Well, Bill Russell, obviously--the man has 11 rings and is considered by many to be the greatest defender, if not the greatest player, of all-time. Larry Bird was another no-brainer.
Cousy's in because even now, 50 years after his last game, he's still regarded as one of the best point guards in basketball history. He led the league in assists eight straight seasons and, along with Russell, was instrumental in building the Celtics' dynasty of the late '50s/early 60's.
The last spot is a really tough call. Hondo spent his entire 16 year career with the C's and has that signature moment from the 1965 Eastern Conference Finals. He's also the franchise leader in games, minutes, field goals made, field goals attempted, and points scored. Pierce leads in three pointers made and taken, free throws made and taken, and is second in points/points per game. They were about equal as scorers and were also good passers, rebounders, and defenders.
It's really close--splitting hairs--made even tougher by the fact that I never saw Havlicek play. But I'll give the nod to Hondo, who played his whole career with Boston and helped raise eight championship banners.
Six years after it began, the second Big Three era in Boston has officially come to an end.
A few months from now Doc Rivers, the team's head coach for nine seasons, will be drawing up alley oops for Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, the greatest Celtics since Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, will be suiting up for the Brooklyn Nets. And Ray Allen, who broke Reggie Miller's career three-point record with the Celts, will be back with the Miami Heat helping them gun for their third straight NBA championship.
The thought of all that, of Pierce and KG not retiring with the Celtics, of Rivers coaching against them, of Allen helping LeBron James instead of hurting him, is hard for me to wrap my head around. It shouldn't, because this day was a long time coming. Danny Ainge said over and over that he wasn't going to repeat Red Auerbach's mistake of keeping McHale and Bird into their golden years instead of trading them when they still had value. Red's unwillingness to break up the original Big Three (along with the death of Len Bias and not getting Tim Duncan in the '97 draft) was a big reason why the team went 21 years between Finals appearances.
Ainge took that lesson to heart. There's no room for sentimentality in sports. When the time came, he'd do what needed to be done, no matter how much it hurt.
So now, with his stars approaching the twilight phases of their careers and the team in a state of transition, he pulled the trigger on a pair of blockbuster trades to reshape his roster and start preparing for life after Pierce, Garnett, and Allen.
Still, a small part of me didn't want to let them go. I wanted to see Pierce and Garnett play their last games wearing the Celtics green. I wanted Doc to guide them through the rebuilding process. I wanted a chance to say good-bye.
Now, all that's left of the Big Three is the memories, the fondest of which have been fading for quite some time.
There was the title year of 2008, when the Celtics were just as good as everyone thought they'd be. Boston's new super-team ran roughshod over the league, winning 66 regular season games and hoisting the franchise's 17th Finals trophy on the Parquet floor in June after thoroughly dismantling Kobe Bryant's Lakers. At the time it felt like we were witnessing the birth of the next Celtics dynasty, when in reality it was just the beginning of a prolonged hunt for that elusive 18th title.
Then came the much-anticipated title defense of 2009, as Boston looked to become the franchise's first repeat champions since Bill Russell's 1968-'69 teams. They probably would have done it, too, had they not lost Kevin Garnett to a season-ending knee injury in February, forcing them to lean heavily on Brian Scalabrine and Glen Davis during the playoffs.
That was followed by the crushing near-miss of 2010, when the Celtics went up 3-2 in their finals rematch with the Lakers, only to have Kendrick Perkins' knee explode in Game 6 and blow a 13 point third quarter lead in Game 7. In 2011 Perkins was traded to the Thunder for Jeff Green, dealing an emotional blow to a team that felt like it would have beaten the Lakers had Perkins remained healthy. Demoralized and depleted, they were bounced from the first round by Miami's juggernaut and seemed to be finished as serious championship contenders.
But in 2012, the Celtics made everyone believe again. Dismissed as too old and slow, they somehow willed themselves to within one win of the NBA Finals before the Heat snuffed out their hopes for one last shot at a title. The Celtics had no business getting that far, but they defied the odds and penned a heartwarming postseason story. Perhaps with the right moves, they'd be able to fight Father Time for another year and keep their championship window open just a bit longer.
We didn't know it at the time, but that was the beginning of the end. It started when Ray Allen--the greatest pure shooter of all time--defected to the Miami Heat for less money. He felt disrespected after Ainge tried to trade him (twice) and brought in Jason Terry. At the end of the day, money wasn't everything, especially for a man who'd earned nearly $200 million of it. Allen knew joining forces with James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh greatly improved his chances of winning another ring. Sure enough, Allen got the last laugh when he helped the Heat clinch another NBA title.
Back in Boston, Terry and Courtney Lee weren't the answer and the team's playoff hopes went up in smoke when Rajon Rondo shredded his ACL in late January. Ainge missed a prime opportunity to tear the team apart at the trading deadline, instead deciding to hold out and explore his options after the season. To their credit, the resilient C's fought on without Rondo, hanging tough with the New York Knicks for six games in the first round. However, it was obvious the once proud Celtics had deteriorated into a .500 team, good enough to make the playoffs but not nearly talented enough to compete for a championship. Drastic changes were required.
Rivers saw the writing on the wall and jumped ship. He made it clear that he didn't want to stay, essentially forcing his way out of town a la Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony. He turned his back on a front office that stuck with him during the rough times early in his tenure and recently made him the league's highest paid coach. In return, all the Celtics could fetch for him was an unprotected first round pick in 2015, not Eric Bledsoe and/or DeAndre Jordan as they originally hoped.
I hate the manner in which Rivers left Boston, bailing out with three years left on his contract, but if he couldn't commit to the rebuilding process then he wasn't the right man for the job. You don't want to be here? Fine. Go. Good riddance. Besides, I've always felt that he's better handling veterans than he is with fostering the growth of young players (not that there were many of those in recent years). The Celtics would benefit from a new voice on the bench, a patient coach willing to put the work in now and reap the rewards later.
That said, the Clippers are lucky to have Rivers, a spiritual leader who connected with his players and always seemed to squeeze the most out of them. He's also the best coach in the league when it came to drawing up plays out of time outs. Rivers represents a significant upgrade over Vinny Del Negro, whose incompetence has prevented the Clippers from reaching their full potential these past two years. With Rivers at the helm, LA looks like a serious championship contender.
So do the Nets, who now boast a starting five of Pierce, Garnett, Joe Johnson, Deron Williams, and Brook Lopez. Pierce and Garnett are old, but they can still play at a high level. The future Hall of Famers are much better than the men they'll replace: Kris Humphries and Gerald Wallace.
The Celtics, on the other hand, aren't going to raise that 18th championship banner anytime soon. Realistically, it'd be in their best interest to tank this season and land a top draft slot in next year's draft, which is shaping up to be one of the best in years. The last time they tried that they missed out on Kevin Durant and Greg Oden, but ended up trading for Allen and Garnett so everything worked out.
