Over the years, there have been endless amounts of ways that NBA fans and media outlets have tried to compare and debate the conversation of the greatest basketball player in NBA history. There have been stats comparisons, playoff comparisons, championship comparisons, and even comparisons that have absolutely nothing to do with the game of basketball.
Today, we will introduce a new and innovative way to look at the GOAT debate using a points system we have created to make the process a bit easier. Will this undoubtedly give us a conclusion to the endless GOAT debate? Probably not, but it has to count for something. This points system will be based on stats, various accolades, and each one of the four players’ below impact on their team on the court.
For each category, these four players will be given points based on their accomplishments until a total is tallied up and a GOAT is crowned. This is the only fair way to determine who the player is that should be considered the greatest in NBA history now and forever.
This is the GOAT comparison between Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Bill Russell.
Best Stats
The first topic we will look at is the career stats of each of these players and determine which player we would rather have based on that production. Without having a solidified criteria or number on them, we will give our opinion on whose stats we think are best and let you do the same as we go along.
1. Michael Jordan – 30.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 5.3 APG, 2.3 SPG, 0.8 BPG (4 Points)
2. LeBron James – 27.2 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 7.3 APG, 1.5 SPG, 0.8 BPG (3 Points)
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 24.6 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 3.6 APG, 0.9 SPG, 2.6 BPG (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 15.1 PPG, 22.5 RPG, 4.3 APG (1 Point)
When it comes to stats, it really comes down to what the person evaluating them values the most on a basketball court. For me, I agree with the late Bill Russell when he said, “This game has always been and will always be about buckets”. With that being said, the greatest scorer in NBA history, Michael Jordan, averaged over 30.0 PPG for his career and over 32.0 PPG for his playoff career. When you add in the way he dominated the defensive side of the ball on the perimeter with over 2.0 SPG, in my opinion, he is the statistical GOAT.
LeBron James gets the easy nod for second place with his statistical dominance over the last 20 years. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer has played better for longer than most players dream of playing in their careers. As you can see from his scoring average of over 27.0 PPG and his 7.0+ RPG and APG, James does the things that make his teammates better as well, which makes him the ideal team basketball player.
Kareem had his fair share of time as the statistical GOAT as well. The former all-time scoring leader averaged a 24.6 PPG and 11.2 RPG double-double for his career while also playing elite defense in the paint. Speaking of elite defense, this conversation could be much different if Bill Russell had his defensive stats actually recorded. His 22.5 RPG is an incredible feat as well, but his lack of offensive production really hurts his case to be the statistical GOAT.
Most NBA Championships
The goal for every player who steps foot on an NBA court should always be to lead his team to an NBA championship. It is the Holy Grail of basketball and the highest honor that any team can achieve. Being the player who leads them there has to be weighed heavily in the GOAT argument as arguably the most important factor.
1. Bill Russell – 11 Championships (4 Points)
T2. Michael Jordan – 6 Championships (3 Points)
T2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 6 Championships (3 Points)
4. LeBron James – 4 Championships (1 Point)
When it comes to NBA championships, there is no player in history with more than Bill Russell. In just 13 seasons of play, Russell led the Celtics to 12 NBA Finals and 11 titles, with his only loss coming to Bob Pettit and the St. Louis Hawks in 1958. From 1958 through 1966, Russell led the Celtics to eight straight NBA championships which is just another one of his many unbreakable Finals records.
Tied for second with six NBA championships are Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Jordan is a six-time NBA champion in six attempts with the Chicago Bulls during the 1990s. Jordan led the Bulls to two different three-peats, the first team to do so since the Celtics of the 1960s. Kareem is also a winner of six NBA titles, five with the Lakers and one with the Milwaukee Bucks in his career. Kareem won his first championship in just his second season in 1971 and five more from 1980 through 1988 in Los Angeles.
Last but not least, LeBron James is a four-time NBA champion who has an overall record of four wins in 10 attempts. James won these championships with three different franchises in his career. His first two came with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013. Then, he delivered the first championship in Cleveland Cavaliers history in 2016 in one of the greatest playoff upsets ever. His final title came in 2020 with the Lakers in the Bubble at Disney World. James too has accumulated many NBA Finals records that will not be broken, such as eight straight appearances from 2011 through 2018.
