As LeBron James approaches the acquisition of his fourth Championship, the NBA community finds themselves re-assessing his claim to the throne. For years, James has fought from behind in the GOAT conversation — second to Michael Jordan — but with another ring, it could be what he needs to finally pull ahead.
Unfortunately, not everyone agrees.
On ESPN’s First Take, Stephen A. Smith explained one of the reasons why he will never rank LeBron above Jordan: the softness of this current era.
“Eras matter and what I find most egregious, most blasphemous about Isiah Thomas’ statement is that he ignores the era he’s playing in, as far as I’m concerned. It was very physical, it was very volatile, it was an era made for the Kendrick Perkins of the world, for crying out loud.
I’m talking about banging bodies, Jordan rules, people getting assaulted and only called for a foul, as opposed to today where you can get ejected for having bad breath. LeBron James is 6-9, 260 pounds — is playing in the softest era we have ever seen in NBA basketball.”
I believe @KingJames is playing in the SOFTEST era we have ever seen. pic.twitter.com/Xpb2VJp32V
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) October 8, 2020
For reference, here is what Isiah Thomas said on the subject earlier today:
“The best and most “complete” player I have seen in my lifetime is LeBron James on and off the floor. He passed the eye test and the numbers confirm what my eyes have seen in every statistical category. Goat let it be known!”
– Isiah Thomas on LeBron James pic.twitter.com/MOWwWjpAnI
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 8, 2020
Stephen A. makes a great point. Should Jordan not get more credit for his career considering how much harder it was to dominate offensively back then? The physicality of the NBA back then made it so much harder to score, especially over the course of an entire season.
Still, some believe today’s NBA isn’t too far from that…
“You forget that LeBron and I started in 2003. The league wasn’t soft then [in 2003]. They still had Gary Payton, they still had Shaquille O’Neal, they still had Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace, they still had some rough riders. The league wasn’t was back then what it is today.”
My separator from Bron and everybody else is PRESSURE. Goat expectations from day 1 at 18 years old,carry the city from day, comparisons to legends from day 1. All expectations EXCEEDED!
Carry on… pic.twitter.com/kzTXbL4qp0
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) October 8, 2020
It’s a debate that will seemingly never end, even if Bron goes on to win Game 5. Soft era or not, LeBron can only be responsible for what he can control. And while he may never be the undisputed GOAT, credit must be given for making the most of his surroundings.
