In the never-ending debate over who reigns as the greatest basketball player of all time, the latest voice to weigh in belongs to none other than World’s Strongest Man and WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry. Known for feats of superhuman strength and once pulling two tractor trailers as part of a world-record event, Henry recently brought that same force to the GOAT conversation, and he didn’t mince words.
Speaking on SiriusXM Sports, Henry made a bold case for LeBron James over Michael Jordan, offering a perspective grounded not only in basketball analysis but also in sheer physical dominance.
“I put LeBron over Jordan just because of his basketball acumen. Jordan was a better scorer, but if LeBron was in, they both was in their primes, LeBron is just a bigger giant dude. He would bully him.”
“Michael was strong, but if Michael had to push around a guy two hundred seventy pounds, I think it would be different. Imagine Karl Malone being able to play like, if Karl Malone could play like LeBron, that’s who LeBron is. He’s Karl Malone that plays like a guard, and he has the ability to pass the ball like Magic and Stockton.”
It’s a powerful image, quite literally. Henry isn’t just another commentator tossing out hot takes. He’s someone who understands elite physicality at the highest level. His point isn’t simply that LeBron is taller and heavier.
It’s that LeBron James is a rare athletic specimen, a 6-foot-9, 270-pound freight train with guard skills and elite basketball IQ.
In other words, Henry sees LeBron as the ultimate basketball hybrid: a power forward’s body with a point guard’s mind. The idea of Jordan, listed at 6-foot-6, 216 pounds in his prime, matching up physically with someone like LeBron is where Henry draws the line in the comparison.
Of course, this isn’t just about size. While Jordan remains the definitive clutch scorer and perhaps the most ruthless competitor the game has ever seen, Henry leans into LeBron’s versatility, durability, and his ability to elevate everyone around him.
From a purely analytical standpoint, the numbers support parts of Henry’s take. LeBron is the all-time leader in points, ranks top five in assists, and has logged more playoff minutes than anyone in NBA history.
He’s played over 21 seasons and made 10 NBA Finals. His passing, vision, and positional flexibility have allowed him to dominate across eras.
That said, Jordan’s resume is mythic: six championships, six Finals MVPs, five regular-season MVPs, 10 scoring titles, and an unblemished 6-0 record in the Finals. What Jordan lacked in brute size, he made up for in unmatched footwork, finesse, defensive intensity, and killer instinct.
But Mark Henry’s take is refreshing in that it doesn’t diminish Jordan, it simply acknowledges the physical and strategic anomaly that is LeBron James.
In a debate where everyone from NBA legends to barbershop philosophers has chimed in, leave it to the World’s Strongest Man to give the GOAT debate its most heavyweight perspective yet.
