Gilbert Arenas has given his two pennies on the GOAT debate, picking LeBron James as the greatest player to ever do it over Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, often featured in the top 5 of the greatest NBA players of all time. These three have been compared on uncountable occasions and that doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
Recently, Arenas, a former Washington Wizards player, revealed who he believes is the GOAT, explaining that if you gave Jordan and Kobe the Cavaliers Bron had during his first stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers, they wouldn’t have reached the postseason.
“The reason I feel LeBron is the GOAT is because during pressure times he still makes the actual right decision versus what us fans and the public wants him to do. That’s what separates him from Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant,” Arenas said, as transcribed by Essentially Sports.
“If you give Jordan and Kobe those Cavs teams, they would not have made it to the playoffs, they would not have made it to the championship because Jordan would have averaged 60 and said the ‘hell with it’.”
Arenas also spoke about all the criticism that LeBron receives, explaining that he’s different from Kobe and MJ, in his personality, the way he approaches the game and his style of play.
“I think that we were spoiled by Jordan. The grace he brought to the game, his fierceness, the way he ended the game and when Kobe came, we see Jordan like- what ends up happening is when you have a player like LeBron who comes into the game who doesn’t have instincts of Jordan and Kobe, they are going to take the last shot no matter what.”
“We feel that if you are the best player, you are the star. When you are compared to Jordan and Kobe, you should be Jordan and Kobe like which is not necessarily correct.”
Arenas added, “Jordan and Kobe possess something LeBron does not have, which was a first step which made them one-on-one players. LeBron came in as Magic Johnson, meaning his vision is his key. He believes in his teammates, which gives them the sense that they believe in themselves too. Jordan would have just averaged 60 and said to hell with it.
“He wouldn’t have still gave the ball to J. R. Smith after what JR Smith has done. But he still believes in his teammates, they still believe in themselves in crucial time and that’s what makes LeBron the GOAT.”
This debate has been around for a long time now and after Michael Jordan’s premiered his docu-series “The Last Dance,” the debate reached a different level. Now everybody wants to say who is the GOAT, continuing a debate that will never be ended.