In the meantime, Boston is officially Rajon Rondo's team, which I suspect is how he always wanted it to be. They've been his team at various points in recent seasons, especially during the playoffs, but now they're really his team. He'll have to make the most out of a less than stellar supporting cast--Humphries, Wallace, Jared Sullinger, and Avery Bradley--but the onus is on him to elevate his game (read: scoring) and play like the superstar he's shown himself capable of being when he wants to be (aka national TV Rondo).
Boston fans can only hope he gets along better than the new coach than he did with Rivers. Otherwise, it won't be long before he gets pushed out the door, too.
Pierce reacts as the Celtics cruise to a 21-point win over the Lakers
The Boston Celtics have been up and down all season long, but who would have expected them to hit their stride mere seconds after losing star point guard Rajon Rondo to a season-ending ACL tear?
Well, um, not me. That's for sure.
The day Rondo was declared done for the year, Boston outlasted the Miami Heat in a double-overtime thriller. They spoiled Ray Allen's return to the Garden nearly two weeks ago and haven't lost since, despite losing promising rookie Jared Sullinger for the remainder of the season to back surgery.
In that time, they've taken down the defending NBA champions/top team in the Eastern Conference and both LA teams--the Chris Paul-less Clippers (who reportedly want Kevin Garnett) and Lakers minus Pau Gasol. They've also crushed the Kings, trounced the Magic (sans Arron Afflalo) and dropped the new-look Raptors, who welcomed back Andrea Bargnani from a torn ligament in his elbow.
The driving force behind Boston's recent success is that many Celtics players who struggled earlier in the season are now receiving more minutes/touches. As a result, they look more comfortable on an offense that is more free-flowing without Rondo's dominating the ball and have finally stepped up. Jason Terry, who's struggled with his shot all season, has knocked down nearly 56 percent of his field goal attempts during Boston's winning streak. Jeff Green strung together five double-digit scoring performances for the first time since Boston traded away Kendrick Perkins for him two years ago. Courtney Lee, whom Doc Rivers slotted in as the starting two guard while sliding Avery Bradley over to the vacant point, has acquitted himself well. Leandro Barbosa's been a sparkplug on offense as well.
The Captain has done his part, too. Paul Pierce, the team's top scorer and most versatile weapon, has embraced more of a point forward role on offense similar to the one Andre Iguodala adopted during his last few years with the Philadelphia 76ers. Before Rondo went down, Pierce was averaging 3.8 assists per game, right in line with his career average of 3.9. Since then, he's bumped that figure up to 6.2 without sacrificing his scoring numbers. Expect Pierce to continue racking up the dimes in Rondo's absence and possibly establish a new career high in that department.
The Celtics don't play again until the Denver Nuggets come to town on Sunday, a timely break given the enormous weekend snowstorm currently blanketing Boston with several feet of snow. After that, the Green have a hellish month of basketball in front of them that includes ten road games (versus just three at the Garden) and represents Boston's most formidable challenge of the second half. Their new-look offense will be tested, and Rivers must adjust accordingly if opponents catch on. GM Danny Ainge doesn't expect to make any major moves before the trading deadline, meaning Pierce and Garnett probably aren't going anywhere.
But after months of twists and turns, anything is possible.
The Celtics were Rondo's team, but now he won't be there to guide them
The Boston Celtics won Sunday afternoon's game against the Miami Heat, but lost their star point guard for the rest of the year.
In what has already been a rollercoaster (read: frustrating) season for the Celtics, it was fitting that the team suffered a crushing loss while in the midst of securing its most exciting win of 2013.
Rajon Rondo sat out today's tilt on account of his hyperextended right knee, an injury he suffered during Boston's demoralizing double-overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night. It didn't appear to be serious but his precautionary MRI revealed a torn ACL. Rondo will undergo surgery and is out indefinitely.
It goes without saying that losing Rondo is a devastating blow to the Celtics, especially on offense. Rondo is directly responsible for 17 made field goals per game (5.9 scored, 11.1 assisted), nearly half of his team's 36.7 field goals per game. That's a huge hole to fill, especially since Boston lacks a true backup point guard. Rondo's irreplaceable, but for the time being Doc Rivers will slide Avery Bradley (a shooting guard by trade) over to the point and use Courtney Lee at the two. Combo guard Jason Terry should also see an uptick in playing time, but all three must pick up the slack. Hopefully Danny Ainge can find a decent replacement on the trade market, but right now it doesn't look like there's much out there.
He can't afford to sit around and do nothing. It's hard to see Boston, 20-23 with Rondo and currently in the eighth seed, holding onto a playoff spot without their best player. The Philadelphia 76ers trail them by 2.5 games but expect Andrew Bynum to return before the All-Star Break. When healthy, he's one of the top centers in the game, the kind of impact player that can push Philly over the top and get them back to the postseason. Boston looks like a .500 team with each passing day and its schedule is only going to get harder. There's a rough road to hoe, and it doesn't look like Doc Rivers has the tools to meet the challenge.
But if today's game is any indication, the Celtics' season may not have gone up in smoke along with their point guard's. In a throwback display of pride and determination, Boston still managed to defeat the Heat 100-98 in a double-OT thriller. The win snapped a six game losing streak for the Celtics, who hadn't won an overtime game since December 12th.
After blowing a 27-point lead in Atlanta Friday night, Boston bounced back with a tenacious effort to kick off its four game homestand. The Green ground it out by getting back on D and digging in, preventing Miami from pushing the tempo and beating them with their athleticism. Celtics defenders filled the lanes, deflected passes and forced 20 turnovers. They couldn't stop LeBron James (who can?), but held red-hot Dwyane Wade to 6-of-20 shooting. They turned Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem, and Shane Battier into non-factors. They even held their own on the boards despite allowing James and Chris Bosh, who's averaged 6.1 rebounds per game since December 13th, to inhale 16 boards apiece.
Boston's bench play keyed the victory as well, for Celtics reserves outscored Miami's bench 39-23. Jason Terry struggled with his shot (1-for-7 from beyond the arc) but still contributed 13 points, while Jeff Green dropped 11 in a whopping 42 minutes of court time. Leandro Barbosa chipped in nine points. The Heat got 21 points from Ray Allen but a whole lot of nothing from Battier, Joel Anthony, Norris Cole and Rashard Lewis.
Speaking of Allen, Ray Ray made his much-anticipated return to the TD Garden after going Benedict Arnold on the Celtics last summer. Jesus Shuttlesworth teased the Garden crowd with a stellar performance that had to make Celtics fans wonder why Danny Ainge ever let him leave. The timeless sharpshooter logged more than 38 minutes off the bench and rained 21 points through the Garden nets, proving he still has plenty of gas left in the tank. His signature highlight was the corner three he buried to trim Boston's lead to one with 25 seconds remaining in regulation, the kind of clutch shot that endeared him to Celtics fans before he turned to the dark side.
