2006-12-10 07:25:10 · 28 answers · asked by C Unit 1 in Sports ➔ Basketball
No way! MJ played during one of the worse "down times" in NBA history. If you research you will find that the league as a whole was extremely weak from the late 80's and has not completely recovered even today although it has improved slightly.
There were a number of players that were better than Jordan. Just one example would be "Pistol" Pete Maravich. His ball handling skills were unparalleled in NBA history. His overall skills would have run MJ right out of his shorts. MJ would never have gone to the hoop so freely with Wilt Chamberlain in the middle. He, of course, was the greatest force ever in basketball. "Doctor J" Julius Erving in his prime was so much better than MJ.
No, Michael Jordan was a great player but certainly not the best. He can contribute his popularity to the media hype of the day. Those other players I've mentioned never had that advantage.
2006-12-10 07:42:34 · answer #1 · answered by J T Kirk 1 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Nooooo. ANY arguement you can give me, I can disprove. Go ahead, try. None of the points listed above for Jordan are valid. Statistically he's only tied for the best in points per game with Wilt. That's THE ONLY STATISTIC where he's number 1. Even then, I'd have to say Wilt is still #1 in scoring. He averaged over fifty points a game in one season. If you look at other scoring records, they're dominated by Chamberlain, not Jordan. There have also been better all-around players, more dominant players, better clutch players, and more winning players. I've never heard a valid point as to why MJ is the best of all time. In his era? Ok, that's reasonable. But he's absolutely not the best of all time.
2006-12-10 08:17:56 · answer #2 · answered by ern_linnell 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes, Michael Jordan is the best basketball player ever. You could argue that, statistically, Chamberlain is better, but he also played in an era where he was quite a bit taller than everyone else. Jordan completely dominated basketball throughout the 90's.
2006-12-10 07:29:02 · answer #3 · answered by bdc022187 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yeah but there are a lot of people as good as him. Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird (not many people think so though), and here's a fun fact. Lebron James is doing better than Michael Jordan was doing at Lebron James age in the 80's. So, if we wait, Lebron is probably going to become a legend. But, my favorite player is TMAC TMAC TMAC TMAC TMAC THE ONE AND ONLY TRACY MCGRADY
2006-12-10 07:54:53 · answer #4 · answered by hipeople354 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would put him number two all-time, although he did dominate the time period he was in. My choice for the best all-time would be Wilt Chamberlain, for a few reasons.
His stats were better than Jordan, he averaged 30 ppg and 18 rpg over two years in college, averaged 50.4 ppg and 25.7 rpg one year in the NBA, scored 100 points in a game...
Add to that, 7 consecutive NBA scoring titles, starting in his rookie year, 11 NBA Rebounding titles, averages of 34.7 ppg and 25.4 rpg during the playoffs, 13 all-star games, and 8 all-star game double-doubles.
And to everyone who says that Jordan had more competition...how about Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson, Bob Pettit, Elgin Baylor, and Kareem. All of those being members of the top 50 players all-time, and that's not including the guards and small forwards that weren't even close to Wilt size-wise. Heck, Wilt only won two championships if that tells you how good the league around him was during his years.
Simply put, Wilt Chamberlain dominated the game at his time, and is hands-down the best player of all-time. Jordan comes close enough, but not to the level of Chamberlain. My theory is that Jordan hit the media age and was dynamic enough that he caught attention and made everyone realize how good he was. If only Wilt had been 20 years younger, then we would have really seen brilliance. Imagine Jordan driving the lane and going for a floating dunk, only to be rejected by Wilt. Think about that one and get back to me.
2006-12-10 09:35:21 · answer #5 · answered by Funkmaster J 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I've heard the comment that, had they played at the same time, Jerry West (NBA logo) would have put Jordan to shame. I don't think there is really any way of telling b/c of how much the game has changed.
2006-12-10 07:48:45 · answer #6 · answered by Laebla 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i would say he is. his career was like a fantasy. everything was picture perfect. wins college championship, wins 6 titles in the nba. all-star every year. defensive player of the year. league mvp. leads his team to have the best record EVER i think it was (72-10), that's unheard of! u can go on and on. he accomplished everything that an athlete would want and more.
another thing that comes to mind was his game winning shot to win the championship against Utah. that was before his 1st retirement. what a way to go out (even though he came back to play more).
2006-12-10 07:32:30 · answer #7 · answered by tom l 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
no ....but he is in the top 10. my vote goes to oscar robertson. he is the best all around player of all time. he could score, dish it, and sweep the glass as well as be a lock down defender. not too bad for a guy who is all of 6-1 or so.
2006-12-10 07:33:44 · answer #8 · answered by newmichelle1959 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Some will say that Wilt Chamberline (sp?) is the best ever. But, it seems that most would agree that MJ is the best ever.
2006-12-10 07:27:25 · answer #9 · answered by EJ E 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
yes he is 1 of the best what about magic johnson
2006-12-10 07:27:31 · answer #10 · answered by annjilena 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