Thursday, October 4th, 2012 at 2:05 pm  |  126 responses

Charles Barkley Says LeBron James Can Be Better Than Michael Jordan


Charles Barkley has always bristled at the very idea that anyone could match (let alone surpass) his good friend Michael Jordan. But Sir Charles seems to have had a change of heart, and is now convinced that LeBron James could become better than MJ. Per the Sun-Sentinel (via NBATV’s “Open Court”, which resumes next Tuesday): “Barkley on LeBron James comparisons to Michael Jordan: ‘I do think he can be better than Michael. I thought I would never compare somebody to Michael Jordan. But this guy, LeBron James, he does everything well. Michael did everything well. LeBron James is just bigger, stronger, faster. That’s the only difference.’ [Shaquille O’Neal] on James’ future: ‘Unfortunately for LeBron, now that the monkey is off his back, he is going to be compared to two people: Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan. So now the question is how many championships can he get? We all know he is a competitor.’”

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  • SKemp

    Let the discussion begin!

  • Redd

    No, just no. Lebron did it with 2 other stars coming together, he couldn’t do it with creating a star or consistent, major role player alongside him. Lebron also doesn’t give you the moments that Jordan did. Jordan captivated you, like Ali did. He sucked you into the moment, you stopped breathing & once the moment left you realized how magnificent he is.

    So no, this is dumb. Kobe nor Lebron will ever come close.

  • mario chalmers

    theres never better any doubt that he is the most gifted basketball player to ever live. so to say he COULD pass up jordan is nothing new. From a mental aspect of the game, i personally dont think hell have what it takes to get to 6 rings. which seems to be the consensus of what hell need to be in that discussion

  • Reedan

    And y’all thought Pollen was crazy when he said it last year.

  • reedan

    Pippen (damn corrector)

  • Mike

    Having the mental ability to work through adversity on and off the court, is just as important (if not more important) than having the physical ability. With that said, I don’t think you can compare the two until the resume’s are comparable, and Jordan has two more mvp’s, 5 more championships, a defensive player of the year award, 5 more finals MVPs and many more accolades to go. So in the meantime everyone: pump the brakes.

  • 1982

    I agree. But as far as potential? The sky’s the limit.

  • mike

    Potential? The guy has maintained the same level of play for years, hasn’t really gone up or down. His jump shot and free-throws are still a liability, and he’s one of the biggest floppers in the NBA. I’d like to see what effect this has on his ability to win games without needing the whistle too much.

  • mike

    and he’s turning 28, it’s not like the dude is 24 and accumulating all these awards. He will slow down considerably in his early 30′s.

  • Conor

    LeBron James is, inevitably, going to be a top ten talent within basketball’s history. There are many others, however, who are/were more skilful/talented than James is: Bird, Bryant, Magic, Jordan, and McGrady (not top ten-level, but more skilled) are among them, imo.

  • Conor

    Among those listed, only Bryant & Jordan were ever comparable, defensively, to James. And that’s what I believe separates them from the others. Masterclass on both fronts. James isn’t as, good man-on-man, as the other two.

  • RKJ92

    sucha hater! get outta here!! he wasnt talking about “THE MOMENTS, AND CAPTIVATING YOU” he’s talking about his overall attributes and skill level.. if your going to be biast dont bother commenting.

  • I SLAP HIPSTERS – HARD

    Individually, he can be better than MJ but it all comes down to how many championships you won and individual records you have set.

  • zogs19994

    …MAYBE SKILLED……… YOUNG KOBE IMO, WAS “MORE SKILLED”….
    BUT….
    LEBRONS A LIL BITCH AND WILL NEVER BE GOAT

  • zogs19994

    NO!

  • zogs19994

    FIGNUTON!!!

  • bike

    Key word is ‘can’. I don’t think LeBron has – or ever will have – the same level of comptetive drive that Jordan had. Just have to wait and see.

  • zogs19994

    FAGGOT (damn corrector)

  • http://twitter.com/sooperfadeaway nbk

    at this age, Jordan just lost to the Pistons in the conference finals….again. And all people were saying was that he would never be Magic Johnson.
    .
    Saying it’s not going to happen just sets history up to repeat itself. It can still happen, LeBron is in better position than anyone has been since Jordan retired to catch him. It’s a blatant fact. When you are 27 with 3 MVPs, a ring, and a finals MVP compared to Jordan at 27 who had 1 MVP, 1DPOY, and no rings.

  • MUBWAR

    he can get 2 more with this team as currently constructed. he should also focus on getting the

  • 1982

    He’s one year behind MJ as far as championships and MJ developed his post game about 3-4 years after. The word potential refers o what he can improve and whether or not he has the ability to do it, not what you’ve seen from him so far. And I disagree, he’s gotten a lot better IMO in almost every facet.

  • Sean B

    What he said is all subjective anyway… I have certainly been captivated by all of LeBron’s recent moments… even the epic failures from 2009-2011 that eventually lead him to be successful in 2012.

  • mike

    Fine, but he’s not winning 5 more championships in his career. There’s a team down in OKC that are very young and very talented. Maybe you’ve heard of them?

  • Da-Meat-Hook

    Pippen in his prime was leaps and bounds better than the hobbled Wade in last year’s playoffs. Throw in the fact that Bosh got hurt in the first game of the 2nd round. Wade is a mega star and Bosh is an all-star when healthy, but neither were healthy in last year’s playoff run. I’m not saying Barkley’s right, but let’s not act like Lebron coattailed his way to a ring last year. The man lead his team in every significant statistical category.

