MJ or the King?

The NBA is one of the most action packed leagues in the world, with last second buzzer beaters, amazing dunks, and the occasional half court heave that drops. Many players have dominated this league, from Kareem Abdul- Jabbar to Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. Although these players were All-time greats and Hall of famers, no one quite dominated the game like Michael Jeffery Jordan. Michael was an outstanding player who could put the team on his back and carry them to victory. Scottie Pippen was another All-time great and played right by Jordan’s side. Together they won six titles in two three peats from 91 to 93 and from 96 to 98 (Turner Sports, 2011). Scottie was Jordan’s most trusted teammate, but recently Scottie made a remark that Lebron James is better than his former teammate. Who is the better player, MJ or the King?

Michael Jeffery Jordan was born on February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York. He attended North Carolina for college and was selected third overall in the 1984 NBA draft. Michael averaged 30.1 points per game during in his 15-year career, with a top season average of 37.1 in the 86-87 season (Sports Reference LLC, 2011). He was a five time NBA regular season MVP and a six time Finals MVP winning it every time the Bulls made it to the Finals. Although he won an unprecedented six titles he could have won at least two more if he had not quit basketball to play baseball in the 93-94 season. In 2009,m Jordan was elected into the basketball Hall of fame on his first ballot and will be forever remembered for his high flying dunks and his spectacular performances.


Lebron James took a slightly different approach to stardom. He was born on December 30, 1984, the same year Jordan made his NBA debut. James was born into a poor family who moved constantly around his hometown of Akron, Ohio. Due to the constant moving Lebron rarely made friends, and even if he did, he never played with them because he was embarrassed of his home life. His outlet for his emotions was basketball, from a young age Lebron always enjoyed playing basketball. When James was old enough to attend high school he went to Saint Vincent-Saint Mary where his friends attended and won three high school state titles. After high school, James opted to skip collage and head straight for the pros, selected number one overall by his hometown team the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA draft. In Cleveland James won back to back NBA MVP’s and lead the Cavaliers to the 2006 finals were they lost to the Spurs (Sports Reference LLC, 2011). Then in 2010 James became a free agent and left the town of Cleveland for the Miami Heat, and now has helped the team reach the finals. Although his career average is only 27.7 points per game and he doesn’t have a championship, can the King be better than Michael Jordan?

Both Lebron and Michael have had fantastic Hall of fame and future Hall of fame careers, but which is the better player. Lebron James may be one of the best players of all time but the way he left Cleveland has tarnished his reputation. Lebron has played 7 years in the league and has not won a single NBA title where Jordan already had one title at that point in his career. Overall, Jordan is the better player because not only did he have a better scoring average than Lebron, he has more championships, MVP’s, and All-Star appearances. Although Lebron is one of the best players of our generation, he has a long way to go before surpassing Michael Jordan.





Bibliography
Sports Reference LLC. (2011). Lebron James. Retrieved 5 30, 2011, from Basketball Reference.com: http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html
Sports Reference LLC. (2011). Michael Jordan. Retrieved 5 30, 2011, from Basketball Reference.Com: http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jordami01.html
Turner Sports. (2011). Bulls Dynasty. Retrieved 5 30, 2011, from NBA encyclopedia playoff edition: http://www.nba.com/history/bulls_dynasty.html