LeBron James Says He's Not Picking Michael Jordan Over Him in GOAT Debate

During an interview with TIME, LeBron James said he's not picking Michael Jordan over him in the GOAT debate. 

“I’m not taking nobody over me,” says James. “There’s no question. But I think Mike will say the same thing. Rest his soul, Kobe will say the same thing. Magic will say the same thing. Bird will say the same thing. Shaq could say the same thing. The late great Wilt. Kareem. I don’t think none of us are going to take somebody else. If there’s a general manager and he’s eyeballing all of us on a baseline, with the No. 1 pick, it’s gonna be hard not to take me, champ.”  

Jordan averaged 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks per game with the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards during his NBA career. He won five MVPs, one Defensive Player of the Year Award, six championships, six Finals MVPs, three steals titles and 10 scoring titles with the Bulls. 

Meanwhile, James holds career averages of 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.7 blocks with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. He’s a four-time MVP, four-time champion, four-time Finals MVP, one-time scoring champion and one-time assists champion. 

Jordan is first in NBA history in points per game in the regular season and playoffs. He holds the NBA record for most points (63) scored in a playoff game. Jordan went 6-0 in the NBA Finals and three-peated twice with the Bulls in the ’90s. 

James, who grew up idolizing Jordan, is 4-6 in the NBA Finals. The King is first in NBA history in points, field goals, games and minutes. He’s the only player to rank top five all-time in points and assists, the only player to win three Finals MVPs with three teams, the only player with 40,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 10,000 career assists and the only player to score 50,000 points combining the regular season and playoffs.

Jordan was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009, while James will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer once he retires from the NBA.

No matter who you think the GOAT is, one thing is for certain: Jordan and James are sports legends. 

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