid's gotta point here people... he knows what he'd talking about

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  8. Jordan beats Lebron hands down. Jordan has more points, more steal, less turnovers, more wins and more mvps and he still has Lebrom was better. BS!

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  9. You credit Lebron for assuming he will shoot 50% for the rest of his career, completely disregard Jordan playing with very good point guards while Lebron pretty much is the point guard for his teams, you say multiple times that Jordan's main skills are scoring and defending and that Jordan's defensive numbers are much better yet you rate them even in defense b/c Lebron is "improving" and he is undersized, you somehow make a rebound differential between the two of less than 1 equal a 5 point separation in score, and you seem to not re-read your articles as it is full of punctuation and spelling errors. Quick tip, next time you wish to write an article where you suck off Lebron publicly, maybe save everyone some time and just keep it to yourself.

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  10. Lebron: 27.7 ppg -- .482 FG% -- .331 3P%
    Jordan: 30.1 ppg -- .497 FG% -- .327 3P%
    Score: 10-9 Jordan

    Lebron: 7.0 Apg -- 3.34 TO/G
    Jordan: 5.3 Apg -- 2.73 TO/G
    Score: 10-7 Lebron (this is 10-7 yet ppg/fg% is 10-9)

    Lebron: 1.7 steals -- 0.8 Blocks -- 3 All NBA Defense Team
    Jordan: 2.35 steals per game -- 0.8 Blocks per game -- 9 All NBA Defense Team -- 1 Defensive Player of the Year
    Score: 10-10 TIE??!?!??! Lebron will never win defensive player of the year.

    Lebron: 7.1 Rpg
    Jordan: 6.2 Rpg
    Score 10-5 Lebron (at this point I give up. 0.9 Rpg > 1.7 Apg apparently)

    The only score you have remotely correct is the 10-4 Winning factor at the end. 6 rings = 6 points I guess...

    You sir, are a buffoon when it comes to stats.
    Please go educate yourself: http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/miamiheat/post/_/id/8143/mj-vs-lebron-what-the-stats-say

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    Replies
    1. it isnt about stats, do you think that LeBron james is going to get a lot of steals gaurding people like derrick rose, and kevin durant. Also LeBron can be a top 5 defender at all five positions, Jordan couldnt do that

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  11. don't quit your day job..oh? this IS your job??

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  12. If you're as big as Karl Malone, you should average more than 7.1 rebounds..6.2 rebounds from a 6'6" SG is more impressive than 7.1 rebounds from a guy who's 6'9", 250lbs.

    stupid article from a sport-blogger wannabe

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  13. The reason why the MJ is better then LeBron is that ability to win counts for more then rebounding or passing. Jordan has 6 nba titles and 6 championship mvps, and LeBron has none of those. Also Jordans clutch and LeBrons not. I understand still playing but thus far the "winning" differential is much bigger then 10-4 in one section when analysing whose better between these two. Overall good post, and i was really impressed by the rest of your blog as well.

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  14. Wow he lives in Canada. He only knows hockey eh?

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    Replies
    1. yea nigga and he rides on a fucking polar bear. Get the fuck out of your moms basement and learn some shit

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  15. You are an absolute idiot. How much did LeBron pay you to write this? Your scores should be these, and I'll be extremely generous towards LeBron:
    Scoring: 10-8 for Jordan - MJ a much better scorer.
    Passing: 10-9 for James - 2 more assists and only 1/2 turnover per game.
    Defense: 10-6 for Jordan - MJ had to guard much better players than LeBron ever has.
    Rebounding: 10-10 Tie - LeBron is so much taller and bigger than MJ he should be getting many more rebounds (even though he is only getting one more per game).
    Winning: 10-1 for Jordan - 6 Championships to none. The only reason LeBron even gets one is because he wins a lot of games.
    Total: 49-35 Jordan

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  16. MJ has less assists but c'mon. Triangle offense? It's a ball movement offense and he didn't need to make the same kind of plays LeBron does for his teammates to get shots. Also, MJ is such a better shooter than LeBron. You see it at the end of close games. Jordan could shoot the lights out. LeBron is more of a feel shooter and athlete. Jordan worked hard to be a great basketball player.

