"Michael Jordan & Magic they are past"- Kevin Garnett goes off on Stephen A. Smith for putting LeBron James on No.2 on his all-time list
Kevin Garnett shut down Stephen A. Smith about the GOAT conversation that Smith frequently finds himself involved in. On “The Stephen A. Smith Show”, Garnett slammed the media mentality of being hung up in the past.
When Smith tried to swoop in Michael Jordan’s GOAT status ahead of LeBron, stating MJ's two three-peats, KG reminded Smith about LeBron's unprecedented feat at age 38.
00:24:30 "Bro are missing on greatness right in front of us. LeBron James is 38 m*****f***** years old, doing something we ain't never seen...we got to get over this. Michael Jordan, Magic (Johnson), they are the past. We got to embrace this newish…we are in a new time…LeBron just hit 39000 points bro, we ain't never seen nobody hit that.”
He also reminded Smith that when Jordan was playing, he wasn’t hung up in the past but thinking about himself and his team.
The Jordan-LeBron debate has become "The Great Debate" in the NBA. While analyst and players have given their GOAT picks, Smith has openly said that Jordan would always be his GOAT, no matter what LeBron does in his career.
However, KG was on point in saying that greatness is at a different level in the league, and perhaps no one should miss that by hanging on to the past.
Garnett said that the media world is so stuck in the past that it's missing the greatness that exists in the league right now.
Giving examples of 7-foot-4-in Victor Wembanyama playing like a guard, LeBron James playing elite basketball at 38 and Steph Curry's god-like shooting, KG said that the world needs to move on from the past.
Kevin Garnett puts LeBron over MJ
Kevin Garnett and LeBron James rivalry is still fresh in NBA fans’ memories.
Once Garnett went so far as to say that he and the Boston Celtics sent LeBron out of Cleveland. However, recently, KG has not been shying away from giving "The King" his flowers.
On the podcast, “The Ticket and The Truth” Kevin Garnett showered high praise for LeBron for his longevity.
“Man, he played against Vince Carter, Paul Pierce, f*cking Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady. He built from the traditional. Bron from the old country. He graduated from this new joint, but he is from the old country. He built the old country. Lord, he has another 4-5 years if he wants this," KG said.
He also went on to say that even Michael Jordan couldn’t do what the Lakers star is doing at this age.
“We finna get my sons in here. I am going to start a volleyball league for my daughter. Lord is just doing whatever. We have never seen it like this. Michael Jordan had it, but he ain't never had it like this," Garnett added.
LeBron is going to turn 39 in just over a month but is averaging 25.7 points per game, shooting 57.8% from the field and 41.4% from the 3-point line.
He's also averaging 8.1 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game, which has never been done before, especially at his age.