The topic of who is the GOAT in the NBA continues to be hotly debated and Hall of Famer Tony Parker’s thoughts on it resurfaced recently. When speaking on the topic to Konbini Sports in 2020, Parker hailed Michael Jordan as the greatest ever and stated that Kobe Bryant was better than LeBron James.
“I played LeBron in his prime, Kobe in his prime, Jordan late in his career,” Parker said. “For me, Jordan is the best player of all time. Kobe was incredible. LeBron of course very very strong but I think that Kobe was better. When we played Lakers, it was a big rivalry – Lakers vs Spurs. So I never said to myself – Oh! We have beaten twice the best player in the world because for me it was Kobe.”
Parker played against all three as he stated so he is certainly qualified to speak about them. He didn’t get to play against Jordan at his absolute best but still believes he is the best ever.
Jordan won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, 10 scoring titles, and a DPOY during his time in the NBA. He finished with career averages of 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.3 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game and continues to be widely regarded as the greatest ever.
James is the one often seen as his closest challenger thanks to a resume that includes four titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, a scoring title, and an assists title. The 40-year-old is also the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and his incredible longevity is helping him set records that are going to be virtually impossible to break.
James’ exploits have led a growing number to believe he is actually the best ever. Spencer Dinwiddie is part of that group and he had an interesting explanation for why LeBron is the GOAT over Jordan.
Parker, however, believed James was just not as good a player as Bryant, let alone Jordan. He and the San Antonio Spurs beat LeBron in the 2007 and 2014 NBA Finals but he never felt they had taken down the best player in the world on either occasion.
Well, Bryant was undoubtedly better than James in 2007 but he was way past his best by the time 2014 came around. Parker may not have felt it, but the Spurs had indeed beaten a Miami Heat team that had the best player in the world that year.
Getting back to the GOAT debate, let’s take a look at Bryant’s resume. He won five titles, two Finals MVPs, an MVP, and two scoring titles during his time in the NBA. Bryant also had terrific career averages of 25.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game.
It’s undoubtedly an impressive resume, but James does have a better one at this point. It’s why he has surpassed Bryant in the eyes of many, but a lot of former players have not been swayed yet.
Charles Barkley had Kobe over LeBron and he is far from the only one with that opinion. You wonder if there is anything James can do to change that.
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