Michael Jordan is widely considered as the greatest player of all time, but not for Cedric Maxwell, who has made the case for LeBron James recently. The GOAT debate was a very hot topic in the league in recent weeks but the former Boston Celtics player has given his take about it, claiming Bron should be crowned as the GOAT for his off-court behavior.
Talking with NBC Sports Boston’s “Arbella Early Edition”, Maxwell explained why Bron is the greatest player of all time, not Michael Jordan.
“LeBron James is the GOAT now,” Maxwell said. “He’s the GOAT because, not only on the basketball side, but social issues: He’s been involved in every social issue that we look at.
“When somebody says, ‘Shut up and dribble’ — LeBron James has put his money where his mouth is, and that to me resonates. That’s why I think more of our players and more NBA people need to step up and find that same courage.”
https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1268307869855895552
It’s not a secret that MJ has been very outspoken against social inequality and racial injustice. After George Floyd’s death, Bron sent several messages, asking for justice for Mr. Floyd and calling out the authorities to do something.
As for MJ, he hasn’t been involved in politics or social issues. In fact, he’s gotten a lot of heat for his decisions not to speak about social matters, unlike LeBron. Moreover, Maxwell took a shot at MJ for releasing sneakers while the world is going through a pandemic.
“During this pandemic, Georgia opened up, and there was a shoe store that dropped Jordan’s shoes during that time,” Maxwell said. “And it showed all these kids with no masks on (trying to buy Jordan’s shoes). Did Nike need that kind of publicity? Did Jordan need that kind of publicity?”
Maxwell found a different argument to say Bron is the GOAT over Jordan, but it’s hard to see people making the case for the King only based on that. Sure, LeBron is one of the best athletes when it comes to charity and expressing his opinion against injustice, but it’s not like that will earn him the GOAT title.
