The fact that people even dare to mention LeBron James and “His Airness” in the same sentence is an insult to the greatest basketball player to ever live. James is widely considered to be the best player in the game today and can certainly make a case as the most athletic player to ever take to the hard court, but he pales in comparison when stacked against the likes of Michael Jordan. On paper, his stats are comparable and his trophy case is growing by the year, but, as everyone well knows, basketball games are not played on paper.

James lacks the intangibles that comprised Jordan’s resume. The competitive drive, passion, leadership, integrity and general gamesmanship that Jordan brought every night for 48 minutes made him the icon that he still is.

Everyone remembers the famous flu game, game five of the 1997 NBA finals when Scottie Pippen carried Jordan off the floor after securing a Bulls victory. Jordan played 44 of 48 minutes and scored 38 points that night. This performance is the epitome of sheer willpower and competitive spirit. Jordan put the good of the team before himself constantly, something that James will never do.

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James is the recipient of special treatment from officials in ways that no other player enjoys. He consistently gets away with traveling as well as fouling other players. Every questionable call goes his way, and when they don’t, he gets up in the official’s face and throws a fit. This action would typically result in a technical foul being called for any other player, but not “King” James. To those that would argue all superstars get preferential treatment from referees, Jordan averaged 2.6 fouls per game in his career, while James is averaging only 1.97, the lowest of any player in history. The difference in averages may seem minute, but multiply them out over a career and the totals are not close.

On the other hand, James gets a foul call every time a player touches him and sometimes even when they don’t. James can be seen “flopping” on plenty of occasions. It’s not enough that he already has the officials in his pocket; he must also pretend to get fouled and fall down when no one touches him. Jordan would never even think about “acting” his way to the free-throw line. He wanted to win more than anything, but he would have never considered cheating to win a championship.

James’ integrity as a basketball player is pathetic. Jordan is the American god of dedication, hard work and perseverance. James is not fit to be his footstool. The “chosen” tattoo that he has etched across his back says it all. He doesn’t think he needs to earn a spot in history; he thinks that he deserves it by virtue of self-entitlement.

The only argument that James’ supporters can make is through statistical analysis. Since James is still playing and Jordan’s days of lacing up are but a fond memory, the only fair way to conduct statistical analysis is to use data up to the day that each player turned 29 (James’ current age).

James has four MVP awards and has won two championships. At the same age, Jordan had only won two of his five MVPs and only one of his six championships. Also, out of the five major statistical categories, James has a substantial lead in points, rebounds and assists, and a marginal lead in blocks. The 29-year-old Jordan held a commanding lead in the steals department.

Possibly the most important number is disregarded. The number of games played by each up to the age of 29 is heavily in James’ favor. James has played in 794 contests compared to 559 for Jordan. James went straight to the NBA out of high school and Jordan went to UNC for three years. Also Jordan missed all but 18 games of his second season due to a broken ankle.

For any doubters that still think James is comparable to Jordan, don’t forget Jordan won two NBA Slam Dunk titles and only Jordan was able to free the Looney Tunes from an evil race of cartoon aliens.

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All levity aside, this comparison has been a hotly debated topic in the basketball world since James first entered the league. It has been thrown back into the spotlight somewhat after James responded to an interview question asking him to name four players that belong on an NBA version of Mount Rushmore. James listed Jordan, “Magic” Johnson, Larry Bird and Oscar Robertson as his four elites, but made sure to add thoughts on his own legacy.

“I’m going to be one of the top four that’s ever played this game, for sure,” James told NBA TV. “And if they don’t want me to have one of those top four spots, they’d better find another spot on that mountain. Somebody’s gotta get bumped, but that’s not for me to decide. That’s for the architects.”

Perhaps James shouldn’t invest in any mountain-climbing gear just yet, because he will never supplant Jordan as the greatest of all time.

Zach McGinnis can be reached at [email protected] or 536-3311 ext. 254