Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James needed 36 points to make NBA history on Tuesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
For 38 years, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held the NBA’s all-time scoring record with 38,387 career points.
With 10 seconds left in the third quarter, there was a king who took the top spot with a smooth jump shot.
But a question arose from this historic moment.
Is LeBron James the greatest basketball player ever?
Freshman Teague Helton thinks James is the greatest at one aspect of the game but is not the greatest all-around player.
“I think he’s the greatest pure scorer ever. Like strictly putting the ball in the hoop, he’s the best,” Helton said. “But does that make him the greatest basketball player ever? I don’t think so.”
He looks at more than just scoring to determine his greatest player ever, Helton said.
“Michael Jordan is the greatest of all time,” Helton said. “He was a killer and a champion. I think Jordan’s championships speak to the greatness of his career for sure.”
Freshman Blake Ftacek also believes Jordan’s six championships and dominance in a more physical era elevates him to the No. 1 player in NBA history.
“LeBron is still a top player in Jordan’s era. But as dominant as Jordan was, along with Jordan’s competitiveness, he would have been overshadowed by MJ,” Ftacek said. “MJ overshadowed Bird, Magic, Karl Malone, you name it. He was undeniably the best at any given moment.”
In order to make his decision, freshman Rob Thomas analyzes which players have left the biggest impact on the NBA.
To him, a generation of children wanting to be “like Mike” makes Jordan his top choice.
“Jordan was HIM. He was the Babe Ruth of basketball in how he shaped the NBA to be more flashy like today,” Thomas said.
Thomas said that he compared James to Mickey Mantle and Jordan to Ruth. James may be a fantastic player, but he doesn’t reach the legendary status of Jordan.
Despite recognizing Jordan’s greatness, freshman Mark Robinson is a passionate LeBron fan.
He believes NBA fans shouldn’t overlook how consistently great LeBron has been over his 20-year career.
“There are multiple stats I could say that put him at #1. Most people hate on him saying he’s not that good and only has better stats because he’s been playing for longer,” Robinson said. “But that’s the point. Every single year he’s been one of the best. That doesn’t just happen in the NBA.”
For many years, sports fans have been trying to decide on the NBA’s greatest player ever but have been unable to find an answer.
It seems that Belmont is facing that same problem.
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This article was written by Ty Wellemeyer