Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas recently made a claim that Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird could defeat LeBron James in a hypothetical 1-on-1 game.
Arenas claimed James’ playing style has never been focused on 1-on-1 games, and that’s why he chose Bird over him. But NBA legend Dennis Rodman strongly disagreed with Arenas’ assessment. Rodman explained his thoughts in a recent interview with VladTV.
“Should I leave? What?” Rodman said. “Okay, I’ll put it this way. If Larry Bird played in this era, I think he’d be in Europe. I’m just letting you know, man. He’d be somewhere over there. His game was fit for Boston at that time, in the ’80s and stuff like that. But in today’s world – Oh, hell no! There’s no way. I’m not downplaying him, ’cause he was a great player at that time, just like I was, but I’m saying no, there is no way.”
Rodman added: “I think the kid from Denver [Nikola Jokic] is way better than him. Oh, my God, he is slow as hell. Okay, so, but that guy got a game. I think he is better than Larry Bird. In this day and age, yeah. … Compare him to Larry Bird, I think people pick him.”
(Starts at 0:49)
Larry Bird dominated the game of basketball during the 1980s. He led the Celtics to three NBA Champions in 1981, 1984, and 1986, respectively. He won three consecutive MVP awards from 1984 to 1986. For his career, Bird averaged 24.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG, and 6.3 APG.
Rodman mentioned that he’s not downplaying Bird’s achievements, but the differences in eras would be too much for the Celtics legend. There’s proof that LeBron James’ worst version is still on the same level as prime Larry Bird.
Dennis Rodman Once Claimed LeBron James Would Be An Average Player In The ’80s And ’90s
Dennis Rodman may sound high on LeBron James right now, but that wasn’t the case in 2013.
Rodman made an appearance on the ‘Dan Patrick Show’ in 2013 and made a huge claim about James’ legacy if he played in the late 1980s or the early 1990s. The Worm said James would be just an average player.
“If LeBron was playing in the late ’80s and early ’90s, he would be just an average player,” Rodman said.
(Starts at 2:27)
All things considered, comparing players from two different eras is always something that intrigues fans. But at the end of the day, there’s no way for us to get a concrete answer to these hypothetical debates.
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