"Don't know how you put Jordan over him" - Former Dunk Contest winner makes strong GOAT case for LeBron James
This season, LeBron James could become the first player in NBA history to eclipse 50,000 total points throughout his career. After becoming the first player to score more than 40,000 regular season points last year, and passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time scoring ladder, James is currently sitting at over 48,500 points in all NBA play.
In a video for TikTok this week, former 2013 Dunk Contest winner Terrence Ross crowned James as the GOAT over Michael Jordan while discussing Team USA's Olympic run:
"LeBron is literally, to me now, he's the GOAT," Ross said. "I don't know how you put Jordan over him. If Jordan would have done what he was doing for 20 years, I'm like, yeah, like, LeBron has a long way to go.
"The truth of the matter is, he (Jordan) quit basketball twice, returned twice, got a three-peat on his first return, and the second time he came back, he was not the same player. LeBron has literally been on a peak his entire career."
Terrence Ross weighs in on LeBron James' role in Team USA's gold medal run
This summer, LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant joined forces for what could be the first and only time. After the United States' 2023 FIBA World Cup team failed to capture gold last summer, the three teamed up with some future Hall of Famers for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Leading up to the tournament, James provided a spark in several big pre-Olympic international friendly games. Specifically, in a closely contested showdown with South Sudan, James drilled a game-winner for Team USA, keeping their undefeated record intact.
Then, against Australia, James came up big for Team USA in crunch time, before winning Olympic MVP after an undefeated 6-0 run in Paris. The way Ross sees things, given his sustained play throughout the Olympics, LeBron James deserved the MVP award despite Steph Curry's incredible plays.
"LeBron was the best player in the entire Olympics, bro," Ross said. "Curry did his thing in the last two games. He absolutely shot the piss out of the ball like he's known to do. LeBron literally put that team on his back and led them all the way there. I mean, without LeBron, Curry might not even get those shots off."
Prior to the Olympics, LeBron James was voted as the best player on Team USA by his peers. Despite the fact that the future Hall of Famer and four-time national champion is entering year 22, James clearly still has plenty of gas left in the tank.