Allen Iverson caused a big stir recently with his claims about LeBron James being the greatest player of all time. His remarks were misunderstood by some people, as Iverson was still trying to make the case for Michael Jordan as the greatest of all time, but he also praised LeBron James for his quality on the court.
AI had the chance to talk about that recently, making it clear that for him, there is nobody better than His Airness Michael Jordan, one of his best friends in the league. While talking about Kobe Bryant’s position among the elite of the game with Complex, Iverson had big praise for MJ, naming him the GOAT on several occasions.
“I love Kenny Smith, but I don’t know about that one, buddy. Bean was Black Mamba, man. He’s automatically top five. Automatically, when it comes to me. Like, I ain’t never seen nothing, besides Black Jesus [Michael Jordan], amen, I ain’t never seen nothing like it. When people talk about how he basically copied Mike, I mean, why would you copy anybody else? If I was 6’6…I tried to copy Mike, but I’m just six feet. I tried the best that I could to emulate that guy, man, because that was the greatest that I’ve ever seen in my life. That’s why I love The Last Dance. I get to brag. While everybody was watching The Last Dance, I was able to say, “See, I told y’all.” I even saw stuff that I didn’t know, obviously. But it was a great moment for me after it was all over, and I was able to say, ‘See, I told you that he’s the best ever.’
As great as Kobe is, great as LeBron is, [Jordan is] Black Jesus, man. I love some goddamn LeBron James to death. I got a different type of love for LeBron, because I know him in person. He’s a better person than he is a basketball player. I know him, his family, his homeboys, all great dudes. I love Kobe. I didn’t know Kobe like that, but as a basketball player, Kobe was the most vicious. Those three guys, along with Shaq, are like basketball royalty to me.”
Iverson is confident MJ is the best player of all time. He doesn’t throw shade to anybody; instead, he praises big players like Kobe or LeBron but making it clear that nobody is greater than ‘Black Jesus’. MJ earned that reputation with his feats on the court, he is widely considered the greatest player of all time and none of what will change soon.
We’ve seen great players before, during, and after his era, but there is no doubt that Jordan’s impact on the game will be unmatched.
