Michael Jordan said Sunday that in his prime, he would not have done what LeBron James did by joining up with some of the other greats of his era on one team."There's no way, in hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry (Bird), called up Magic (Johnson) and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team,'" Jordan said during an interview on NBC after playing in a celebrity golf tournament in Nevada (photo right).
But, Jordan added, that was a different time and the NBA played a different type of game during his heyday.
"Things are different," Jordan said. "I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."
James left the Cleveland Cavaliers after seven seasons to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat. While many believe that move has elevated the Heat into the team to beat in 2010-11, others aren't quite so sure, particularly since James will have to share the ball much more with his new teammates than he did during his time with the Cavs.
Much like the Bulls were Jordan's team when he played, the Cavs were James' team. Now, he'll be part of a multi-star team that some believe will not be able to coexist and share points and minutes equally.
Jordan, who is now chairman of the Charlotte Bobcats, led the Chicago Bulls to six championships in the 1990s. James announced on July 8 in a nationally televised hour-long special that he was leaving Cleveland and "taking my talents to South Beach (Miami)."
In an interview last week on a Miami radio station, TNT analyst and former NBA star Charles Barkley criticized James' move to Miami.
"He'll never be Jordan," Barkley told radio station 790 The Ticket. "This clearly takes him out of the conversation. He can win as much as he wants to.
"There would have been something honorable about staying in Cleveland and trying to win it as 'The Man.' "
Barkley later added, "LeBron, if he would've (stayed) in Cleveland, and if he could've got a championship there, it would have been over the top for his legacy, just one (James' being the Cavs' big star) in Cleveland. No matter how many he wins in Miami, it clearly is Dwyane Wade's team."
Comments (Page 1 of 20)
What a country ! LeBron can play basketball anywhere he wants; and two used-to-be's can have something to say about it, forrr some reason.
Wow, calling Micheal Jordan a "used-to-be" shows how arrogant you are! I'll take a 50+ year old Jordan over a 25 year old LeBron ANY day! Legendary players like Jordan, Magic, Bird and Kobe LOVE having though competition, while overrated players like LeBron, Wade, and Bosh run away from it!
Man ARE YOU SERIOUS !!! You should Slap yaslef for that comment . LeBron WILL NEVER EQUAL UP TO MJ . NOT MJ , MAGIC , BIRD , BARKLEY , HAKEEM , NON OF THE GREATS FOR THE MOVE . HE TOOK THE OL' IF YOU CAN'T BEAT'em , JOIN'em Approach , LMAO !! No Competitive nature what so ever !!!
And what league dude have you played in that gives you the platform to refer to Jordan and Barkley as "used to be's"?
Did you even finish school?
Jordan for one carried the league after Magic, Bird, and Kareem left it. And for once Barkley is right. LeBron is now playing on Wades squad/team. If James was 70% the player AND COMPETITOR Jordan was he'd have had the brass ones to stay in Cleveland. His departure is an admittance he couldn't "Be Like Mike" and get it done in Cleveland. I am all in and bet the Heat will NOT win this year.
Back to you loser .... if you're a James fan ,,,,, you must be a LOSER.
Charles Barkley never won an NBA championshp. Who is he to judge what Lebron James does. Lebron James will always be in the conversation. Because of James, the Heat name is always in the spotlight and will probably become one of the main teams whom games will be televised on national T.V. The spotlight will continue to follow James. The Heat team is Lebron James team now. Wade is number 2 to Lebron.
Jordan is a legend. Barkley is a legend. LeBron made a horrible choice in going to Miami and he has destroyed his legacy. He should have stayed in Cleveland and fought until he won and brought a title to his own city - not move somewhere so it would be easier. He clearly doesn't have the ability to bring a championship to where he is - so he has to go somewhere else. Sir Charles is 100% right and so is Michael.
