Notorious LeBron James critic Skip Bayless recently shared his updated all-time list of the 10 greatest players in NBA history on the Skip Bayless Show. Bayless unsurprisingly chose not to move James up his rankings and took some shots at him as he disclosed his top 10.
“No. 1 is obviously the GOAT,” Bayless said. “The man who went 6-0 with six MVPs in the Finals. The man who never had one single playoff epic fail. Even when he lost, he never needed an excuse because he scared the hell out of the team that won. The man who won 10 scoring titles to LeBron’s one.
“The man who even won Defensive Player of the Year in the same year he won the scoring title,” Bayless continued. “LeBron never won a Defensive Player of the Year. The man, that man.”
Bayless was obviously referring to Michael Jordan there. Jordan was followed by Magic Johnson at second, with Shaquille O’Neal getting the final spot on the podium.
Johnson’s former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Kareem Abdul-Jabbar came in at four, just ahead of San Antonio Spurs icon Tim Duncan. Bayless claimed that Duncan was the anti-LeBron, as there was no drama surrounding him.
The late-great Bill Russell wore No. 6, and that was his spot on Bayless’ list as well. Russell won an NBA record 11 titles, but the lack of competition meant he wasn’t going any higher than sixth. All those titles did give him the edge over the late-great Kobe Bryant for Bayless, as the Lakers icon was seventh.
“No. 7, Kobe Bean Bryant, the late, the great, 5-2 in the Finals,” Bayless stated. “Won two scoring titles. But here’s why Kobe’s above LeBron. Kobe made 12 All-Defense teams to only six for LeBron, which is very good. But 12-6? Seriously? Give me Mamba Mentality over Drama King any day, any night. Give me Kobe over LeBron.”
Larry Bird came after Bryant at eighth, and Bayless stated he was the complete opposite of James. He hailed Bird for being clutch and stated James doesn’t have any of his intangibles.
The long wait to find James on the list finally ended at ninth. Bayless wasn’t interested in talking about any of his great achievements, though, and brought up his failings instead.
“I gotta be honest, I seriously thought about demoting LeBron from where I’ve long had him at ninth,” Bayless stated. “Because of his 28-25 playoff record as a Laker and his 2-12 record in his last three epic fail playoff series, especially in fourth quarters. But at 10, I have Wilt Chamberlain.”
Wilt Chamberlain being 2-4 in the Finals and coming out second best to Russell so many times is what prevented James from sliding down to 10th on Bayless’ list. He claimed he was giving the Lakers superstar a “break” by doing so.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, of course, but ranking James outside the top five is ridiculous at this point. He has won four titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, a scoring title, and an assists title in his career.
Jordan and Abdul-Jabbar are really the only ones who you can make an argument as having better resumes. Jordan won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY, and 10 scoring titles in his career. Abdul-Jabbar, meanwhile, won five titles, two Finals MVPs, six MVPs, and two scoring titles.
To go with those awards and accolades, James is also the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, and it’s simply remarkable how well he’s playing for someone in his 40s. Bayless has always stated, though, that he isn’t going to rank him higher for longevity.
“Before 40,000 points, I had LeBron 9th on my All-Time list,” said Bayless. “After 40,000 points, I still have LeBron 9th on my all-time list. Playing longer does not make you better or more valuable. LeBron James is not better than Larry Bird, he’s not better than Kobe Bryant… both Bird and Bryant were better shooters and much, much better closers than LeBron James.”
You reckon James might have to win another championship or two to climb up Bayless’ rankings. The 40-year-old is still playing at a high level, having averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game in 2024-25.
Will James win another title, though? It’s hard to say at this point, especially with his future being somewhat up in the air. If he does end up staying with the Lakers, he’ll need the team to make some moves if they are to become serious title contenders.
