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Good morning TYB Faithful! I hope everyone's holiday season was filled with laughter, love, and great memories to welcome in the New Year. Today, January 8th, marks the first of what hopes to be a daily series from me... Wake Up With Will. Every day, I will bring you all the latest news, rants, or discussions that are surrounding the sports world - whatever's on my mind. "Will, how did you come up with this?" one may ask. Just... just look at this Twitter thread of me getting absolutely annihilated for one simple statement:
Oops... I struck yet another nerve...
Anyways, depending on how things go, I hope to expand it to a brief morning podcast lasting only 10-15 minutes, because let's be honest - we all have short attention spans these days, and I know no one wants to really listen to me. So let's begin.
The Greatest of All Time. The GOAT.
Photo from Getty Images and Sports Illustrated
Every sport has one - usually a consensus. The NFL has Tom Brady. The NHL? Wayne Gretzky. Football (the European kind) has Messi. Hell... even the MLB (for the most part) claims Babe Ruth as its GOAT. One sport, however, breaks this pattern. Half the NBA's fans claim "1a" as their GOAT, and the other half claim "1b".
Everyone knows "1a": the one who globalized the game of basketball - Michael Jordan. Unfamiliar? Here's where MJ ranks all-time in some major stat categories:
15 seasons
30.12 PPG (1st all-time)
32,292 career points (5th)
2.35 SPG (3rd)
33.45 Playoff PPG (1st)
33.6 Finals PPG (1st)
6 Championships
6 Finals MVPs
5 Regular Season MVPs
11 All-NBA Selections (10 First Team) (T-4th)
27.91 Player Efficiency Rating (2nd behind Nikola Jokic, unsurprisingly)
And so much more that can fill an entire page (or two!)
So yeah... it would seem that the NBA's GOAT debate is settled, right? No one can touch MJ's greatness... well... except for "1b":
1b being LeBron James. If Michael Jordan set the bar for greatness, LeBron James redefined what it means to chase and reach it. Arguably the greatest athlete in the history of recorded sports, James cemented himself in the NBA's GOAT conversation after winning his 4th MVP and 2nd Finals MVP down in Miami in 2013. Since then, his case has only grown stronger. Here are just a few of LeBron's rankings in the history of the league:
22+ seasons (T-1st (Vince Carter))
27.1 PPG (7th)
41,243+ career points (1st (unbreakable record))
57,714+ minutes played (1st (unbreakable record))
8,162+ career playoff points (1st (unbreakable record))
4 Championships
4 Finals MVPs
4 Regular Season MVPs
20 All-NBA Selections (13 First Team) (1st - no one has more than 15 total)
26.97 Player Efficiency Rating (3rd behind the aforementioned Jordan and Jokic)
The only member of the 30,000/10,000/10,000/1,000/1,000 club (PTS/REB/AST/STL/BLK)
And again... so much more that can fill multiple pages
LeBron has proven that greatness isn't just about reaching the top - it's about staying there. His combination of scoring, playmaking, and defensive versatility has made him a generational force that has been able to adapt to every era he has been a part of.
The Never-Ending Debate
Photo from Sky Sports
So, what makes the LeBron vs. MJ debate so heated and hateful? For some, it's about championships and "being undefeated in the Finals" (lame). For others, it's about sheer dominance across an entire career that STILL hasn't ended. Every time I think about LeBron's impossible longevity in a sport that requires so much physicality, I am brought back to this gem of a tweet (excuse the language):
It's this type of dominance that has wowed even the haters for now over a decade. In his age 40 season, LeBron is still averaging 24/8/9 on almost 50/40/80 splits. He isn't as explosive as he once was (cue the highlight at the end of this paragraph); however, he is still a highly effective shooter, playmaker, and on-court coach. James' ability to thrive for over two decades in a rapidly changing league makes his GOAT case compelling, to say the least. His other-worldly longevity, supreme basketball IQ, and pure dominance should have earned him the respect he deserves. Yet it doesn't most days. Before I continue on, here's the 40-year-old in action last night:
Unreal. For reference, please look up Udonis Haslem and Vince Carter highlights from their age 40 seasons.
With all the "glazing" I have done in LeBron's favor, it still doesn't answer the question: Can James' longevity and versatility ever truly surpass the not-as-lengthy but ever-so-iconic peak of Jordan? Can "being the best for the longest" ever help LeBron in the GOAT argument?
Striving For Greatness
Photo from AoTheGoat - YouTube and Jarad Branding
No matter which side you are on in the GOAT debate, there's no denying that both James and Jordan have revolutionized what it means to be great in sports. Nevertheless, the criteria for "greatness" shifts with every differing opinion. What is the criteria? I myself, in my never-ending war with "Twitter Ball Knowers", can never seem to figure it out. Is it about rings? Weak argument when you factor in the fact that the team LeBron played the most in the Finals had to add the greatest pure scorer the league has ever seen to beat him. Dominance? Getting warmer. Influence? No one compares to Jordan's influence (I am literally looking at my growing collection of Jordans). Or sheer statistical supremacy (I know you love the wordplay - shoutout ChatGPT).
Let's break it down:
Championships:
MJ's "perfect" record of 6-0 in the Finals is a rather impressive feat that few athletes have come close to. No game 7's. No "uh oh" moments. Guaranteed dominance... until you remember that Jordan has lost in the first round of the playoffs 3 times in his career... oops. "But... but Will... LeBron is 4-6 in the NBA Finals". Yea... I'm gonna stop you right there. In 2007, LeBron took a Cavs team that started SASHA PAVLOVIC, DREW GOODEN, LARRY HUGHES, AND ZYDRUNAS ILGAUSKAS (no knock on Big Z, he was legit). Come on... taking that lineup and facing it off against the likes of prime Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker, and Bruce Bowen, it's no wonder why he was swept (each game was incredibly competitive too). Might I also remind you that LeBron was 22 at the time? Anyways... I can go on and on about championships in the GOAT debate - it just doesn't do it for me. James' only inexcusable Finals performance was in 2011... which ultimately might be the difference between the GOAT and 2nd best.
