Wiedmer: Could LeBron James overtake Michael Jordan as best ever?

Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) drives against Boston Celtics' Marcus Morris (13) during the first half of Game 6 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference finals Friday, May 25, 2018, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)
Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) drives against Boston Celtics' Marcus Morris (13) during the first half of Game 6 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference finals Friday, May 25, 2018, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)

It used to be a fairly simple answer. If you were choosing sides in an NBA pickup basketball game of all-time greats, would the first player chosen be LeBron James or Michael Jordan?

Until the past two or three seasons, almost everyone would have picked MJ. He had by far the most championship rings with six. He had that NCAA title he won for North Carolina as a Tar Heels freshman. On a team that included Sam Perkins and James Worthy, Dean Smith called on Jordan to win the coach his first national championship with a late jumper.

No offense to James, but he didn't even go to college, heading straight to the NBA, where he accomplished huge individual feat but sometimes seemed lost at winning time, despite his three total NBA rings to date.

Beyond that, there's the scoring, where Jordan's career averages of 30.1 in the regular season and 33.4 in the playoffs are comfortably in front of James' current numbers of 27.2 and 28.4, respectively.

Yet when a 33-year-old James pretty much carries the whole Cleveland Cavaliers team on his back into Boston tonight for the seventh and final game of the Eastern Conference finals, that answer of MJ or LJ is no longer so simple.

In fact, were I forced to choose between James now and a 33-year-old Jordan - who won his fourth NBA crown at that age - I might go with James, who's both bigger and stronger and has accomplished much of what he's done, excepting those two titles in four years with Miami, with far less talent around him than Jordan ever had.

Or do you think anyone on these current Cavs or LeBron's first run in Cleveland before he bolted for Miami is close to as good as Jordan's Chicago teammates Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman?

Yes, start to finish, or at least until he left the Bulls after winning six NBA titles in seven seasons, Jordan was better. He seemed never to take plays off on defense (which James has admitted occasionally to doing), and he seemingly could get a basket or three any time he wanted to or his team needed one.

But James has better rebounding and assists totals, especially in the playoffs, where he's averaged 2.5 more rebounds than MJ and 1.2 more assists.

To be fair on the rebounding, James is both taller and stronger, but that's also what partly makes him arguably better, especially since he's become a master of the deep 3-pointer. He knocked down back-to-back treys in Friday night's 109-99 win over the Celtics to force tonight's showdown.

After all, for a 33-year-old guy in his 15th NBA season to score 46 points in 46 minutes and make every important shot down the stretch is pretty impressive. Especially when Friday was the seventh time this postseason that James has finished with 40 or more points.

Or as Boston coach Brad Stevens responded late Friday when asked if he ever watches James and thinks that this is a different type of animal he's going against: "Like, yeah, every time we watch. Every time you're standing out there. Every time you watch him on film. Best player in the game."

He meant the best player today, but while Jordan won his final title at the age of 35, James appears as if he might challenge for another five years. Especially should he choose to leave Cleveland this summer to join a stacked roster in Philadelphia, Houston or Los Angeles, he might win at least two more titles before he calls it quits.

Or maybe he'll stay in Cleveland, near his hometown of Akron, content to continue to fight the good fight with a team that doesn't seem to have near enough weapons to win those fights once a championship is on the line.

That said, to listen to him after Friday's win is to hear a far more mature James than the one who averaged a preposterous 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists his first year out of high school, yet eventually pouted his way out of Cleveland to join Miami.

"I love being a husband now," he said. "Did I embrace that at 18, 19? I don't think so. As you get older, you just grow into more things. I didn't love wine until I was 30 years old, and now every other post (I write) is about wine, National Wine Day. So you learn and you grow and you know what's best for you as you get older. That's just all of us. I think that's what being a human being is."

Given that he's now scored at least 40 points an NBA record seven times in career elimination games - the late Wilt Chamberlain is second with five - or that a win tonight would place a James-led team in the Finals for an eighth straight season, some might argue that he's not all that human.

"I have a love of the game," James told the media late Friday night. "I have a passion for the game. Does it always work out? Obviously, no. I'm not undefeated in my career. Does it always (have) me playing great? I haven't always played great in my career. But while I have the opportunity to lace my shoes up and put a uniform on, I want to try to go out and do my job to the best of my ability."

As these playoffs have proven time and time again, when he plays to the best of his ability, there may be nobody better. Ever. Especially in elimination games, which the Cavs now have won six times in their last seven such contests.

If they're 7-of-8 after tonight, the argument for LJ over MJ will only strengthen.

Contact Mark Wiedmer@timesfreepress.com

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