The other members of Boston's new Big Three also played well. Paul Pierce gritted his way through 49 minutes to notch a triple-double with 17 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. Kevin Garnett enjoyed his tenth double-double of the season by amassing 24 points and 11 boards. Both needed to step up with Rondo out, and they certainly rose to the occasion. They must sustain that high level of play in the second half if Boston is going to secure a postseason berth.
The Celtics have a couple days off to catch their breath before they resume play again on Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings. Hopefully 48 minutes will be enough to decide that game, because if the Celtics play any more overtime games they're not going to make it to the All-Star Break, much less the playoffs.
Pierce led the charge on Saturday as Boston emerged victorious (boston.com)
After enduring a particularly brutal spell in which they dropped eight of ten games and fell three games below .500, the Boston Celtics appear to be back on track after notching consecutive wins this weekend.
The Green welcomed Avery Bradley back from shoulder surgery in their first game of the new year but lost anyways--their fourth in a row--when the fearsome Memphis Grizzlies strolled into the Garden on Wednesday and beat Boston 93-83. More of the same for the Celtics, who got hammered on the boards and came up short despite making Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol non-factors on offense.
Boston snapped its losing streak with a blowout win in front of an anxious home crowd on Friday night. The Green Machine rolled over the Indiana Pacers in a 94-75 rout. The Celtics defense clamped down on the Pacers, forcing 18 turnovers and limiting them to just 27 made field goals on 31.8 percent shooting. David West and Paul George both shot 4-of-18 from the floor and Tyler Hansbrough was the only Pacer to score more than ten points. The romp allowed Doc Rivers to provide some much needed rest to his aging squad; a dozen Celtics received court time and nobody played more than 30 minutes.
Then the C's traveled down to Atlanta and beat the Hawks, 89-81 on the tail end of a back-to-back. Boston started slow and fell behind early, going down 13 at the end of the first and losing by 15 heading into the second half. The Celts regrouped during intermission and came out of the locker room guns blazing. Looking like a totally different team, they turned the game around with a lopsided third quarter in which they outscored the Hawks 33-to-9. Atlanta didn't make much of a counterattack in the fourth quarter, probably because four of Larry Drew's starters exceeded 40 minutes of PT.
Once again Boston played great defense, forcing 18 turnovers and holding the Hawks to 28 converted field goal attempts. Rajon Rondo led the way with his second triple-double of the season in a stat-stuffing performance highlighted by 14 points, 11 boards, 10 dimes and 3 steals. Paul Pierce poured in 26 points, grabbed nine rebounds and handed out five assists. The dynamic duo have carried Boston's mediocre offense all season long, and at some point Jason Terry, Courtney Lee and Jeff Green need to step up. Bradley isn't going to add much in this regard, at least not right away. It's going to take some time for him to get back into game shape and find his rhythm.
At least the C's dominated the glass for a nice change of pace, hauling in 44 rebounds including 16 of the offensive variety. Keep in mind that Atlanta is also a poor rebounding team, so don't expect this fluke to become a trend. Nevertheless, it was nice to see Jared Sullinger active on the boards, hauling in 19 missed shots in the two games combined. He's limited offensively but plays good D and is a solid source of rebounds when Kevin Garnett and/or Brandon Bass need a breather. Danny Ainge still needs to acquire another big man to bolster the bench, but Sully is looking more comfortable and seems to have found his niche.
The Celtics look to get their record back to .500 Monday evening when they take on Carmelo Anthony's New York Knicks in the Madison Square Garden. The Knicks pose a formidable challenge. for they have the second best record in the Eastern Conference and just got Amare Stoudemire back last week. The two teams have yet to face each other this season.
After dropping six of their past eight games, the Boston Celtics stumble into tonight's tilt in Sacramento with a 14-15 record.
The last few games have been downright ugly. After enjoying a big win in Brooklyn on Christmas Day, the Celtics flew out to California for a three game set but apparently left their A Game behind on the East Coast. On Thursday they were blown out of the Staples Center by Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and the red-hot Los Angeles Clippers. Boston mustered just 77 points, its lowest scoring output of the season, while allowing the Clips to pile up 106. Last night's tilt against the Golden State Warriors didn't go much better. Minus Rajon Rondo and Leandro Barbosa, the shorthanded C's managed 83 points against Golden State's much improved defense and lost by 18.
Why is Boston off to another sluggish start? How come the Celts aren't just losing, but losing badly (in two-thirds of their losses they were outscored by at least ten points)?
Well, they're old, but you knew that already. The simple answer is a lack of rebounding, especially on the offensive end. Boston ranks second-to-last in the Association in offensive rebounding and total rebounding, and routinely gets crushed on the boards. It's telling that Kevin Garnett leads the team in blocks and rebounds with 0.8 swats and 6.9 rebounds per game. The starting five has ample size with KG and Brandon Bass, but the second unit is woefully undersized (especially with Chris Wilcox sideline by a sprained thumb) and gets eaten alive by bigger, stronger teams.
The defense is still good but has been undermined by this lack of size as well. Last year the Celtics had the stingiest defense in the league, one that allowed the second fewest points per game and boasted the best Defensive Rating. So far this season the defense is letting up eight more points per game and ranks near the middle of the pack. I haven't been impressed by the interior defense, but fully expect the perimeter D to improve once defensive stalwart Avery Bradley returns from shoulder surgery.
The offense has been underwhelming as well, despite great starts from Rondo and Paul Pierce. Newcomers Jason Terry and Courtney Lee were expected to fill the void left by Ray Allen but have been disappointments so far. Neither one looks comfortable in their new digs yet. The Jet's usage rate is way down, from 23.3 percent last year to 17.5 percent this season, and his field goal attempts have dropped by one-third. He needs to look for his shot more and not be afraid to pull the trigger. As for Lee, he's struggled with his outside shot, converting fewer three-point attempts than ever before. Doc Rivers gave him a lot of run last night--a whopping 40 minutes--and he responded with 18 points. Hopefully that performance inspires confidence in Lee and gets him back on track.
It's still too early to panic. Last year Boston got off to a similarly sluggish start--15 wins and 17 losses--before turning it around and going 24-10 to close out the season. I expect the Celtics will start to gel soon enough once the newcomers settle in. This year's squad has been plagued by inconsistency and underperformance early on, but it's only a matter of time before it turns the corner, gets on a roll and plays like the team that came within one win of a Finals appearance last spring. Danny Ainge would be wise to trade for another big man to bolster the frontcourt, but I don't believe a major shake-up is necessary.
Tonight, in their final game of 2012, the Celtics finish up their West Coast swing with a favorable matchup against the Kings. Look for the Green to end the year on a high note.
In a fiercely contested rematch of last spring's Eastern Conference Finals, the Miami Heat once again came out on top. The defending champions received their rings, then proceeded to take down the Boston Celtics, 120-107, in the NBA opener on Tuesday night.
