LeBron James is a gift to the modern generation of NBA fans. Here is a guy who is constantly compared to Michael Jordan. A never-ending debate goes on – who’s the GOAT? Gen Z is not lucky enough to see Michael Jordan live, especially during his days with the Bulls or even the Wizards. NBA needed a star after MJ was gone to keep the popularity level increasing. The man from Akron, Ohio, has been the guy. After debuting in 2003, King James won the Best Rookie Award in the following year. After giving his best for his hometown franchise, Cleveland Cavaliers, for seven years, James had to move to Miami.
It was taking too long for the best player in the tournament to win a championship. After joining the Heat, LeBron James won a couple of titles plus MVP awards for those seasons and also the finals. Albeit, James had a great time with the Heat; he wanted to come back to his roots. He wanted to end the Cleveland Curse. In 2016, LeBron James won the hearts of everybody, including his opponents, in the final as he helped his hometown team to win the championship and end the curse.
Why Green And Chalmer Have Different Opinions On James?
It was during the 2016 NBA finals when he gained a lot of respect from the opponent team’s player, Draymond Green. Ever since that year, Green has always been like an unofficial advocate of LeBron James. Whatever happens, LeBron James knows that he has got a friend in Green. The Golden State Warriors always had a pretty exciting rivalry with King James, no matter which team he is playing for. But Green, a long-time Warriors player, never had a doubt about the capabilities of King James.
On the other hand, Miami Heat teammate of LeBron James, Mario Chalmer, is not too sure about the GOAT debate. Unlike Green claims James to be the GOAT, surprisingly enough, Chalmer is not on board with that idea at all. A few days ago, Chalmer mentioned that the big difference between Jordan and James is fear of the opponent players.
Warriors’ Green And Thompson Defend LeBron James
Chalmer, who has been like a little brother to James in the Heat roster, said opponents never feared LeBron; instead, his teammates were more worried. Mario is often criticized for calling LeBron a “bitch.” Chalmer explained when the team was not doing well, and everybody would look for something to blame on. As he was a little brother, it was his job to call out the big brother of the team. Chalmer told James back in those Miami days, “if you are the star, then why don’t you play like one.”
The new entry to the Lakers team, Tristan Thompson, along with Draymond Green, defends James in a recent podcast interview of The Draymond Green Show. They revealed that they knew players who were afraid of King James. However, it does not make any sense for either Green or Thompson that Chalmer feels this way. Since the Miami Heat days were the King’s prime time in his career. He was unstoppable those days. Even after turning 38, LeBron James was averaging better than most players in the league.