Most MVP Awards
The next accolade we are going to discuss is the MVP award. Now the trophy is named after Michael Jordan, but it is another player we are comparing today who holds the NBA record for most MVPs won in a career. Let’s dive in.
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 6 MVP Awards (4 Points)
T2. Michael Jordan – 5 MVP Awards (3 Points)
T2. Bill Russell – 5 MVP Awards (3 Points)
4. LeBron James – 4 MVP Awards (1 Point)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA’s record-holder for most MVP awards, having won six of them over the course of his long career. Kareem captured three of these awards in his first six seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks. In 1971, he captured the MVP, NBA championship, and Finals MVP award in just his second season in the NBA. Kareem’s six MVPs is likely an NBA record that will never be broken, given the exclusivity of players who have won multiple MVPs in their careers.
In second place, we have two icons of their generation in Michael Jordan and Bill Russell. In each of Jordan’s five MVP seasons, he was also the scoring champion, averaging over 30.0 PPG for four of those seasons, with 1998 being the exception. Russell also claimed five MVP awards during his career with the Celtics. Russell’s MVPs had to feel a bit more special considering his peers, the players, voted on the award at the time. The only active player even close to these two legends in terms of MVP wins is the next player on our list.
LeBron James won four MVP awards in his career, and the argument can be made that he deserved far more than that as well. James won his first two MVP awards in 2009 and 2010 with the Cavaliers. In 2012 and 2013, James went back-to-back again as MVP, this time with the Miami Heat in the same seasons he won two championships as well. In 2022-23, James received no MVP votes for the first time in his career, which may be more impressive than the awards themselves.
Most Finals MVP Awards
In many ways, I would say the Finals MVP award is more meaningful than the MVP award. Not only did these players help navigate the regular season and NBA playoffs, but they then excelled on the game’s biggest stage to become the most valuable there as well. Let’s dive into these four players’ Finals performances.
1. Michael Jordan – 6 Finals MVP Awards (4 Points)
2. LeBron James – 4 Finals MVP Awards (3 Points)
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 2 Finals MVP Awards (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 0 Finals MVP Awards (1 Point)
When it comes to Finals MVP awards, nobody has accumulated more than Michael Jordan. In six Finals appearances, Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships while claiming all six Finals MVP awards. There was zero competition for any other player to even be considered for the award with the way Jordan dominated both sides of the ball in these championship wins. In his NBA Finals career, Jordan averaged 33.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 6.0 APG, and 1.8 SPG on 48.1% shooting from the field.
LeBron James is second among these players with four Finals MVP awards in his 20-year career and 10 Finals appearances. James led the Heat, Cavaliers, and Lakers to NBA championships during his career and is the only player in NBA history to win Finals MVP with three different franchises. In his NBA Finals career, James averaged 28.4 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 7.8 APG, and 1.7 SPG on 48.4% shooting from the floor.
Bringing up the rear in this category are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell. Now, it is unfair for Russell to be penalized for his lack of Finals MVP because they didn’t exist until his final championship season in 1969. It would be naive to say he would have won 11 of them, considering he didn’t win the one in 1969, but he certainly would have tallied his fair share. Kareem won just two Finals MVPs in his six championship wins. His first came in 1971 with the Bucks, and his final one came in 1985 with the Lakers.
Most Defensive Player Of The Year Awards
Next up are the players with the most Defensive Player of the Year awards in their careers. Only one of these players has ever been crowned Defensive Player of the Year, making him the easy winner of this category. To be fair, two of these players were at their peaks before the award was introduced in 1982-83.
1. Michael Jordan – 1 Defensive Player Of The Year Award (4 Points)
T2. LeBron James – 0 Defensive Players Of The Year Awards (3 Points)
T2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 0 Defensive Player Of The Year Awards (3 Points)
T2. Bill Russell – 0 Defensive Player Of The Year Awards (3 Points)
The player to actually win the Defensive Player of the Year award out of these four was Michael Jordan back in 1988. Jordan is one of five players to win an MVP as well as a Defensive Player of the Year award in their careers but is the only one to do so while winning a scoring title. Jordan led the NBA in steals in 1988 with 3.2 SPG while also adding 1.6 BPG and 5.5 RPG as a guard.
