"How do you compare?": When Aaron Rodgers weighed in on the LeBron James-Michael Jordan debate
The "greatest of all time" debate in sports is a never-ending topic. In recent years, few debates have been as captivating as Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James. Two athletes defined their eras, much like Mike Tyson vs. Muhammad Ali in boxing. Engulfed in the debate were two football greats who defined their generation: Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers.
NBC Sports interviewed Brady and Rodgers ahead of their encounter in the 2018 season. As expected, both NFL legends hesitated while answering the tough question: Who is the GOAT of the NBA, Jordan or LeBron?
“I grew up watching Michael; I mean, that was my guy," Rodgers said. "I mean six championships, but I am a big LeBron fan as well, that’s an end.” (1:01)
However, the host didn’t let Rodgers leave with a vague answer. The former Packers QB said:
“I don’t know how to. It’s different eras. I mean, how do you compare? It was a different game back then, you know. A lot of people, when Golden State was having a run, put up that team that won all those games against the Bulls team in one of those games and they said that there’s no way that the Bulls could compete.”
A reporter asked Brady the same question.
"I'm not answering that question because I don't even like that question," Brady said. "It's a hypothetical question, and there's no answer. I love them both, and that's the right answer because how could you choose one? They are different."
Like many others, Rodgers grew up watching Jordan. His love for MJ is well-documented, as he said in another interview in 2020.
“[I] was always an MJ fan since the early 90s and loved the runs that he was on and always looked up to him,” he said, per Jelani Scott of NFL.com.
Rodgers even attended Jordan’s last game, sitting in the top row at Arco Arena, to watch MJ's final game as a Bull in 1998.
“He's the greatest basketball player of all time," Rodgers added. "Really, I'd love to debate anybody on that.”
A striking comparison between Michael Jordan and Aaron Rodgers
The Jets recorded another loss for the season when they fell 31-6 to the Cardinals last week. Reflecting on the Jets’ 3-7 record this season, Collin Cowherd made a striking comparison between Aaron Rodgers with the Jets and Michael Jordan with the Wizards.
“Aaron Rodgers has become Michael Jordan on the Wizards. It’s an old man offense,” Cowherd said on his podcast on Sunday.
Well, this wasn’t the kind of comparison the Packers great wanted, especially since he grew up in California idolizing Jordan.