Boston led early on, but Miami was in full control for most of the second half after pulling. away in the third. The Heat built a 19 point lead with eleven minutes to go, but Boston fought back with a Leandro Barbosa fueled run in the fourth quarter. The C's closed the gap to four points with two minutes left to play. But then Boston went cold, missing all four of its field goal attempts while the Heat finished out the game on a 9-0 run to secure the win. But not before Rajon Rondo delivered a flagrant foul on Dwyane Wade by grabbing his neck as he went up to score, a move Wade later referred to as a "punk play." D-Wade clearly overreacted here; even though the game was essentially over, Rondo made the right move by preventing the lay-up with a hard foul, and that's all it was. A hard foul.
What was Wade expecting, a slap on the wrist?
Other notes:
Boston Kevin Garnett struggled offensively, as he scored just nine points and finished the game with more turnovers (five) than field goals (four). On the bright side, he hauled in a dozen rebounds and blocked a pair of shots.
Paul Pierce did his thing, finishing with 23-5-5, drilling two triples and sinking all nine of his free throw attempts.
Brandon Bass put up a double-double with 15 points and eleven boards, six of which came on the offensive end (more than the entire Miami team). He's a great fit here, and I'm glad he re-signed.
Rondo played more than 43 minutes and stuffed the stat sheet with some gaudy numbers; 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting with 13 dimes and seven rebounds. However, nitpickers will point out that he missed both his three point attempts, went just two-of-four at the line and didn't get any steals. I think this will be the year Rondo puts it all together and produces an MVP caliber season.
Courtney Lee looked solid in his Celtics debut before foul trouble forced him to the bench, scoring eleven points on just six field goal attempts. Jason Terry was unimpressive in his first game in Celtic green; JET had turnovers than field goals and failed to connect from beyond the arc. Jeff Green, playing his first game in nearly 18 months, did nothing (three rebounds and no field goals).
Barbosa scored all 16 of his points in the fourth quarter. Talk about a one-man comeback.
Didn't see enough of rookie Jared Sullinger to form much of an opinion about him. Will have to wait for him to emerge during garbage time.
Turnovers were a problem for Boston, as they piled up 15 TOs compared to Miami's 8. When you give the Heat extra possessions, you pay the price.
The Celtics hit three treys in the first quarter and three in the fourth, but didn't hit any in the second and third quarters.
Miami
Ray Allen had an outstanding performance in his first game against his former team. Ray Ray needed only seven field goal attempts to drop 19 points off the bench. He's my early favorite for Sixth Man of the Year (assuming Kevin Martin gets hurt at some point). Rashard Lewis also looked good in his Miami debut, netting ten points and five boards in just under 19 minutes of action. He gives the Heat some much needed depth off the bench and should be in line for a solid season.
Miami's other reserves were useless; Norris Cole, Udonis Haslem and NBA Finals hero Mike Miller combined for three points and three rebounds.
Wade led all scorers with 29 points but posted the worst +/- on the Heat with his -6 (primarily because he was present for Boston's last-ditch comeback).
Mario Chalmers did a great job facilitating and finished with eleven assists.
Lebron James initiated his quest for a fourth MVP trophy by pairing ten rebounds with his 26 efficient points despite logging the fewest minutes of the Heat's starting five.
Chris Bosh went for 19 and 10, but the part of his stat line that surprised me the most was his three blocked shots. Bosh was never a good shot-blocker in Toronto but he's become even worse in Miami, where he's averaged just 0.7 swats per game. You think he'd get at least one per game by shots deflecting off his giraffe neck.
Three weeks after LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosheliminated his Boston Celtics from the Eastern Conference Finals with a 101-88 Game 7 victory in Miami, unrestricted free agent Kevin Garnett has re-committed to the organization that helped him win his first and only NBA championship in 2008. The 36 year-old, who's already piled up more than 50,000 minutes (playoffs included) of mileage across 17 seasons, was reportedly considering retirement. He set yesterday, the day before free agent negotiating begins, as his ultimatum for informing the C's whether or not he was going to return to the team or retire; apparently he had no interest in winding down his career with somebody else, even though he would have been one of the most attractive free agent big men since the others--Roy Hibbert, Tim Duncan and Ryan Anderson--aren't expected to switch teams. Either way he had made up his mind to retire as a Celtic. His only decision, then, was whether or not he wanted to keep playing. "And once he decided that he did, it was going to be Boston," a source told the Boston Herald. "He wasn't going to leave Doc Rivers and those guys and play anywhere else."
Now that's what I call loyalty (Lebron could learn a thing or two about that, right Cleveland?). Barring serious injury he will remain a Celtic for the remainder of his thirties. The Big Ticket, always a model teammate, took one for the team by inking a cap-friendly contract; three more years for $34 million, which equates to roughly $11 million per year--nearly a 50 percent pay cut from the $21,247,044 he earned last season. But for a man who's earned nearly $300 million in his career from player salaries alone, I'm willing to bet that money wasn't much of a factor in his decision because he could afford to forfeit half his paycheck. That leaves Boston with around $12 million to work with for Danny Ainge to try to bring back unrestricted free agents Ray Allen, Jeff Green, Brandon Bass, and Mickael Pietrus. Allen is reportedly drawing interest from the Heat, who are trying to add quality role players around their Big Three. We've all seen how hard he has to work for shots in Boston's slow-paced halfcourt offense, so nobody would blame him if he decides to camp out in the corner for the next few years, racking up three-pointers after Wade and Lebron drive and dish. Nobody knows what to expect out of Green, played poorly after coming over from OKC in the now-infamous Kendrick Perkins trade before missing the entire 2011-2012 season recovering from heart surgery. Bass represented a significant upgrade over Glen Davis and added some much needed youth and athleticism to the roster, but he still needs to work on his passing and help defense. Jared Sullinger may make him expendable. Lastly Pietrus, with his great defense and decent outside shot, is a great bench player to have. Guys like that are a dime a dozen, though, and he would be the easiest to replace.
But Garnett is irreplaceable, and his return opens the door for some of them to reunite in pursuit of the franchise's 18th championship banner. Rajon Rondo is the team's best player and sparkplug. Paul Pierce is the "Truth" and the Captain, their gritty crunch time scorer. But if you ask me, Garnett is the true heart and soul of the team. He's the one who transformed the culture and identity back in 2007, when he almost single-handedly turned the Celtics into a premier defensive team. His unwavering intensity, dedication and fierce competitive spirit are matched in this city only by Dustin Pedroia and the recently departedKevin Youkilis. The crowds at the TD Garden feed off that energy. I'm glad to see a championship hasn't changed his attitude one bit; he still cares just as much, plays just as hard, and talks just as much trash as he did five years ago. A player with those intangibles, specifically that kind of drive, can only make the teammates around him better. I think he'll be a great tutor for Fab Melo, who's already a good interior defender but is pretty raw. He will have plenty of opportunities to learn from one of the game's best, the same way Perkins did for three and a half seasons. Young players look up to him and listen to him. Even if he gets hurt, he's the kind of veteran who can still contribute valuable lessons in practice and from the sidelines. He's a phenomenal leader and motivator who makes one hell of a cheerleader.
