Despite not being active during the same time period in the NBA, LeBron James and Michael Jordan have one of the biggest rivalries in the league. No, we aren’t talking about a rivalry that features the two playing against each other. Instead, it’s the rivalry of who is the GOAT of basketball.
As of now, Jordan seems to have the majority of the votes in his favor. After all, he had an impeccable record in the NBA Finals and his impact on the NBA was unmatched. Even his longtime rival Charles Barkley accepted that if it weren’t for Mike, his generation wouldn’t even have made money off the sneaker and commercial deals.
On the other hand, we have LeBron James. Even before entering the NBA, LeBron was touted as the next big thing in the NBA. Most players will find themselves buried under so much pressure, but not LeBron. In his amazing career, he has lived up to almost all the expectations set for him before his debut in the league.
But there are many who still do not believe he is the GOAT. The number has seemingly increased since James’ rival Stephen Curry won the fourth ring of his career this season, while the Los Angeles Lakers failed to even qualify for the playoffs.
Either way, this has reignited the narrative that ‘Nobody ate on Jordan’s watch.’ Meaning when MJ was in the league, none of the other great players won rings, but in the case of LeBron, almost everyone has gotten their rings.
Renowned NBA analyst Nick Wright decided to point out what’s wrong with this narrative while seemingly taking a jab at MJ’s legacy as well.
"LeBron James was the dynasty. … We hear, 'Nobody ate on Jordan's watch.' Which is true, as long as you're excluding Kareem, Magic, Worthy, Bird, McHale, Parish, Isiah, Dumars, Hakeem, Drexler, Duncan, Robinson, Shaq, Kobe. Nobody else ate though." — @getnickwright pic.twitter.com/Z5I1t2HwxI
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) June 20, 2022
“The reason the Warriors are a dynasty is because, in an eight-year stretch, they went to six Finals and won four rings. So who else did that during the LeBron James era? Oh wait, LeBron James! LeBron James was the dynasty. … This is what we hear. ‘Nobody ate on Jordan’s watch,’ which is true, as long as you’re excluding Kareem, Magic, Worthy, Bird, McHale, Parish, Isaih, Dumars, Hakeem, Drexler, Duncan, Robinson, Shaq, Kobe. Nobody else ate though, he’s right about that.”
Nick Wright’s counterpoint came after analyst Kevin Wildes claimed that an entire NBA Hall of Fame resume is the separation between LeBron Mike.
Wright might have made a good point about relinquishing the ‘Nobody ate on Jordan’s watch’ narrative. But at the same time, we cannot forget that during MJ’s prime, he went to six NBA Finals and won all six of them.
