Crazy as it may seem, evenbefore he made it to the NBA in 2003, people were already talking about whether LeBron James was destined to become the greatest player of all-time ahead of Michael Jordan.
Fast forward 18 seasons and people still question who the GOAT is. Some believe that Michael Jordan is the undisputed deserver of that distinction, while others add that LeBron James has already done enough to take him down.
Needless to say, these subjectivedebates are unlikely to be settled any time soon. However, NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal claims that he knows just what James needs to do if he wants to put this conversation to an end.
Shaquille O’Neal Says LeBron James Must Tie Michael Jordan In Rings To Be The GOAT
According to The Big Diesel, LeBron James needs to tie Michael Jordan in rings and win at least 6 NBA Championships. Then, and only then, his haters will have nothing else to call him out for:
“I think LeBron James is looking to tie Kobe and tie Jordan with championships.If he tied Mike, I think people will probably lean a little bit more towards LeBron being the best player in the world. He already passed Kobe and Jordan in points (…) he’s gonna be creeping on Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] too. I think he’s looking to pass Kareem,” Shaq said on the All Things Covered podcast.
Well, that makes sense. The biggest knock on James has always been his losing record in the NBA Finals, so perhaps tying Michael Jordan in silverware would be just enough to finally be the unanimous GOAT.
At the end of the day, true basketball fans won’t engage in these kinds of debates. I mean, what’s important is to witness and enjoy greatness while you still can, regardless of who’s better than who.
