Halfway through his second season in the NBA do you think Lebron is ahead of Jordan when he was in his 2nd season?

I thought that I'd bring this up in this forum as well, its not really a part of the ongoing NBA season thread.

Not a fair argument IMO. If you take a look at the calibur of players that were in the NBA at the time Jordan was coming up, it's no where near what it used to be these days.

I think that James is a remarkable player, and can only get better, but I just can't compare his sophomore season to Jordan's because the NBA is drastically different.

It's way too early to even speculate, but LeBron certainly has the potential to surpass Jordan.

Sam Bowie, bitch!!! :bounce:

There's too much sports media these days. This shouldn't even be a question. Start talking about it after Lebron wins a championship.

Lebron appears to be a great player but he has a long way to go before he reaches Jordon status.

Without cheating and looking at his olds, I'm going to go off memory, and say that in Jordan's 2nd season, which was shortened by a broken leg, he averaged 38 points a game, then came back in time for the playoffs to score like 62 pts on the Celtics.

If we're comparing them at similar ages, then yeah, I'd say he's ahead. Obviously as this age, Jordan was playing cards and eating pizzas in between college games.

Kobe is a guy who was more advanced (from a physical standpoint) than Jordan at age 19 through maybe 21, but he's never been as good as Jordan. Reaching your potential at an earlier age really doesn't mean much in terms of "peak awesomeness".

That said, LeBron has the physical ability to be an approximation of Magic Johnson, but with potentially waaaay better defense, and better scoring. From that perspective, maybe he could one day be the best player we've ever seen. I don't think he'd be more beloved than Magic, though. Magic could dazzle people by just standing next to them.

This debate will continue on until Lebron retires. It's just impossible to tell at this point. I think James has a ever so slight edge on the stats at this point in his carreer, but even coming close to conclusion on this won't be practical for another 6 years at least.

James is a phenom for sure and he will be a great player. Whether or not he will ever have a good enough team around him to win a few titles? Only time will tell that. That is what people measure greatness by in sports, it's the rings. Players like Barkley, Ewing, and Malone will always be remembered as great players but they will never measure up to the Bird's the Magic's and the Jordan's because they never won the titles that those guys did. In this day and age where the money seems to matter more than the rings to most players in the NBA it's going to be alot harder for Lebron to capture a championship or two. I would like to see him do it though because I like his game and like his demeanor off the court as well.

You are all missing the point, I meant who was/is better at this stage in their pro career (only 1 1/2 years as a pro).

Jordan didn't win for for a few years after joining the NBA and he was 4 years older than Lebron when he went pro.

I still don't think it's a fair comparison. Jordan had to come up playing against greats like Olajuwan, Ralph Sampson, Karl Malone, Clyde Drexler, Brad Daugherty, Barkley, Magic, Bird, Isiah, etc..

The talent pool is no where near as good as it used to be, and that's no fault of Lebron's. It's just the way it is. So I'm not sure you can fairly say who's better at this stage in their career's when the competition is clearly not what it used to be.

You are all missing the point, I meant who was/is better at this stage in their pro career (only 1 1/2 years as a pro).

I guess you're right, I don't get your point, because Jordan's stats sh*t all over LeBron's after 1.5 seasons. LeBron's stats pick the peanuts out of Jordan's sh*t......that's why I was trying to bail you out, and compare them by age.

Jordan's 1st year:
28 pts 6.5 rebs 6 assists 2.4 steals

Jordan's 2nd full year (his 3rd season....his 2nd season was 7 starts)
37 pts :eek: 5.2 rebs 4.6 assists 2.9 steals :eek:

Mind you, he had LESS talent on his team than LeBron has, and faced TOUGHER competition.

When LeBron drops 60+ pts or 30 assists against the Pistons in the playoffs this Spring, I'll be a believer.

Again....I'm a FAN of LeBron's. Just trying to put this *excellent* young man's very very young career in perspective.

Michael Jordan!!! I am not even a fan of his either! LeBron does not dominate shit yet. Michael forced TEAMS to restructure their defense, forced other teams to play harder etc....ask me in 10 years when it matters (if Lebron stays out of trouble and is still playing AND has won something like a title!)

It's funny how the legacy fades after time.

The stats say it all. MJ was dominant from day one. What took him time to learn was how to make other players elevate their games around him.

One issue that separates MJ from the pack is the intangible nature of his desire and killer instinct. He shares that with Bird, Magic, and many others. But, when you combine that mental piece he brought to the table with his phenomenal athletic ability, you get God dressed up as MJ (in Bird's words).

MJ at 19 was sticking a dagger into the hearts of Georgetown by making a jump shot to win the National Championship. What has Lebron won/done?

Physically, Lebron could absolutely be the best ever. As could Kobe. Or McGrady. They can all PHYSICALLY do the things that MJ could do. It's whether they can put the other aspects of the game - including the sheer WILL to win - together they way he did. Kobe is damn close, but he's not winning the defensive player of the year award, which MJ won. I'm also just not convinced that Kobe will really cut your throat out to win a game. MJ would.