The other three players all failed to capture a Defensive Player of the Year award in their careers. The closest LeBron James got was in 2013 when he finished runner-up to Marc Gasol. As for Kareem and Russell, they both had the misfortune of competing at their peaks when the award didn’t exist. There is no doubt in my mind that both of them would have won at least one, if not many more, for Russell during his career especially.
Most All-NBA Teams
Another great honor in a player’s career is being selected to an All-NBA Team. Even if placed on an All-NBA Third team, it means that you were among the best 15 players in the NBA for a specific season which, in any case, is an elite group to be a part of.
1. LeBron James – 19 All-NBA Teams (4 Points)
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 15 All-NBA Teams (3 Points)
T3. Michael Jordan – 11 All-NBA Teams (2 Points)
T3. Bill Russell – 11 All-NBA Teams (2 Points)
When it comes to All-NBA Teams, no player has earned more selections in their career than LeBron James. He has been selected to the First Team 13 times in his career, which is more total selections than two players have on this list. He was also named to the Second Team and Third Team three times, each with four more total selections than our player with the next most selections.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was selected to a total of 15 All-NBA Teams in his career with 10 selections to the First Team, which ranks third in NBA history. Kareem was also named to five Second Teams as well with zero selections for a Third Team. For the last few seasons of his career with the Lakers, Kareem had fallen out of the top center category rather rapidly, and that is what prevented him from the number-one spot.
Bringing up the rear in this category are Michael Jordan and Bill Russell. Each player was selected to a total of nine All-NBA Teams in their careers but have a large discrepancy in the breakdown. Jordan was selected to 10 First Teams in his career, while Russell was selected to only three. Russell rounded his All-NBA career out with eight Second Team selections and Jordan earned only one. With more than double the amount of First Team selections to his name, it might be fair to give Jordan the third-place points, but we won’t.
Most All-Defensive Teams
With All-NBA Teams now out of the way, it is now time we take a look at these four players and what they brought on the defensive side of the ball. Now, Defensive Player of the Year is one thing, but being named as one of the best defenders at your position is definitely a high honor as well. Let’s take a look at what they did in their careers defensively.
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 11 All-Defensive Teams (4 Points)
2. Michael Jordan – 9 All-Defensive Teams (3 Points)
3. LeBron James – 6 All-Defensive Teams (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 1 All-Defensive Team (1 Point)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar picks up his second category win with 11 selections to All-Defensive Teams in his career. This would include five selections to the First Team and six selections to the Second Team in his career. Right behind him is Michael Jordan with nine total selections to the All-Defensive Team in his career. The difference is that all of Jordan’s selections were to the First Team as one of the greatest perimeter defenders in NBA history.
It is safe to say that at 38 years old-plus, LeBron James is done adding to his All-Defensive total moving forward. James accumulated five First Team selections in his career as well as one selection to the Second Team. Once again, Bill Russell gets the short end of the stick in terms of All-Defensive Teams, considering they weren’t introduced until his final season in 1968-69, much like the Finals MVP award. Could you imagine how solid Russell’s GOAT case would be if these things were handed out during his era?
Most All-Star Selections
I would venture to say that of the accolades listed before you today, the most overrated of them all is the All-Star selections. Trust me, it means something to the players and can even earn them a bit of extra money. However, when it comes to the GOAT case, I cannot allow fan bias to enter the argument as it does with All-Star voting.
T1. LeBron James – 19 All-Star Selections (4 Points)
T1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 19 All-Star Selections (4 Points)
3. Michael Jordan – 14 All-Star Selections (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 12 All-Star Selections (1 Point)
When it comes to All-Star selections, the gold standard has been set by both LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Each of these players earned 19 All-Star selections in their careers, which is the NBA record held slightly over Kobe Bryant, who had 18. James is likely to break this record in 2023-24 given the power the fans have in the vote. Plus, what is an All-Star Game without LeBron James?