And it doesn't hurt that he's still a very valuable player. Obviously he can't jump as high, run as fast or cut as quickly as he used to--not many athletes in their mid-thirties can--but any talk of a precipitous drop-off in his performance is premature. Like his contemporary Tim Duncan, Garnett has aged rather gracefully. Instead of slowly declining, his statistics have held steady over the past several years, with his numbers hovering around 15 points, eight rebounds, two-and-a-half assists and a 20 PER. The only noticable drop-off last year was his field goal percentage, which at a still stellar .503 was the lowest it had been since his final season in Minnesota, but given that the lockout caused FG% to plunge across the league I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. Considering he missed just six games last year and averaged more than 31 minutes per contest, he looks fully recovered from his offseason surgery three years ago and is still pretty durable for a player of his size and age (give Rivers credit for managing his minutes and keeping him rested). He's still a selfless passer, one of the league's best big men in that regard along with Duncan, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol and Al Horford. He's still an elite defender who led the league last year in defensive rating--points allowed per 100 possessions--with a score of 94, the same mark he posted when he was named the 2008 Defensive Player of the Year. As long as he's healthy, he still has something left in the tank. Many expected that the compressed schedule, with its increased travel and added back-to-backs, would take a toll on older players such as Garnett, Steve Nash, and Kobe Bryant. Instead, the 14 time All-Star got stronger as the season wore on, stepping in at center for an injured Jermaine O'Neal:
Through February 1st (21 games) 13.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, .478 FG%, 10.3 GmSc
Feb 1st to April 18th (38 games) 17.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, .518 FG%, 14.5 GmSc
In the postseason he played even better, averaging 19.2 points and 10.3 rebounds while shooting just a hair under 50 percent from the floor. While Pierce and Allen struggled mightily in those 20 matchups with the Hawks, Sixers and Heat, Garnett was a model of consistency, scoring in double digits every game but one. He dropped at least 20 points in half of those contests and accumulated 13 double-doubles. Not too shabby for somebody born during the Gerald Ford administration.
And if he keeps playing like that, his new contract is going to look like quite a bargain.
LeBron James finally has his NBA championship ring. It took him nine seasons, seven playoff runs and three Finals appearances, but he finally did it.
And, as much as I hate to say it, good for him. Deep down, I know he deserved it. He's put the time, work, and effort in. He paid his dues in the form of blood, sweat and tears. He (gulp) earned it.
Now, I've never been what you would call a LeBron James fan, and never will be. I began following basketball seriously during the 2006-2007 season, and by then he'd already established himself as one of the top players in the game, so I can't say I followed his meteoric rise to fame. At the start of that season he was just 22 years old, the age of your typical college graduate, and he was already a Rookie of the Year, an All-Star, an All-NBA 1st Team selection, and an All-Star Game MVP. He'd managed to transform a flawed NBA roster of Larry Hughes, Eric Snow, Sasha Pavlovic, and Drew Gooden into a playoff team that won 50 games and nearly upset the reigning Eastern Conference champs. While most kids his age were sitting in job interviews or backpacking through Europe, he signed a three-year contract extension (with a player option for the fourth year) worth $60 million that would keep him in Cleveland's gold trim into 2010. Then he would be an unrestricted free agent along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, fellow members of the 2003 draft class in which James was selected first overall. It was all part of the plan.
But nobody, not even Magic Johnson and his magic eight ball, could have possibly forecast "The Decision" in the spring of 2007. If you recall, that was when he led Cleveland past the Detroit Pistons, the same Pistons who'd knocked them out of the conference semifinals in seven games the year before. Granted, these Pistons weren't the same team; they were another year older, had lost Ben Wallace to the Bulls via free agency and won eleven fewer games than the year before. Flip Saunders' squad was clearly weaker but remained quite formidable with their veteran core of Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, and Rasheed Wallace still intact. They look poised to make a third Finals appearance in four years after grabbing a quick 2-0 series lead after back-to-back 79-76 wins at home, but the Cavs responded by taking the next two in Ohio to even the series as it headed back to the Palace for Game 5. James willed his team to victory in this pivotal swing-game by scoring 29 of their last 30 points, including a game-winning lay-up with two seconds left in double-overtime. He poured in 48 points to go along with nine rebounds and seven assists, a stat-stuffing performance that commentator Marv Albert called "one of the greatest moments in postseason history." Color analyst Steve Kerr concurred, adding that it was "Jordanesque." It wasn't the first time he had been compared to "His Airness," nor would it be the last.
This one-man show for the ages had broken Detroit's back, and with Game 6 looming in Cleveland many left them for dead. But the Pistons rallied, refusing to wave the white flag. They battled even though "Big Shot" Billups failed to record an assist and Prince connected on only one of his ten field goal attemtps. Trailing by a single point after three, it wasn't hard to imagine the more experienced Pistons clamping down and forcing a Game 7, especially with James struggling from the floor; he missed eight of eleven shots. But like most older teams (the Celtics come to mind here) they ran out of gas in the fourth quarter, allowing Cleveland to build up a double-digit lead and put the game away. Detroit's usually strong defense bailed James out by sending him to the free throw line 19 times (he hit fourteen), and allowed little-known rookie Daniel Gibson to torch them for 31 points on five three-pointers off the bench. "Boobie" Gibson was the hero of Game 6, but there was little doubt that it was James who had pushed the Cavaliers into their first Finals appearance in franchise history. The clock struck midnight on their Cinderella season when they squared off with Greg Poppovich's battle-tested San Antonio Spurs of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. The Cavs had as much of a chance as an ant has against the bottom of your shoe. They couldn't even steal a win against the crew that put the finishing touch on their dynasty by sweeping them aside to win their fourth NBA title in nine seasons.
It was a watershed moment in James' young career. He'd reached new heights, raising the bar for both himself and his team. Personally, he'd vaulted himself into rarefied air with one of the greatest postseason performances of all time. With such a dazzling display, he'd convinced even the most skeptical critics that an NBA championship in Cleveland was no longer just a product of wishful thinking; it was well within the realm of possibility. As long as he was in the game, you couldn't count the Cavaliers out. The city worshipped their local kid from Akron. He was annointed the savior, the chosen one, like he was basketball's Jesus Christ. The irony is that all that pressure, the tremendous burden and impossible expectations that were placed on his broad shoulders, probably helped push him out of Cleveland. It must have worn him down, carrying that weight around day after day, game after game, year after year. And for that, I can't blame him.
Just as I can't blame him for trading Cleveland's frigid, snowy winters in for the warm sun and nightlife of South Beach. I can't blame him for wanting a change of scenery after spending seven years with the same organization. I can't blame him for getting fed up at the Cavs front office for not surrounding him with better players. I can't blame him for always coming close, but never getting to puff on the proverbial cigar. I can't blame him for wanting to play alongside his buddies Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh instead of Antawn Jamison and Mo Williams. I can't blame him for wanting to have fun. I can't blame him for wanting a fresh start. I certainly can't blame him for wanting to win the championship he so desperately needed to validate his career.
