NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan is returning March 15 to give us the latest MJ: Insights to Excellence on NBC, where he discusses his place among “who is the greatest NBA player” arguments, which is often debated by basketball fans. Whether it’s him, Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, or even Bill Russell, he states that the conversation about being “The GOAT (Greatest Of All Time)” just doesn’t exist with him.
After the current NBA season opened with the news of Jordan joining the network
as a “special contributor” to NBC Sports, people were excited to hear what the former Chicago Bulls great would have to say. Although disappointed to find out it would be pre-recorded conversations, fans were still excited to hear from him, as he rarely gives interviews.Now, Sports Illustrated reported that he will embark on the whole “GOAT” talk with the next segment.
Apparently, that conversation will have to be left to us regular fans who argue it on an almost daily basis, with the consensus being Jordan, depending on the birth years of the people talking about it. However, for Jordan, we can have that conversation.
“The ‘GOAT’ term is never gonna be something that I ever will get high or low about. It just doesn’t exist with me. I never played against Oscar Robertson or Jerry West. Would’ve loved to,” he stated.
He did say that he would have loved to play against the other greats during their prime, but it’s important to note that the players mentioned before anyone else paved the way for those players to be considered the greatest.
“And I actually learned from them. And we paved the way for the Kobes and the LeBrons, right? And to me, that’s the beauty of the game of basketball, that a player, after a previous player, has evolved the game further. But don’t then … now use that against the players that actually taught you the game or that you learned from. That’s why I have a tough time [with the GOAT talk]. Look, I would have loved to play against LeBron and Kobe in my prime. … But we’ll never be able to know that.”
Jordan also touched on other subjects, including international basketball, the Olympics, and related matters.
RELATED CONTENT: Kevin Durant Scores Game-Winning 3-Point Shot While Breaking One Of Michael Jordan’s Records