So Scottie Pippen thinks LeBron James is better than Michael Jordan, eh? Blasphemy. If it wasn’t for the six rings with the Bulls, the man may be ex-communicated from the city of Chicago. On the one hand, it may seem that no player would have a better opinion of the “Next Jordan” than his former running mate, and Robin to Jordan’s Batman on all six of the title teams. However, Scottie should consider himself lucky to remain on the Bulls’ payroll as “Ambassador” next season. Let’s examine the top five reasons of how Scottie has committed the highest form of NBA treason, in descending order:
5: The titles
With all due respect to Jason Segel this is the easiest reason, and one that admitedly could be excused in the next decade, to put MJ over LBJ. However, to put LeBron over the greatest winner in the NBA's modern era, before the man has even won a single NBA Finals game, is ludicrous. LeBron may not even be playing the greatest basketball in these playoffs (See: Nowitzki, Dirk) let alone of all time. In a historical perspective, how can we put LeBron over Kobe Bryant, at this point in their respective careers? Kobe, stylistically and competitively, is the closest thing we will ever see to Michael Jordan. If Michael is the perfect 10 as a shooting guard, Kobe is a 9.5, and if he retires one ring behind Michael, with his current handful of five, it will be a fitting tale of the two players. And then there are two other great champions, with four apiece, in Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal. The four rings is why, like it or not, Duncan will go down as a better player than Kevin Garnett, and why Shaq will be seen as the best big man since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. LeBron cannot leapfrog these great champions without a single ring to put on his finger. I’m not denying LeBron is in a great position to get a slew of rings, but until that point, let’s not jump the gun.
4: The Playoff Run
Yes, LeBron has done amazing things in these playoffs. He has done everything asked of him. One game he is Magic 2.0, handing out ten dimes. The next he does his best MJ impression and scores 35. Then he locks down the league’s MVP in the fourth quarter, a match-up most fully anticipated being Dwyane Wade’s responsibility. By shutting down the MVP, he essentially sealed the last two games in Miami’s favor. However, has he been more valuable to his team than Dirk Nowitzki? Watching virtually every single game in these playoffs, I have seen both do equally incredible things. The shots that Dirk is making are an 11 out of 10 in the scale of difficulty. Oklahoma City in particular, had a team of defenders that are the best you could ask to put on Nowitzki. Serge Ibaka, an uber-athletic power forward/center in a young KG mold. Kevin Durant, a 6’10” extremely long and athletic competitor who knows his team's success rides on his shoulders just as much as the Heat and Mavs’ rides on LeBron’s and Dirk’s. Nick Collison, a big, strong defensive specialist who curtailed Zach Randolph’s dominance so that OKC could get to the Conference Finals. Kendrick Perkins, one of the toughest and most respected post defenders in the league had his shot, too. No one could stop Dirk. Compare Dirk’s and LBJ’s stats. LeBron: 26/9/5.5/48/33/79 (points, rebounds, assists per game, field goal, three point, and free throw percentages). Dirk: 28.5/7.5/3/52/51.5/93. Those shooting percentages are all-time. Meanwhile, LeBron has two of the best players at their respective positions as running mates in Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, while Dirk’s best teammates are a sixth man (Jason Terry) a 38-year-old point guard (Jason Kidd) and a 33-year-old former all-star (Shawn Marion). I don’t see anyone rushing to put Dirk Nowitzki ahead of Larry Bird, and rightfully so. Granted LeBron is undoubtedly a better defender than Dirk, but everyone and their brother knows Dallas’ success relies on Dirk’s ability to put the ball in the basket. Three teams have tried to stop him, including the two-time defending champs, and three teams have failed.
3: LeBron leaving Cleveland
Not to re-hash bad memories, and a story that has beaten ten dead horses into the ground by the media, but LeBron leaving the franchise that drafted him has to leave a mark on his legacy. Not necessarily a bad mark, but a mark. LeBron left Cleveland to allow him to do what is best at, being the ultimate X-Factor. He didn’t like the pressure of having to score 40 points per game in the playoffs for his Cavs’ teams to win. That’s not what he does best. He is best at being dominant in the specific area of the game that his team needs to win, and now he has the teammates to do it. He is essentially re-creating what he had in high school. Basketball is more fun to him now, and who can blame the man for wanting the game he loves to be more fun? However, he did give up on Cleveland. Michael was drafted by Chicago, and struggled for years in the playoffs with Chicago. He was called selfish, a gunner, and a bad teammate. However, he stuck though with the Bulls, and ultimately created a dynasty there. Unlike LeBron, basketball wasn’t fun to Michael, it wasn’t a game. It was a way of life. It was an outlet to destroy the competition, to prove “I am the Greatest, and there is not a thing you can do to stop me.” He was a soul destroyer. And he loved every minute of it.
