Patrick Ewing explains why MJ is the GOAT: "LeBron is great, but Mike was a killer from day one"
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The basketball world has continued the GOAT debate between Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Both sides have good arguments for being called the NBA’s best-ever player, but for some people, Jordan reigns supreme in this category.
One of those who support Mike’s case is New York Knicks legend Patrick Ewing. He cites the mentality MJ played with during his NBA career as the primary reason why Pat would take His Airness over King James.
“Everybody asks that question, but for me, Michael Jordan is the best in my era. The way that he played, everything he brought to the table, not to take anything away from LeBron and Kobe,” Ewing said on The Mark Jackson Show.
“LeBron is great, but Mike was a killer from day one, he was an assassin from day one. I think LeBron had to learn how to be an assassin.”
The criticism of LeBron’s lack of a killer mentality
Bron is a superb player, arguably the greatest of this generation. However, the criticism against him has always been about his lack of a killer mentality. He is a stellar player who could take over any game with his scoring, but many people have noticed he usually defers in the clutch moments.
Of course, it can be unfair to LeBron because he has a catalog of game-winning shots or assists. However, Michael and Kobe did not get rid of the ball in the dying moments of the game because they wanted to take the last shot.
MJ did not shy away from the responsibility of taking the final shot because he welcomed the pressure. For some people like Ewing and Denver Nuggets champion head coach Mike Malone, LeBron does not have that, but it should not diminish his greatness.
“It’s always an ongoing argument about who is the GOAT. Michael is up there and is the greatest of all time. There are not many Michael Jordans out there. I coached LeBron James for five years and have a great relationship with him,” Malone told USA Today in 2020. “LeBron did not have the same mindset or killer mentality that Michael Jordan is supposed to have had. But LeBron James is arguably the greatest of all time as well.”
Ewing admits he wants to play with LeBron more
While Ewing admits he would take Jordan in the debate between the two all-time greats, he would have wanted to play alongside LeBron. That is an understandable point because Bron is more a willing passer than Mike, even though some people discredit MJ’s playmaking ability, leading to him becoming an underrated playmaker and showing a dislike for that notion.
“If you ask me who I would want to play with, I’ll say LeBron. I wanna score. LeBron is a lot like Magic, he’s a facilitator, and he knows how to get people the ball. He became a scorer as he got older,” Ewing continued.
Ewing’s desire to play with LeBron is a testament to how King James is a trusted teammate across his two-decade-long career. However, when it comes to the greatest player of all time debate, Big Pat is only accepting his contemporary as the answer.