I do not believe anyone is saying James did not have a right to got to Miami, just the out of control ego he showed during the process. It has been proven that they all knew what they were going to do weeks before he announced (in by the way another over the top ego driven bunch of drivel)where he was going yet he still played games with other teams and fans.I am still trying to find out what the self appointed "King" is king of. No matter how out of control your ego is you can never be "King" of basketball with no rings for anything.Now if he does win a ring with Wade and Bosh he still will have no claim on "King" as he is just one of three and not a leader.
dahuol? Maybe no one wants to buy the cheap chit that you are spamming, under the pretense of a legitimate comment. If you are sneaky here, you are likely sneaky there. Like Ray Charles said; "Scratch a lie...Find a thief".
These 3 guys are good,but this crap about being ,possibly the best trio of players on one team is ignorant and embarassing these guys havent won anything(magic,worthy,abdul-jabbar)3 or 4 titles,(bird,mchale,parrish) 3 titles,(kobe,gasol,Fisher)2 titles,(jordan,pippen,anyone) 6 title,these guiys might not even get out of the Eastern conference,last I heard Orlando,boston,and even chicago are still gonna play next year and I doubbt they are just gonna give up,(like Lebron did in his last game)
Easy for MJ to say. Of course he would have never left the Bulls; that was NOT a one-man team. MJ-era Bulls were deep with talent, unlike today`s Cavs. So stop strokin your ego, MJ... Pippen, Rodman, Stockton, Harper, Longley, Kerr, Kukoc, and Coach Jackson all had a hand in it. That was possibly the most stacked team in history, so STFU Mike.
Let's see how LeBone does in "Mimami" now that he has to play nice and share the ball! It's not really THAT hard to score 30 per game , when you take 80% of your teams shots. I predict a volcanic eruption when these 3 massive heads(egos) collide! See you back in the title game Lakers and Celtics. Go Celts!!!!!
Um, Pnut, The Cavs had the leagues best record 2 years in a row but they had no depth or talent? Explain please!!!!
@bfa2 you've cemented your status as an extraordinary clown - are you even a basketball fan? are you maverick carter? wtf?
You must be like 11 or 12 & only know jordan cuz of his sneakers. Jordan is always going to be known as the greatest to ever play the game. LeBron had his chance and now he will forever be known as the one who couldn't lead his team to a championship so he needed other superstars to get one(if he does in fact win one).
Hey, pnut, maybe you could tell me when Stockton played for the Bulls. I seem to be drawing a blank on that one. I do remember him losing to the Bulls, two Finals in a row, but never on the team.
Also, some of Jordan's championship teams may have been "stacked" but that stacking was done with role players, outside of Jordan and Pippen. The rest were players that fit certain niches you need to win. That's what the current Heat roster is doing wrong. (Well, other than referring to Bosh as a "superstar" and implying he's anywhere near the level of the other two. Riley would have been smarter to save that money spent on Bosh and divide it up among a couple solid role players.)
This just proves that LeBron doesn't think he can get a championship on his own. He has to have the "help" of Wade and Bosh. What an over-inflated ego maniac! An hour long special to announce he's a money grubbing glory hound? What a loser!
You're holding back mandkind's intellectual progress!
For real, bfa? "used-to-be's"?
You mest have been born after the Jordan/Barkley/Magic/Bird/Thomas era. Because only a silly little young buck would ever even think about referring to the greats as "has-beens"...any of those players I just mentioned would have worked LeBron over defensively because there is no true defense in the league today (not since the NBA outlawed hand-checking, effectively killing man-to-man defense. Zone defenses suck!)...Barkley woulda made LeBron kiss the floor five times a game. Even better: lets see LeBron drive the lane on Bill Laimbeer and Rick Mahorn. That kid woulda ended up in traction after a playoff series!
But back to the point: Miami is Wade's team. It will never be James' to lead. So in that regard, Charles is right. His legacy will never be comparable to MJs or Magics. Sorry!
you are correct
other replies have been typical sports fan moronic
it's a business first
jordan was an average player