And neither should you. We have to remember that athletes are mercenaries, with no obligation to remain loyal to any one team or fan base. That's what makes the Derek Jeters, Chipper Joneses, Paul Pierces, and Tom Bradys of the world so special. Free agents pack up and leave all the time (Albert Pujols is still fresh in my mind). Normally money is the common denominator, but it wasn't in Lebron's case. All he wanted was a championship. Of course the manner in which he left Cleveland (tearing out a city's heart on prime-time television) was shallow, selfish, arrogant, immature, ignorant, bloated, and self-absorbed, pretty much every negative adjective you can think of. It reflected his inflated ego as well as his alarming lack of awareness. Cleveland's fans, who'd done nothing wrong except perhaps shower him with an excessive amount of love and adoration, deserved better. Just as he deserves every taunt, jeer, boo, put-down and profanity thrown his way. He horribly misjudged the situation and made a mistake that blew up in his face, but now it won't define his career. It's a scar that will always be there no matter what he accomplishes, but one that will also fade with the passage of time.
I think James knows that. He grew up this season, became a man almost overnight as he embarked on the long road to redemption. Last summer the Mavericks served him a big slice of humble pie, forcing him to swallow (or choke on) every last bite. After some time to reflect he realized his mistakes, and felt bad about them. And because of that, he made it a lot harder to hate him this year. He'd already suffered his commeuppance, lost some of that signature swagger. You could tell he wasn't the same arrogant, immature punk who thought he could assemble his own superteam and rule the NBA.
So in the land of second chances, it once again became possible to appreciate the fact that he's unquestionably the most physically gifted basketball player we've ever seen. Nobody can match his unique combination of size, strength, agility, and leaping ability. He's the total package who's next triple double is just waiting to happen. When he gets into the paint and barrels toward rim at full speed, he looks more like an NFL running back than anything else. He possesses enough raw talent to challenge Michael Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time. And it is Jordan. You could make a case that Wilt Chamberlain was more dominant, that Bill Russell was a better leader, or that nobody could match Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's longevity, but that won't get you very far.
Granted, some of Jordan's greatness derives from the fact that his unparalleled marketing campaign helped him evolve into the planet's first truly global athlete. Aside from creating his own brand, he expertly used Nike, McDonald's, Wheaties, and everything else to become an American icon, one who'd grown much bigger than the game he played for a living (Space Jam pretty much sums it up). He received a level of exposure and attention that exceeded what any president, actor or rock star had ever enjoyed. In a way, it was what he did off the court that made him unique. Others scored more points and won more championships, but they didn't do it the way Jordan did. With his tongue sticking out and Air Jordans strapped to his feet.
James had a similar aura about him in Cleveland, when he convinced us that we were watching something special. Then he threw it all away by turning the whole nation against him and becoming one of the most hated athletes in recent memory. His failure to win a championship remained the glaring hole on his otherwise stellar resume, and it provided plenty of ammunition for talking heads and casual fans alike. There had been much speculation where James would rank in history if he could never get over the hump. What would his legacy be? Would he still compare favorably to Jordan, Larry Bird, Kareem, and all the rest? Or would we demote him to the tier of ringless stars that includes Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton and Karl Malone, as well as contemporaries Steve Nash and Allen Iverson? Fantastic players, sure, but not winners. And in sports, at the end of the day, that's all we really care about, right? Who wins and who loses. It's simple--there's no gray area, no room for debate--and we like it that way, because the rest of life is just too complicated. All the arguments and player analysis and fantasy teams are fun, but they ultimately amount to little more than a sideshow, a distraction from what sports are all about. Competition. That's why you play the game. Not to score 25 points, throw a couple TD's or belt one out of the park (though that's all admittedly fun). We play to win.
Of course, winning a ring is more a reflection of circumstance than a true barometer of talent. Everything has to break your way, and sometimes it's better to be lucky than it is to be good. You have to stay healthy. You have to get the bounces, the calls, the 50/50 plays. All you can do is put yourself in the best position possible to win. It's rare, but every now and then you'll get a team that's so good, so flawless that a title almost seems preordained. That no matter who gets in their way, they're going to wind up on top. Not even Denzel Washington and Chris Pine can stop them. The 1927 Yankees. The 1985-'86 Bears. The 1995-'96 Bulls. Teams of destiny. But more often than not, you have teams that weren't expected to win the championship at the beginning of they season, but they got hot at the right time. You can't tell me that the 83-win St. Louis Cardinals were the best baseball team in 2006. Or that the 2011 Mavericks were better than the Chicago Bulls. Or that the New York Giants were the best football team last season. The best teams don't win championships; it's the teams that play the best when a championship is at stake.
That's why the whole "he needs a ring to be considered great" idea has never held much water with me. A player is just one man, a cog in a machine. So many factors are outside of his control. Teams win championships, not individual players. Plenty of the greatest athletes of all time have failed to win a championship. Ernie Banks. Ted Williams. Barry Bonds. Dan Marino. Barry Sanders. The aforementioned crew of Barkley, Malone, and Ewing. Before the advent of free agency, many great athletes toiled for losing teams their entire careers, helpless to change their fortunes. Eli Manning has won twice as many Super Bowls as his older brother, but even the most passionate Giants fans would have to admit that Peyton Manning is far and away the superior quarterback. The best athletes of all time are not the ones who won the most; they are the ones who best combined talent with winning. Babe Ruth. Wayne Gretzky. And then, of course, there's Michael Jordan with his gaudy stats and half dozen championships.
Their careers, which would have overlapped had Lebron entered this world a year earlier and/or if Jordan had bothered to hang around for another season with the Wiz (imagine that match-up!), share several notable parallels. They both possessed off-the-charts athletecism, wore the number 23 (though James changed his to six after moving to Miami), received multiple MVPs and won their first championships at the end of their age 27 seasons. Last summer I compared James to Alex Rodriguez, another superstar who also struggled to win a ring. Now I will stack him up against the greatest basketball player of all time through his age 27 season/first championship. I value traditional counting stats like rebounds and assists. I value rate stats like field goal, free throw and three-point percentage. I value advanced stats like true-shooting percentage and PER, which is fast becoming the WAR of basketball.
The most significant difference is that James came to the NBA straight out of high school, one of the last great players to do so. Jordan followed the more traditional path by attending college. Like James, I'm sure he would have handled the leap just fine. He spent three years honing his skills at UNC, where he won a national championship and established himself as the best college player in the nation. As a result, through the same age James had played an additional two-plus seasons of NBA games, so many counting numbers are skewed in his favor. That explains why I used per game averages instead of career totals. Lastly, it's important to remember that James is a small forward. Jordan played some small forward, especially during his brief stint with the Wizards, but spent the majority of his career as a shooting guard.
I'll use ten categories to rate each out of ten, with 7.5 representing average. Think of it like a report card; a 7.5 is a C, an 8.5 is a B, a 9.5 is an A, so on and so forth.