Michael Jordan earned 14 All-Star selections in 15 seasons in the NBA with both the Bulls and Wizards. Jordan was an All-Star MVP three times as well which is just behind the all-time lead of four. Bill Russell made 12 All-Star Games in 13 seasons in the NBA, with the only exception coming in his rookie season. He won one All-Star Game MVP in 1963 as well.
Total Win Shares
For a more direct measure of impact on team success, we take a look at these four players in terms of the win shares they accumulated over their careers. Win Shares are a general way of looking at this but it is still the only stat that can be linked to one’s impact on the court.
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 273.41 Win Shares (4 Points)
2. LeBron James – 255.14 Win Shares (3 Points)
3. Michael Jordan – 214.02 Win Shares (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 163.51 Win Shares (1 Point)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James are not only our two leaders here today in win shares, but they also are the two leaders in NBA history. Kareem and LeBron are two of only nine players to ever record over 2000 win shares and the only two players to reach 250 win shares in their careers. Kareem led the NBA nine times in win shares, while James led the NBA in win shares five years in a row from 2009 through 2013.
Michael Jordan is also one of those nine players to record at least 200 win shares in their careers, while Bill Russell fell shy with 163.51 in his career. Jordan also led the NBA in win shares nine times but fell short of our leaders due to a shorter career. The same can be said for Bill Russell, who had the shortest career of any player here. He led the NBA in win shares zero times but led the league 11 times in defensive win shares.
PER
Now, we will take a look at these players and their efficiency based on PER. This is the only stat that measures overall efficiency and not just how efficient a player was while shooting the ball. Let’s take a look at the results of our final category.
1. Michael Jordan – 27.91 (4 Points)
2. LeBron James – 27.22 (3 Points)
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 24.58 (2 Points)
4. Bill Russell – 18.9 (1 Point)
In terms of PER, Michael Jordan is the all-time leader in NBA history with a 27.91 career PER. He and LeBron James are two of three players ever with a career PER of over 27.0. In his career, Jordan led the NBA in PER seven times all consecutively from 1987 through 1993. As for James, he can still add to his career PER, but it remains unlikely that he will catch Jordan at this point. He led the NBA in PER six times, also all consecutively from 2008 through 2013.
As for Kareem and Bill Russell, they bring up the rear in this category. Kareem finished with a PER of over 24.5 in his career which ranks 13th in NBA history. Kareem led the NBA in PER nine times all between the years of 1971 and 1981 with the Bucks and Lakers, winning two NBA titles during that time. Bill Russell is the only player on this list with a PER of less than 20.0, having played at a time when the pace of play was at an all-time high. Russell never led the NBA in PER but did record four seasons with a rating above 20.0.
Who’s The GOAT?
The time has come for us to tally up the points based on our system to determine the greatest player in NBA history. We used stats, accolades, and advanced metrics to determine this, so it will be hard to argue against it for sure. Remember, this is not a definitive standing but gives us a great look into where things stand.
T1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 31 Points (4 Categories Won)
T1. Michael Jordan – 31 Points (4 Categories Won)
3. LeBron James – 29 Points (2 Categories Won)
4. Bill Russell – 18 Points (1 Category Won)
Have we been arguing about the wrong two players this entire time? Likely not, but still, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar deserves far more respect when it comes to the NBA GOAT debate. Kareem and Jordan are the only two players to win four categories above, thus both earning 31 points and a tie for first. James took home two and Russell took home one with his 11 NBA championships. This argument is also flawed considering the lack of most of these awards existing during Russell’s time in the NBA.
Is Kareem the GOAT? He has a case that most have seem to have forgotten. Hopefully, this piece opens more eyes to exactly how dominant he was during his peak. I do not mind if you call Kareem the greatest ever. The evidence and resume are both there that back up that claim. Just as I do not mind if you have Michael Jordan, LeBron James, or Bill Russell as your GOAT. At the end of the day, the GOAT debate is all subjective and likely never to come to a real conclusion anytime soon. People like to skew history in order to favor “their guy” which will always be why this argument is as flawed as any debate in sports.
What cannot be denied is each of these four players taking their rightful place in NBA history, which is atop the NBA’s hierarchy of greatest players that ever lived.
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