You want your “damn respect,’’ King James?
You got it.
The perennial GOAT argument has gotten beyond stale, and it was seemingly over after the Michael Jordan defense team offered up the “Last Dance’’ documentary as the final piece of evidence months ago, power-walking out of the courtroom as if the case had been won.
But, as he has always done, LeBron James continues to blur the debate.
If there was one major take to come out of the Orlando “bubble’’ and the eventual Lakers championship, it was that while Jordan remains the undisputed late-game scoring assassin of all time, the crown as the greatest all-around basketball player the NBA has ever seen fits snugly on James’ head.
It’s not about the 4-6 Finals record for James. The Jordan acolytes love to throw his 6-for-6 mark out there as their mic drop. Well, then that disqualifies Tom Brady as the NFL’s GOAT with his less-than-perfect 6-3 Super Bowl record. Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana each went 4-0 in their -Super Bowls.
Perfection doesn’t make you the GOAT.
But winning championships with three franchises, completely new sets of teammates and three different coaches and styles of play? Now there’s your greatness.
Selflessness also can’t be ignored in the GOAT argument. Yes, Jordan had the greatest Robin in league history in Scottie Pippen and worked under the same Hall of Fame coach in Phil Jackson and his triangle offense, but it was all about Jordan in the end.
He wanted the last shot, he wanted his brand to be the best and he made sure most of his teammates understood he was the alpha.
James always has been about lifting everyone around him, even in his high school days. He empowers teammates to take critical shots, he turns a Daniel “Boobie’’ Gibson into the second-best player on an Eastern Conference championship team and he can play any style that is asked of him.
But James’ greatness doesn’t end on the court.
No individual in any sport has empowered fellow players like James. No player has been bold enough to speak out on social issues — brand be damned — like James.
There is a mental toughness that comes with selflessness. The Orlando bubble demonstrated that. By Day 20, players were complaining about battling depression and playing poorly as a result. James and the Lakers spent nearly 100 days there before the confetti fell Sunday night.
His play was spectacular; his voice on what was happening in the outside world was powerful.
Whom do you want taking the last shot in the last seconds of a deciding game? Jordan. Never a debate. Whom do you want to be the first building piece of any NBA franchise? James . . . the GOAT.
Here are four more takeaways now that the Orlando bubble has been emptied, scrubbed and cleaned:
• Forget about the old Bulls regime never fully understanding Jimmy Butler’s talent. The bigger sin is it didn’t understand how to embrace his leadership style.
Butler’s younger teammates in Miami flocked to his tough-love mentality, but the younger players with the Bulls cried to management when they were called out.
The response? Punish the messenger rather than support the message. The -Finals vividly reminded us of Butler’s basketball talent, but they also showed just how soft the Bulls were as an organization before the swamp was drained this year.
• MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo wants a title and knows it won’t be with the Bucks. While the Heat and Mavericks have already been back-channeling their way into the discussion as possible landing places, the Bulls need to be on the phone offering up Zach LaVine, the No. 4 pick in next month’s draft and Lauri Markkanen or Wendell Carter Jr. ASAP.
• Adam Silver is by far better at his job than any other commissioner running a major sport.
• The impressive showing by the Nuggets should serve notice to all Bulls fans — a return to deep playoff runs is coming -under executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas.
Trust the process.