Some last food for thought; the player basketball-reference ranks as most similar to James is Barkley. Jordan's closest comp is OsC.R. Robertson.
Durability
James 39.9 minutes per game, misses roughly four games per season
Jordan 38.7 minutes per game, missed roughly nine games per season
LeBron James is indestructible, probably because he's built like an M-1 Abrams Tank. He's already led the league in total minutes played two times and minutes per game once. That he's averaged 40 per game for nearly a decade in the modern age of pampered athletes is simply mind-blowing. He's never missed more than seven games in any season. It's interesting, then, that he's failed to play all 82 games in a season before, topping 80 only twice. That means Kevin Martin, who's made of glass, has as many seasons with 80 games played as Lebron does (go figure). I would have bet almost anything that he had a couple seasons where he didn't sit out. But he tends to miss a handful of games because his aggressive style of play leads to plenty of hard collisions and awkward falls. Over the course of a draining basketball season they add up to a sore, battered body. And, just like the rest of us, he actually gets sick from time to time. So I'll cut him some slack.
Jordan was every bit the Iron Man that James is with a single exception; his sophomore season was marred by a broken foot that caused him to miss 64 games and limited him to just seven starts. Outside of that one year, though, he missed one game in his other six seasons. One. Four times he played more games than anybody else. Three times he led the league in minutes played, twice leading in minutes per game. Throw that one season out the window and he was like the Cal Ripken Jr. of basketball; nothing could keep him out of the starting lineup. Given his unmatched competitive streak, I'm not surprised one bit that Jordan showed up to play everyday. Keep in mind this was "before" the Flu Game.
James: 9.5
Jordan: 9.5
Passing
James: 6.9 assists per game against 3.3 turnovers, 34.1 AST% against 12.1 TOV%
Jordan: 5.9 assists per game against 3.1 turnovers, 27.1 AST% against 10.3 TOV%
What makes James' assist totals so astonishing is that he compiled them despite playing on horribly constructed teams. He could have (and probably should have) pulled a Kobe Bryant circa 2006, taken one look at the guys around him and said "Screw this. Just give me the ball and let me do my thing. I'm not passing unless I absolutely HAVE to." But that's just not in his nature. He's too selfless, and he's at his best when he's getting his teammates involved. Just watch him run a fast-break. Last season he averaged 6.2 dimes, on the low side for him, and that figure was still more than full-time point guards Brandon Jennings, Jameer Nelson and Russell Westbrook. His proficiency in this aspect was on full display in the Game 5 clincher against OKC, when he kept slashing into the lane, drew the defense in and then delivered pinpoint passes to Mike Miller, Mario Chalmers and Shane Battier on the wing for open treys. He piled up 13 assists despite scoring 26 points himself. Like Kevin Garnett, James has been accused of being selfless to a fault, giving the ball away to lesser players and passing up shots in situations when he should be more aggressive, when the score demands that the best player on the court has the ball in his hands.
Jordan never had that problem. He earned a reputation as a selfish player early in his career because of his prodigious scoring totals. But as with Kobe Bryant, those figures undermined the fact that he could be a great facilitator when he wanted to be. In 1988-1989, for instance, he averaged eight assists per game. He was a scorer first, but once sidekick Scottie Pippen matured and the organization surrounded him with better role players such as Kerr he gained a better understanding of passing.
James: 9.5
Jordan: 8.5
Rebounding
James: 7.2 rebounds per game (5.9 defensive, 1.2 offensive), 10.5 TRB%
Jordan: 6.3 rebounds per game (4.5 defensive, 1.8 offensive), 9.4 TRB%
Given Lebron's reputation as an excellent rebounder, I would have guessed the difference between the two would be greater than one measly rebound per game. But Jordan was a good rebounder in his own right, too. I don't put quite as much stock in defensive rebounding because it seems more opportunistic. Obviously it's still a skill--just ask Kevin Love--that requires strength, footwork, positioning, and an innate sense of where the ball is going. Ultimately, you still have to be in the right place at the right time. You can get great positioning, box out and get low, but ultimately you're at the mercy of the ball's bounce. Still, just by being involved in the game and having a pulse, you're probably going to grab a couple rebounds unless refuse to go inside the three point arc, or your name is Nick Young. Anybody can get them. Rebounds are also a product of playing time--the more you play, the more you tend to get.
I've always been much more impressed by players who excel at offensive rebounding. These kind of rebounds are worth their weight in gold, because they extend possessions and create second chance opportunities. Nothing's more demoralizing than playing great defense for twenty seconds, forcing the other team to take an off-balance jumper...and see them get the ball back with a fresh 24. It's like hitting the reset button on your XBox and wiping out all the progress you just made on that Call of Duty mission. In order to get them, you have to aggressively crash the boards. You have to work for them. You make your own luck. Offensive rebounds don't just fall into your hands the way defensive rebounds do.
So you could make the argument that Jordan, despite grabbing fewer boards, is the superior rebounder. I'll call it a wash.
James: 9.5
Jordan: 9.5
Scoring
James: 27.6 points per game, .483 FG%, 115 ORating
Jordan: 32.6 points per game, .529 FG%, 121 ORating
This one's a no-brainer. LBJ had one season, 2007-2008, when he won a scoring title, and has never led the league in total points scored despite pouring in at least 2,000 seven times. Had he remained in Cleveland, he probably could have won the scoring title in each of the past two seasons, when he finished within one point per game of Durant (who already has three consecutive scoring titles). Now that he's part of a Big Three, he's taking fewer shots so the chances of him winning another scoring title have been reduced drastically unless either a) Durant gets hurt or b) Chris Bosh and/or Dwyane Wade miss extensive time, thereby allowing 'Bron to handle the ball more and average more than 20 shots per game as he was with Cleveland. The odds seem to be against him and I think it's very unlikely that he wins another one, but you never know.
For what it's worth, Jordan wasted no time establishing himself as the game's premier scorer. By this point in his career he had reeled off five straight scoring titles, pacing the league in total points every year except his second. In his third season, he scored racked up over 3,000 points while averaging 37.1 per contest. Had he not taken two years off to pursue a career in baseball and had he not retired prematurely following his sixth championship, I sincerely believe he would have amassed more than 40,000 career points.
James: 9
Jordan: 10
Three Point Shooting
James: 33.1 percent on 4 attempts per game
Jordan: 28.6 percent on 1.2 attempts per game
Not exactly a fair comparison because at the same point in their careers, James has jacked up nearly 2,800 three point attempts wheras Jordan had taken just 625, roughly one-fifth of James' total. But even with the much smaller sample size, it's clear that Jordan was no Ray Allen or Reggie Miller. In fact, for the first four seasons of his career, he was about as much as a threat to score from behind the arc as Rajon Rondo, averaging fewer than one attempt per game while shooting a pitiful 16.4 percent when he did fire away which. Simply put, he hadn't developed that part of his game yet. But great players always find ways to make themselves better, and it was only a matter of time before MJ added the long-range bomb to his arsenal. The following year, 1988-198), he launched nearly twice as many threes as he did the previous season, but his success rate more than doubled. From that point forward he remained a capable three point shooter, only getting better with age like Jason Kidd.
