On Friday, former NBA player Scottie Pippen said that he thinks LeBron James, not Pippen's former teammate Michael Jordan, might be the best overall basketball player ever.
"Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game," the Hall of Famer said on ESPN Radio. "But I may go as far as to say LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game because he is so potent offensively that not only can he score at will but he keeps everybody involved.
"You have to be on your P's and Q's on defense. No guy on the basketball court is a threat to score with LeBron James out there. Not only will LeBron dominate from the offensive end as well, but he's also doing it on the defensive end, which really makes him the complete package. He's able to get in those passing lanes, shoot those gaps and create transition opportunities where he is pretty much unstoppable."
Visit Hollywood Collectibles today to own your very own authentic LeBron James memorabilia!
Horace Grant, who won three titles with Jordan and the Bulls from 1991 to 1993, was surprised by Pippen's comment and said that he totally disagrees.
"Pip is my man, and we will always be close but I totally disagree," said Grant on Friday. "LeBron is going to be one of the top players to ever play the game. But Michael Jeffrey Jordan, who we bumped heads with at times, is I think in my era, the best who ever played the game.
"I'm kind of at a loss for words because Michael Jordan ... when you win numerous MVPs and you've taken the team to six championships -- and probably could have been eight if he didn't retire those two years -- and MVPs in the playoffs ... and he made us better.
"Believe me, he made myself, Scottie, B.J. [Armstrong], even Bill Cartwright who I love, he made us better players. He gave us that confidence. But first we had to earn his trust. And once we earned his trust you saw championship after championship."
Visit Hollywood Collectibles today to own your very own authentic Michael Jordan memorabilia!
Pippen, who won 6 NBA Finals rings while playing for the Bulls with Jordan, tweeted the following message on Friday: "For all of you that don't know, I played the game you keep watching and cheering."
Not long after, he sent out another tweet that seemed to have him backpedaling just a bit.
"Don't get me wrong," wrote Pippen. "MJ was and is the greatest. But LeBron could by all means get to his level someday."
(Sources: ESPN.com)
Hollywood Collectibles is a long-time leader in the sports memorabilia industry and your one-stop shop for all basketball memorabilia.
Released On: 6/22/2011
Views: 8320
Released On: 6/22/2011
Views: 8185
Miami Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington says that he will skip the 2011 NFL season so that he can recover from injuries. And since he will have no playing obligations, Pennington has signed up to serve as an analyst for Fox Sports.
Released On: 6/21/2011
Views: 7646
Rafael Nadal, the defending champion of Wimbledon, won the first match of this year's Wimbledon on Monday by defeating American player Michael Russell 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.
Released On: 6/21/2011
Views: 4803
Released On: 6/21/2011
Views: 5918
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 5343
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 6285
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 5762
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 5584
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 5962
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 6585
Released On: 6/16/2011
Views: 6049
Released On: 6/15/2011
Views: 6649
Released On: 6/15/2011
Views: 6204