ANALYSIS/OPINION:
With LeBron James in his fifth consecutive NBA Finals, the debates rages on about his place among the greatest players in league history.
With two NBA titles in Miami — and a chance to lead another team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, to their first NBA crown when they face the Golden State Warriors starting Thursday — to go along with four MVP honors, basketball fans are arguing whether or not LeBron has passed Kobe Bryant or is a true challenger to Michael Jordan.
It’s not just fans. Players from past generations are weighing in, such as former Detroit Pistons bad boy center Bill Laimbeer, who spoke last week about the LeBron versus Jordan debate on the Dan Patrick Show.
“There’s no question I would take LeBron James,” said Laimbeer, now the coach of the WNBA’s New York Liberty. “He can do more. Michael Jordan could score and make big shots and look spectacular at times with wild flying dunks, but LeBron can get you 18 rebounds, get you 15 assists or score 50 if he wants to. The triple threat that he poses is just phenomenal, and the size, he just physically dominates. It’s impressive.
“Look at what LeBron has in the finals right now. Could anybody else in the world have led this team of role players to the finals right now? I don’t think so. Jordan could not have led this team to the finals. LeBron came into the league knowing how to play basketball and involve his teammates. Jordan had to learn that, and they had to assemble some great teammates around him in order for him to win.”
Laimbeer, of course, may have an ax to grind, considering the Pistons’ “Bad Boys” were the rivals of Jordan’s Bulls. Forrmer Houston Rockets star Hakeem Olajuwon — himself a candidate in the discussion — told CNBC earlier this year that it’s not a debate.
“When people start comparing [James] with Jordan, then that’s not a fair comparison,” Olajuwon said. “Jordan was a far more superior player in a very tough league, he was very creative. … That’s not taking away anything from LeBron because he is a great player, but it is not a fair comparison because Jordan is a far superior player.”
These debates make for great passionate fun, but here’s what no one ever mentions, but everyone knows — they have an asterisk next to them. Any debate about whether LeBron James or Michael Jordan is the best player in NBA history always has a disclaimer attached to it. They are not centers.
Let’s face it, if you include the big boys — the dinosaurs, extinct now from the current 3-point game — the debate changes to not just if LeBron or Jordan is the best, but if either of them make the top five of all time.
If you include Bill Russell and his 11 championships with the Boston Celtics, or Wilt Chamberlain and his legacy as the only players to average at least 30 points and 20 rebounds per game over his 15-year career, or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s six MVPs or six titles or his place still as the all-time scoring leader, the argument starts and ends there.
That’s the short list of the greatest NBA players of all time, and arguably at a time when the game was truly at its best — when it centered around powerful, talented big men instead of shooters.
Does that then mean the argument about LeBron or Jordan is for fourth place? Not so fast.
Tim Duncan may have entered the league with the San Antonio Spurs as a forward, playing alongside David Robinson. But he has played as a center for much of his career, and to me, falls under the category — and could be argued as the fourth-best player in NBA history.
At the very least, he is in the conversation, with five titles, three finals MVPs and two league MVPs.
He may not be ahead of Jordan, but his career may not be over, either. One more NBA title in San Antonio would seal the deal in Duncan’s favor.
Then Jordan, LeBron, Magic Johnson and the rest of them would be battling for fifth place all time — if we included big men.
We don’t, though. No one speaks of the asterisk, for fear it is a reminder of what a diminished game that LeBron James now rules over.
• Thom Loverro is co-host of “The Sports Fix,” noon to 2 p.m. daily on ESPN 980 and espn980.com.
• Thom Loverro can be reached at tloverro@washingtontimes.com.
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