    And wait, Jordan played in the league in a time when the defense was SO MUCH HARDER to contend with than now. LeBron can't be touched without the whistle going off, Jordan kicked ass back and won battles through his own physical strength. Your stats analysis is weak due to that point. WEAK!

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    1. oh and btw, the proof is in watching them. Jordan was the best ever and it's all on tape.

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    2. artitle aytorh is faggggggggggot

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  17. You're a retard.

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  18. I agree with the defense is harder before than today's NBA. A certain coach device a plan called "Jordan Rules". That is how a good player is.

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  19. That's was such a piece of sh**, that I bet your a$$ is jealous of your brain right now....

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  20. your biggest mistake was rating them equal on defense. jordan would completely shut dudes down on defense. he won defensice plyer of the year. how can lebron contend with that?? he tried covering little jet terry in the finals and couldnt even slow him down. you sir, are a disgrace for writing this peice of crap

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    1. the top 5 above is pure rubish. I would put any of the following way ahead of Kobe - MJ, Jabar, Wilt, Magic, Bird. I would take Hakeem before Kobe hands down also. Kobe won 2 rings as the best player on his team. The others he got as gifts from Shaq.

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  21. Lebron James definitely beats Michael Jordan on number haters and dislikes.
    Lebron's Haters: The world
    Michael's Haters: Lebron's and his fans

    Lebron gets MHP (Most Hated Player) and MDP (Most Disliked Player) titles. While Michael only gets the MVP title.

    2-1 Lebron wins.

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  22. Should be noted about author: He is a terrific writer here at St. Mary's School of Mentally Handicapped Basketball Fans. He loves to watch sports, especially basketball and hockey (he doesn't know they are different sports, he calls them both "basketduhnet" I guess cause they both use nets with their goals). We hope by next year he will move on to a second grade comprehension level. You can do it Lucas!

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  23. Looks like shit, smells like shit, sounds like shit...Foul.. Pure, foul, Bullshit!!!

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  24. I LOVE YOU LUCAS
    <3
    N.Powers
    P.S. ALALALALALALAALLALALAALALALALALALALALALALALALALALAL

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  25. This is one of the worst things I have ever spent time reading. It was so bad that even though I never comment, I am wasting more of my time to write about how awful I now feel for having read this garbage.

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  26. ahh...clearly whoever wrote this is about 13-16 years old and never saw MJ play live...MJ is a champion Lebron is Scottie Pippen...now comparing LBJ to Scottie would be a fair comparison...LBJ cant cant carry MJS jock strap to the gym

    MJ was a CLOSER...LBJ can hardly close a door

    only advantage LB has is maybe passing and he only has more passes because he ran the PG in CLE.

    Peace
    NYK ALLDAY

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  27. LeBron can't even compare to Kobe! Why bother comparing him to MJ? As far as defense goes, Kobe is a better defender than LeBron, and MJ wipes the floor with Kobe in defense. Kobe is a slightly better scorer than MJ, but MJ still is #1 without a question.

    The GOAT
    1 MJ
    2 Kobe
    3 Wilt
    4 Magic/Bird
    ...
    55 LeBron James (Sorry you can't be in the top 50 if you are anti-clutch)

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    1. Kobe's a slightly better scorer than MJ???????? Kobe avgs 25 pts and MJ 30 and MJ shoots close to 50% whereas Kobe shoots 45% or so and declining, Kobe has that 81 pt game but avgs less in the playoffs when MJ actually bumps up his avgs in playoffs... WTH??? c'mon now...

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    2. people dont understand. kobe didn't go to college, so he had those rookie stats pulling him down. and he wasn't the number one option. he couldn't, since shaq has an ego thats the size of a mammoth. when mj bumps up his averages, its because he's more clutch. kobe's better offensively purely because he has a wider arsenal of moves. but mj was better at scoring at the right time and when his team needed it.