2: Scottie is a bitter, bitter man
So the pro-Lebron crowd might be thinking “Who has a better opinion on someone being better than Michael, than his greatest teammate, the man who may know Michael’s game better than anyone?” That would be an excellent point, if not for that at times, egos lead to insanity. Rightfully so, Scottie will always be seen as Robin, as second best, on his team. And for one of the 50 greatest players of all time, that is hard to handle. Remember, you don’t get to being a great athlete without outlandish confidence that often coincides with cockiness. And Scottie was an exceptional athlete and basketball player. And his bitterness starts a long, long time ago. In the 1989-90 season, the Bulls lost to the Pistons once again. This was Scottie’s first season as an All-Star. He suffered from migraines against the Pistons, something that was not highly publicized, and his play suffered, resulting in Pippen taking the brunt of the criticism for the loss. The following season, Pippen got into a bitter contract dispute that resulted in him signing a contract that paid him $3.5 million per season through the 1997-98 season. In 1990, $3.5 million for a one-time All-Star was good money. However, the timing and longevity of the contract could not have been worse for Pippen. Six championships later, all the way through his prime, and through the NBA’s contract boom, Scottie Pippen, the greatest perimeter defender of all time, was getting paid less than today’s back-ups. It is quite possibly the worst contract of all-time, and why to this day Scottie lingers on the Bulls’ payroll as ‘Bulls’ Ambassador.’
Then there was the first Jordan retirement. Pippen knew this was his time to let the world recognize he was no sidekick. To many observers' surprise, he kept the Bulls in championship contention the whole season, averaging 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, finishing third in the MVP voting. There was his infamous refusal to come off the bench for the final play against the Knicks, a play drawn up for Toni Kukoc, a sixth man who has just signed a much more lucrative contract than Pippen’s, to take the last shot (which he hit). If not for some horrid officiating in that series, the Bulls would have reached the NBA Finals. Alas, Pippen’s first chance for non-Jordan validation was gone. His second chance came in 1999-2000 when his Portland Trail Blazers infamously blew the 13-point game 7 lead to Shaq and Kobe’s Lakers. That was the closest Pippen would ever come to a championship sans Jordan, and now forever will be remembered as the greatest sidekick of all-time, a title Pippen despises. Think about his exact quote in comparing Michael to LeBron,: “Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game, but LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game because he is so potent offensively that not only can he score at will, but keeps everybody involved.” Sounds like a player who wished some more shots, and more glory, had come his way. Scottie, you truly were one of the greats. Don’t let your bitterness spoil the NBA world’s perception of you.
1: Michael being Michael
How many iconic moment has Michael Jordan provided the basketball world? The Jumper over Craig Ehlo. The Flu Game. Simply refusing to lose to a better, younger Pacers team in ’98. The Last Shot over Byron Rusell. A whole book could be dedicated to Jordan Moments. LeBron has one: The last 25 straight points against the Pistons. Obviously LeBron’s resume is far from over. As Scottie put it: “Michael is probably the greatest scorer of all-time.” This is true. But the common assertion that LeBron is a better passer, simply based on stats, is asinine. Michael played as part of a system, the Triangle Offense, only dominating the ball when it was Winning Time. For LeBron’s entire career, he has dominated the ball, pounding it at the top of the key. It is easy to average more assists when you have the ball in you hands for virtually the whole game. Not to say he isn’t dominant, but his offense is predictable. He is going to drive through the defense for a foul, lay-up or dunk. Or he is going to feint the drive and shoot a fall-away jumper. Or he will drive and dish to an open teammate. That’s it. Michael had a bevy of shots. He was a danger at any spot in the court to nail a heat-breaking jumper. And he was as good at going around the defense for a lay-up or dunk as LeBron is at going through it. He was no slouch of a passer, either, averaging 5.3 for his career as a true shooting guard, compared to LeBron’s 7.0 as a ball-dominating point-forward. Yes, LeBron is a better rebounder, but at 6'8" 260lbs, compared to Jordan's 6'6" 220, he'd better be. Don't buy the assertion that LeBron is a better passer, as this is one of those times where the stats do lie. If Jordan ran an Iso-Michael offense, he would have averaged at least 7 assists per game, too.
LeBron James is an amazing talent, and probably the best athlete to play the game. He is in an enviable position to win the title this season, and get more after that. When it's all said and done, he probably will go down as one of the greats. However, let's not put the man ahead of a player who won six straight titles in full seasons that he played. It's not fair to Michael, and it's not fair to LeBron.
LeBron James is an amazing talent, and probably the best athlete to play the game. He is in an enviable position to win the title this season, and get more after that. When it's all said and done, he probably will go down as one of the greats. However, let's not put the man ahead of a player who won six straight titles in full seasons that he played. It's not fair to Michael, and it's not fair to LeBron.