Throughout this timeframe, about five percent of MJ's shots were threes. By comparison, approximately one out of every five field goal attempts from James is a triple, and in this regard he has been fairly steady. Since shooting a Jordanesque 29 percent his rookie year, he's consistently remained in the low-to-mid thirties, cementing his status as a league average three point shooter. After coming to Miami his three point attempts have dropped precipitously because his focus has shifted on improving his post up game and taking more efficient shots closer to the basket. This is a move in the right direction for James, who's a streaky outside shooter to begin with, and the strategy is working. This season his 2.4 attempts from downtown represented a career low, but his 36.2 percent success rate and .531 field goal percentage were personal bests.
Check out the trend
2009-2010 5.1 3PA .503 FG%
2010-2011 3.5 3PA .510 FG%
2011-2012 2.4 3PA .531 FG%
James: 7.5
Jordan: 6.5
Free Throw Shooting
James: .746 percent on 8.8 attempts per game
Jordan: .849 percent on 9.6 attempts per game
No surprise here, given that James has been nothing more than an average free throw shooter throughout much of his career. In his defense, he has improved this area of his game throughout his past four seasons, knocking down 76.9 percent of his shots from the charity stripe compared to his 72.8 percent clip throughout his first five seasons. Still, he had one season, 2006-2007, when he dipped below 70 percent, and there's an 8.1 percent gap between his career highs and lows. He mitigates this inconsistency with his sheer volume of attempts; three times he averaged more than ten shots from the free throw line. Jordan, on the other hand, was as steady as they come, never falling beneath 84 percent and topping out at 85.7 percent. Even more impressively, he maintained that high level of success while averaging nearly ten freebies per game, a combination of efficiency and volume matched only by Kevin Durant amongst today's players. Two times he led the league in free throws made and in his third season he averaged a whopping 11.9 attempts per contest.
James: 8
Jordan: 9.5
Defense
James 1.7 steals, 0.8 blocks, 102 DefRating, 4 NBA All-Defensive 1st Teams
Jordan 2.8 steals, 1.1 blocks, 104 DefRating, 4 NBA All-Defensive 1st Teams, 1987-1988 Defensive Player of the Year
If this was baseball, both these guys would have a mantle topped with well-deserved Gold Gloves. James has a reputation as one of the best defenders of the new milennium, along with Andre Iguodala, Kevin Garnett and Dwight Howard. His size, strength, and overall athleticism make him a nightmare for opposing small forwards. Just ask Paul Pierce, who struggled mightily in the Eastern Conference Finals. But I would never, not in a million years, have guessed that Jordan swatted more shots than James, who gives opponents nightmares about his electrifying chasedown blocks. But Jordan produced back-to-back seasons in the late '80s with more than 125 blocks and 1.5 per game, a rate that surpasses what notorious stonewalls Marcus Camby, Joakim Noah and Tyson Chandler averaged this year. That, combined with his quick hands and sharp reflexes, helped him win the 1988 Defensive Player of the Year. He also led the league in steals twice, and didn't have to gamble too much to get them.
Both are defensive stalwarts who could still contribute something even when they weren't feeling it on offense. Getting back to baseball it's like comparing Roberto Clemente to Al Kaline, Brooks Robinson and Mike Schmidt, Carlos Beltran to Andruw Jones. It comes down to personal preference and more than a few split hairs. You can take James and I'll take Jordan.
James: 9.5
Jordan: 10
Individual Honors/Awards
James: 3 MVPs (4.39 shares), eight All-Star games, six All-NBA First Teams, two All-NBA Second Teams
Jordan: 2 MVPs (3.85 shares), seven All-Star games, five All-NBA First Teams, one All-NBA Second Team
Both players were highly decorated; it's safe to say their talents did not go unnoticed (though it is worth noting that James somehow failed to make the All-Star team his freshman year).. Jordan had a tough time winning the Most Valuable Player award early on because Bird and Johnson dominated the voting just as much as they dominated the NBA Finals, combining for five MVPs during his first seven seasons. All he could do was bide his time and settle for a pair of runner-ups and a third place finish. Twenty years later the league has more talent and competition than ever before, so as a result the award has been more up for grabs recently. KG, Steve Nash (twice), Dirk, Kobe, and Derrick Rose have all been named winners during Lebron's career, and Durant is knocking on the door. MJ would win five trophies in all, but considering that Lebron's already 60 percent of the way there at age 27, with quite a few prime years in front of him, I like his chances of matching and exceeding that number some day.
Basketball sabermetrics has lauded James for his efficiency, and according to PER he's been the best player in basketball each of the past five seasons. But had such statistics been popular twenty years ago, those same number-crunchers would have gone bananas over Jordan. His numbers blow away Lebron's, which are already stellar in their own right. Neither player needs sabermetrics to prove their greatness; the numbers merely reinforce what we already know.
Fittingly, both were named Finals MVP after winning their first rings. James finally seemed to turn the corner this postseason, starting about halfway through the Indiana series and not letting his foot off the gas pedal until a championship was secure. With Wade banged up and Bosh out with an abdominal strain, James stepped up and took control of the playoffs. Until then, he had been too up-and-down for a player of his caliber. He put the Cavs on his back in 2007, single-handedly carrying them to a Finals showdown with the San Antonio spurs, but quit on them against the Celtics three years later. In 2011 he methodically disposed of the Celtics and Bulls, only to disappear as Dirk Nowitzki and an inferior Mavericks squad upset his Miami Heat. Much of the criticism surrounding his crunch time play was overblown, but he did appear timid at times and seemed to shy away from the moment. His ability to execute in the clutch was called into question, and he was slapped with the reputation as a choker. That monkey is off his back now.
Jordan's postseason heroics are legendary, even when you omit the Flu Game and The Shot. His stats and reputation speak for themselves. He enjoyed what has to be considered the greatest individual postseason performance of all time when he stepped onto the parquet floor and et a playoff record with 63 points in a double-overtime loss against Boston's juggernaut in 1986, a performance that inspired Larry Bird to comment that they had all seen "God disguised as Michael Jordan" (I like how Lebron is likened to Jesus, but MJ is compared to God). It just took a while for the rest of his team to catch up with him.
James: 8.5
Jordan: 10
Conclusion
Total
James: 89.5
Jordan: 93
It's close, with James coming out ahead in several areas (three point shooting, passing, rebounding), but overall the traditional stats and advanced metrics make it clear that Jordan is still the superior player. No surprise there. But 'Bron is definitely on the right track; the fact that we've been making these comparisons for years, long before Lebron ever won his ring, is a remarkable achievement in and of itself. He's not there yet, but if he can maintain this level of play for at least another half decade, he's going to give Jordan a serious run for his money. Could he surpass the greatest athlete of all time? I think he could.
But then again, he'd probably have to win five more championships to convince Jason Segel.