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  28. First of all... Pippen didn't say that...
    Pippen said that LBJ could, COULD be a more complete player than MJ.

    But the great Scottie sayed XIT!!

    I mean, C'mon... LBJ can't finish a regular season game.
    The "finisher" of Heat is WADE! And everyone who watches some NBA games agree's with that.

    Karl Malone was better than LBJ
    Magic...
    Bird...
    Wilt...
    Kareen...

    Maybe, LBJ is a great all-around player like Pippen was...
    Maybe, he's the greatest all-around player in history.

    BUT ANYONE WAS AND WILL BE BETTER PLAYER THAN MJ!!

    YOU MUST HAVE 15 YEARS OLD OR LESS... YOU CAN'T BE THAT STUPID.

    YOU SUCK! GO KISS LBJ A...

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  29. And... Kobe is a better scorer than MJ?!

    Are you drunk?

    I'm gonna say just a little thing...

    Kobe always played in defense-less west conference.

    MJ played in the greatest defensive (Oakley era of the eastern conference.

    Charles Oakley
    Kevin Mchale
    Michael Cooper
    Joe Dumars
    Mookie Blaylock
    Dikembe Mutombo
    Dennis Rodman
    PJ Brown
    Nate Mcmillan

    To name a few...

    You suck too!

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  30. Lawlz what a joke of a post. End yourself.

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  31. Micheal Jordan wasn't a bad passer, but he wasn't a great one either..... LOL!!!!!

    LeBron is a great passer... but he plays point, like Pippen did for Chicago in the 90's, Pippen brought the ball up during the second three peat and Pippen set up the offense, MJ did average 34 and 8 and 8 one year before Pippen matured- sure MJ didn't start winning championships until Pippen came around and LeBron is a great player but c'mon, we're talking about MJ here. MJ too, was an awesome passer. I mean Magic's a better player than LeBron.. Geez...

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  32. 1. The point system you assigned was arbitrary. Everything just seems to be 10-9 Michael Jordan and an unbalanced 10-7 or 10-5 Lebron.

    2. Failure to take into account position factors. A small forward is typically going to average 1-2 more rbg than a shooting guard. Probably more apg too.

    3. Failure to take into account physiological factors. Michael Jordan was 6'6", 205 lbs (at the heaviest). Lebron James is 6'8", 250+ lbs. Helps with rbg and bpg.

    4. No help from Clevelands HELPS his ppg stat, not hurts it. In Cleveland he had the ball the entire time. So, we was scoring the entire time. He has a notable 2-3 ppg drop since he got to Miami, where he has to share the ball more.

    5. Michael Jordan's stats encompass his entire career, including the declining Wizards-Era. Wait until Lebron James' stats show HIS declining years. Heavier people tend to decline more with time; Lebron James especially because he relies on speed and explosiveness. (See: Shaq.)

    6. This is a stats-only thing, and Michael Jordan wins. How about also assess their reliability in crucial situations? Lebron James has no fourth quarter or confidence/ability in closing games (in the games that count). See: 2010-2011 Playoffs, 2012 All-Star, etc.

    Statistics-wise:
    In a regular assessment, Michael Jordan easily trumps Lebron.
    In a pound-for-pound assessment, Michael Jordan VASTLY trumps Lebron.

    Everything-wise:
    Michael Jordan is Wilt Chamberlain. Lebron James can be anyone else of that era. Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West - they were all fantastic. But Chamberlain was on a level of his own.

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  33. How many times did you have to score this to make Lebron come out ahead? Even Pippin backtracked his wrong opinion.

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  34. Your assessment is so beyond bias it's like it was written by Lebron himself. You should just delete this blog for publishing trash like that LOL.

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  35. the rings my friend... the rings

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  36. LeBron is better than MJ = Please, please, please read my blog!

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  37. Mr. Scheiner, what you have just said, is the most insanely idiotic thing I have ever heard. At no point, in your rambling incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points and may God have mercy on your soul.

