[ad_1]
Jeff Teague explained what Michael Jordan was missing from his game that LeBron James excels at.
The GOAT debate between Michael Jordan and LeBron James is one of the most intensely argued topics in the sport.
LeBron James is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer entering his 23rd season. He has remained at the sport’s summit for an unprecedented length of time. Meanwhile, Michael Jordan’s ’90s run, winning six championships and six Finals MVPs, was one of the most dominant eras the league has seen.
James and Jordan have contrasting approaches to the sport, making the comparison a fascinating insight into how people view basketball. Former NBA All-Star Jeff Teague weighed in and explained what James’ game has over Jordan’s.
Michael Jordan couldn’t elevate a team, says Jeff Teague
While James has scored more points than anyone in the league’s history, he isn’t a score-first player. He prides himself on his playmaking; his ability to run an offense from the point and make his teammates better.
Teague, on the Club 520 Podcast, said that is something that separates James from Jordan. He said, “He enjoyed throwing fancy passes more than he did scoring. When he was in high school, when he threw a fancy pass, he would get hype. I think he got more of a kick out of that than scoring the basketball.
“I think that’s what makes him so great is that he can elevate teams. You know how I feel about Kevin Durant, I think he’s one of the best players ever, but I don’t think he has the ability to take a questionable team and elevate them dudes to a certain level.”
Teague said only the best players of all time have the ability to raise the level of their teammates. He continued, “You’ve gotta be generational. That’s what made Chris Paul special; that’s what made LeBron very special. It’s a rare few people that can just do that.
“Even Mike couldn’t do that. He really didn’t make people better. He challenged some other people to get better. He challenged Scottie like, ‘You gotta be stronger, you gotta be this.’ He led by example.”
Jordan was one of the great leaders in NBA history. For six seasons, he put the Chicago Bulls on his back and led them to the championship, pushing his teammates off the court. But on the court, it was score-first.
He gave up the ball in crucial moments, including for Steve Kerr’s iconic game-winner in the 1997 NBA Finals, but Jordan simply approached the game differently than James.
Jeff Teague agrees with Austin Rivers’ Michael Jordan opinion
Austin Rivers said Jordan was a better scorer than James, even though James is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. He said, “If Michael played 20-something years, he would probably be number one in scoring.”
The argument was put to Austin Rivers that James was a more efficient scorer, but he said that efficiency is a construct of the modern NBA, and players in the 90s didn’t worry as much about shooting percentages.
Teague agreed with Rivers’ take. He said, “He’s 100% accurate, though. We didn’t care how many shots Iverson took, or Kobe, or whoever it was. If they shot 40 shots but had 45 points. It was the moments.
“If they got hot in the fourth and they won the game, that’s what we remembered. We didn’t care that they missed their first 15 shots.”
To his point, in Kobe Bryant’s iconic final game, where he scored 60 points, he shot the ball 50 times. No one remembers, and no one cares. Sometimes it’s best to strip back the numbers, and enjoy the moments.
[ad_2]
Source link
