Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James believes he’s the greatest NBA player of all-time, after winning the 2016 NBA Finals over the Warriors
There’s no question that LeBron James has had some hiccups, some moments to forget if you will, over the course of his NBA career.
Most of that is highlighted by the dud of a performance that he put on in 2010 against the Dallas Mavericks. However, for the most part, he’s been one of the better players to ever play the game of basketball. And when his career is over and done with, he’ll be in most people’s unanimous top 5, if not at the top.
In his mind, though, he believes that he’s officially the greatest to ever play. Considering his respect for Michael Jordan, and the fact that he still has a few more years to play, that’s a bold statement to make.
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LeBron believes that after beating the 72-win Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals, he deserves to be the greatest. After all, he, and the Cavs, beat arguably the greatest team ever assembled. It’s not without merit. There were many experts proclaiming that Warriors team was the greatest ever assembled.
LeBron beat them in 7, and on the biggest stage. Here is his exact quote on the matter, via ESPN.
"When LeBron James reflects on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ first NBA title in 2016, he says that accomplishment allowed him to think of himself as the best player in the game.“That one right there made me the greatest player of all time,” James said in Episode 7 of the eight-part ESPN+ series More Than An Athlete."
The argument against LeBron perhaps being the greatest player of all-time really begins and ends with rings. LeBron is the best talent to ever player the game, and has no real weakness in his game. Earlier in his career, it was his outside shooting but even that has flipped on a dime recently.
When he was at his prime – and there’s a case to make that he still is at this point – he had an uncanny ability to impact the game on multiple fronts, on both sides of the floor.
He could play everything from the point guard to the center position, if needed, and wouldn’t be a liability at all. LeBron might not be the unanimous greatest player of all-time, but it’s hard to argue against it. He’s one of a kind, and when he’s gone perhaps we’ll all appreciate him all the more.