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  38. Championships
    Score: 6-0 Jordan

    Everything else, irrelevant.

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    Replies
    1. This is wrong.

      Championships Horry VS Jordan
      Score : 7 VS 6

      Horry is not better then Jordan, they shouldnt even be mentioned in the same sentence.

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  39. This guy must be a STAT geek, who never played ball!

    Because this just plain old stupid!

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  40. How can you explain giving Lebron 5 more points than Jordan in rebounding when they are within 1 rebound per game average of each other. Also, considering the fact that Lebron is taller and has not had a center to take rebounds from him like Jordan had his whole career. The only explanation is that you had already made your opinion prior to starting this excercise, and you had to find a way to have Lebron win...that makes this article not worth considering.

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  41. You have possibly the worst basketball blog I've ever witnessed.... Stop trying.

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  42. This guys says:

    Kobe is overrated & LeBron is better than Jordan. WOW!! I wont be reading your page again.

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  43. Guys I know that Jordan has a better legacy because he's won so much more than LeBron but if you just look at the game in terms of rebounding passing defense and scoring, they are very equal, and I'd say LeBron gets the edge. When LeBron gets his titles people will start realizing just how good he is.

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  44. Lucas you need to stop sucking on Lebron's balls.
    Seriously you had a good blog going here. Then you totally discredit yourself by coming out with this hilarious garbage.
    Shut it down. Your blog is now nothing but a joke.

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  45. you my friend. are a complete fucking moron

    i love how you admit that lebron has NOWHERE near the defensive stats or defensive awards that jordan has and yet you consider it 10-9?

    but then above that you think that because lebron averages 2 assists and 1 turnover more than jordan that it evens out 10-7.

    sir, i believe that before you take another shot at writing an article comparing lechoke lebrick leBITCH for that matter, to the G.O.A.T, take lebrons dick away from your mouth so you can see what you are typing.

    have a nice day and go jump off a cliff.

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  46. Thank you I try to tell people this but they don't listen. LeBron carried the worst team in the NBA for 7 years, when he had zero help

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  47. The only thing Lebrun should b afraid is Jordan's shadow,o snap he is. He couldn't handle the heat to fill his airness shoes in chitown, so took da easy route n to his talents to south b@&ch!

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  48. Lucas and Phila need to stop jerking each other off to photos of LeSuck so Lucas can learn how to properly calculate and devise a point system. Jordan should at least be ahead 46 - 33 being generous. Lebron cant even win a championship with two other perennial all stars on his team.......no where close to even cracking the top 50 all time let alone greatest you dickless cunt.

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  49. This is absolutely hilarious. There is no way that anyone can even think that Lebron is on the same level as MJ. Come on man "Has anyone ever been as good at anything as Michael Jordan is at basketball? (An actual SI article written by a respectable journalist)

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  50. i love how they say hes a better passer because his days with the cavs when i used to watch him actively going for the triple-double, last i knew jordan didnt go for stats like lebron "spotlight" james this is just another crap article lookin at stats instead of the facts, jordan is the best player ever noone is even close im sorry

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  51. Lucas... We all have opinions like we all have assholes and your opinion here is absolute SHIT! LeBron better than MJ? Are you cereal? Please tell me you are not cereal!

    MJ = GOAT.

    LeBron will NEVER be better.

    Good day, sir!

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  52. Hahaha! another Lechoker fan who don't know mathematics. =D

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  53. You can't rely on stats. You need to watch games. Jordan is in the top 3 perimeter defenders in the history of the game (along with Gary Payton and Scottie Pippen in some order), and routinely shut players down. Steals and blocks highlight his anticipation skills. He was a fantastic rebounder for his size, and rebounded less as his career went on to save himself for the end of games. Assists were also traditionally counted as leading directly to a score, whereas these days for LeBron, you can pass the ball, the guy take a few dribbles, shoot, and still get the assist. In terms of scoring, well, majority of LeBron's shots are 3-4 step dunks.

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