  • vaze7789

    ok hater

  • Junior Taylor

    LeBron has to become the best player at his position all-time (Bird still is the best SF) before worrying about being better than the greatest non-center in League History.

  • revmike

    That’s rubbish!!! How many people have locked up D Rose in the 4th quarter of a playoff game? My point exactley!

  • revmike

    And Jordan didn’t have a stacked team? Lol!

  • Teddy-the-Bear

    Would you actually rank Kareem ahead of Jordan though? I don’t know…

  • Junior Taylor

    I would but to each it’s own. I don’t have a problem with those (seems like everyone) that have MJ as the GOAT.

  • Redd

    Jordan had a team of 2 other allstars joining him?

  • Redd

    Bias? You mean having about every sports fan agreeing with me? Lol ok, sure. You’re an idiot. And raptors suck sit down.

  • Redd

    Not even going to argue with you cause I respect your opinion always. But again, statistics aside, Jordan was the more exciting player. He didn’t have the physical assets Lebron does.

  • Redd

    Really? You’re one of a very few..

  • danpowers

    kobe, t-mac and vince couldve also probably been better than jordan. but they werent. same with bron. he is a great guy anway

  • http://twitter.com/sooperfadeaway nbk

    nobody judges best player ever on how exciting they were though lol – and nobody discounts guys for their physical assets. I mean you can look at Wilt and Shaq being in most historians top 8 (SLAM’s top 5) all time as evidence that physical assets don’t hurt legacy. All people care about in the end, is success, dominance, & circumstances. — What I think it separate Jordan from LeBron if he does ever “catch up” will be the fact that Jordan won 6 championships despite sitting out 1-1/2 seasons that were right at the height of his powers. — I mean i totally agree with you that LeBron probably won’t catch Jordan. But he definitely has a great chance.

  • Junior Taylor

    At the same point in their careers, LeBron has a better chance than either one of those cats at matching MJ’s brilliance (not saying he will but you never know)

  • Brion

    I hear what your saying, but Lebron has already given me “the moments” like last year, Boston game 6, facing elimination, wondering if he was going to miss a shot the whole game!

  • shockexchange

    LeBron, don’t let the media hype cause you to lose your focus. Keep trying to master the Shock Exchange’s “LeBron Rules … Keys to Stopping LeBron James” and everything else will take care of itself.

  • danpowers

    true but this chance is like saying “the phoenix suns have a better shot at winning the nba championship this year than the detroit pistons”. whenever old legends bring this goat talk up they rather seek attention for themselves than actually making a reasonable statement

  • Spaceship Jay

    Sigh; Won’t catch up, nobody will catch up from a defensive and shooting percentage standpoint; plus Lebron’s story is already tainted, because he’s a part of a fickle American society in which it isn’t really the fact that it’s done. It’s how you do it.

  • 23

    It depends how you consider somebody better. Are accolades like MVPs and individual awards important? Are championships the 99% deciding factor? Or is it just what a player is able to provide you on any given night? I go with the last one. And in that sense LeBron is just as good as anybody ever. But i know I’m a minority in thinking that way. Most everybody considers team Championships as the only true measuring suck of an individual player.

  • 23

    It depends how you consider somebody better. Are accolades like MVPs and individual awards important? Are championships the 99% deciding factor? Or is it just what a player is able to provide you on any given night? I go with the last one. And in that sense LeBron is just as good as anybody ever. But i know I’m a minority in thinking that way. Most everybody considers team Championships as the only true measuring suck of an individual player. And in that way of thinking, Lebron wont reaxh a “jordan type level”

  • 23

    When it comes to individual records Lebron will finish with PLENTY of those

  • http://twitter.com/sooperfadeaway nbk

    it’s not that LeBron has a chance, it’s that at 27, LeBron is better than Jordan was.

  • 23

    That statement kinda fogs up your credibility. You only consider a player great if he’s fun or exciting to watch? That’s opinion man. Its obvious that people like you have Jordan on a godlike level and nobody will ever be good enough to dethrone him because he is the original. Favorite player and Greatest player arent the same thing. Therefore you shouldn’t judge them the same way.

  • RKJ92

    Bro your actually useless. your like Skip Bayless behind a keyboard running your mouth all day long without anything valuable to add to a conversation. where do you get your facts about everyone agreeing with you? where do you get your facts that im an idiot? you have 0 credibility and no respect. enough said.

  • danpowers

    james was better individually until the age of 26. the advanced stats of both are pretty even till that time by jordan having the better individual traditional stats but james being more successful and more of a leader. james won a championship now but by then you could argue that jordan didnt have a good team around him. at least nothing close to james’ heat and id even say james cavs supporting cast was better than jordans bulls of his early carreer. actually jordans per and win shares are higher than james’. its like the age of 27 when jordan finally surpassed james individually.

  • LakeShow

    Man that is NOT true….
    More accolades fine.
    Better? HELL NO.
    Forgive me for going all Unfrozencavemanlawyer on you, but noooo man.

  • RKJ92

    EXACTLY what I just said not even 5 minutes ago he can never add anything credible or valuable to a conversation he’s always biast and blatently rude.

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