Dominance and Longevity:
Well for dominance, they're the top two and you can't make me pick between the two. Obviously, longevity goes in LeBron's favor, we have been over this already. Jordan retiring twice (once cause he had a gambling problem) hurts him so much in the GOAT debate, and while his comebacks were iconic, he never maintained the same consistency over as many years as LeBron has. Might I remind you that LeBron has been named to an All-NBA team every season since 2004?
Legacy:
The answer isn't as clear as one thinks. Jordan's legacy represents an era of "mythical perfection" - a competitive assassin who stopped at nothing less than winning, no matter the cost. One that saved the NBA, made the game fun to watch again since Bird and Magic retired. Jordan wasn't just a superstar - he was a global icon, a fierce winner, and the face of excellence. His story is one of intensity, drive, and passion for his craft. A legacy that apexed in the 1997 NBA Finals - the infamous "Flu Game". Jordan's legacy wasn't just about pure mastery of his craft; it was about his unwillingness to lose and the way he couldn't live with his failures until he bested them. Jordan's influence isn't just measured in points or titles. He inspired an entire generation of players to Strive for Greatness. Kobe Bryant's undying passion for the game was inspired by Jordan. Even LeBron James' game was modeled after that of Jordan's. Jordan never had to raise the bar if you think about it. The pressure was on him to set the bar - and that he did.
A Legacy Continued
Photo by Andy Hayt - NBAE/Getty Images
For LeBron, his legacy isn't just about his unbreakable records, numerous achievements, or playoff dominance - it's about his evolution, resilience, and leadership. No athlete in the history of sports entered their respective league with loftier expectations and more scrutiny than James did. From the get-go, LeBron was given the nickname "The Chosen One", the one who would take Jordan's place. RIGHT OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL! Franchises, fans, and media fully expected and hoped for the prodigy out of St. Vincent-St. Mary to be all that Jordan was and more; and somehow he delivered and more. LeBron's legacy is, in part, defined by the endless and tiresome comparisons to MJ. For his fans, his legacy is his impact on the community of the NBA, his unreal longevity, and his uncanny ability to carry pitiful rosters to deep playoff runs (see 2006-2010 Cleveland Cavaliers, 2015 and 2018 Cleveland Cavaliers, and finally the 2023 Los Angeles Lakers). LeBron is the prototype for the modern superstar: a player who found himself in the center at the beginning of the social media era, took on the brutal criticisms of the media and fans alike, somehow managed to ignore all the hate, and succeeded in the face of hatred. LeBron's legacy is about more than rings or records - it's about redefining greatness. When he retires in the next few years (maybe?), the league won't just lose another player - it will lose the most complete player the game has ever seen and will ever see.
So even after all this... you may ask, "So where do you stand on the GOAT debate?" For those who know me, you know where I stand. For those who don't, let me ruin your day for my enjoyment. I am more than ok with placing LeBron and Jordan as 1a and 1b and never talking about it again. This GOAT debate is more than tiresome. For example, ESPN's First Take had another "heated" (clickbaity) discussion about the GOAT debate, and yet again, the same lame-ass arguments were thrown out... "Well... LeBron wasn't 6-0 in the Finals" or "Jordan never went to a Game 7 in the Finals". Sure... as I have mentioned before, those are impressive feats, don't get me wrong - they just don't make a compelling argument for who is the Greatest. And that got me thinking... why have the argument? It never gets resolved no matter how much evidence is in favor of one over the other. Why can't we just appreciate the one who laid down the impossible path and the one who extended it further than anyone could reach? No more "We done with the 90s" or "4-10 Finals record", instead, from now on, you will see me advocating for "1a and 1b", in no particular order... well... unless somehow LeBron can win a 5th ring and 5th Finals MVP. That's not going to happen though.
Appreciating Greatness
Photo by Kevin Mazur - Getty Images
At the end of the day, the GOAT debate between 1a and 1b will always bring about passionate, nostalgic, and endless arguments. But instead of nitpicking stats, awards, and general resumes, we should just appreciate the fact that we have been able to witness these two compete (or just one for most of my audience). We have been blessed to be a part of two once-in-a-lifetime careers.
Jordan laid the foundation for what greatness is supposed to look like - perfection under immense pressure, an unrelenting spirit, and a legacy that transcended the game of basketball. LeBron took the blueprint, walked the outline, and redefined it with his own story of longevity, adaptability, and relentlessness, inspiring my generation to embrace greatness on and off the court.
So yes, my stance on the debate should be more than clear now. I am 100% content with the concept that there is no definitive answer on who the GOAT is. Jordan can be considered "1a" - the one who set the standard for greatness - and LeBron can be "1b" - the one who followed, redefined, and extended the standard for greatness to new heights never before seen. No matter which side of the court you are on for this argument, you can't deny that there is something beautiful about witnessing two players who have given us so many unforgettable moments.
So instead of choosing sides, let's cherish the legacies of both legends. After all, when LeBron eventually does retire, the era of debating the GOAT won't matter nearly as much as the bittersweet realization that we will almost certainly never see a player like him, or Jordan, ever again... Until MY TRUE GOAT, VICTOR WEMBANYAMA! (a story for another time).
Until that time comes, the conversation will relentlessly continue. As for me? I'm done engaging in the trash clickbait that ESPN, Bleacher Report, and company throw out there about these two. Let's enjoy greatness while we still can.