MIami Heat won the 2012 NBA ring, is Lebron James now considered one of the top

1. 62

   prettydarkhorseposted 12 years ago

   MIami Heat won the 2012 NBA ring, is Lebron James now considered one of the top 3, 5 or 10?
   
   Lebron James finally won an NBA ring as Miami Heat beat the OKC in the 2012 NBA Championship. This is a dream come true for Lebron James, his team and the Miami heat team.
   
   With this win, can we say that he is now included among the top three, five or even ten in the NBA. We must remember that he has still a long way to go in his career..

   replyreport
2. 0

   Npainte1posted 12 years ago

   Yes he still has a long way to go in his career but as far as skills are concerned I would say that he's number 1 without a doubt.   You put Lebron up against anyone and he'll dominate.

   replyreport
   1. 71

      Fuller-Lifeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I agree that Lebron James is one of the best basketball players. He's gotten even more dangerous as he matures. He's only 27. Michael Jordan and Kobe didn't win an NBA championship until 30. Hate him or like him, he's one of the best!

      replyreport
3. 69

   Missing Linkposted 12 years ago

   Do you mean top 3-10 currently or all time?  I think he is top 3 right now among active players but for all time I think that remains to be seen---for now I would say definitely not.  I've watched basketball my entire life.

   replyreport
   1. 62

      prettydarkhorseposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Current I suppose because his career is just peaking. Thanks for your response.

      replyreport
   2. 69

      Missing Linkposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Though I mentioned 10 earlier was actually thinking 3-5.  Top 3 currently yes and all time perhaps 8 or 9.  By the time he retires we will likely say he is top 1-6 all time.  Abdul Jabbar, Jordan, Chamberlain, Russell, Magic, Bird, Erving, Kobe etc.

      replyreport
4. 61

   KeenanEMposted 12 years ago

   If you're talking about players right now, then LeBron was considered top 3, and widely number 1, before the ring. Because of that I'm assuming you mean all-time. Maybe by the time his career is over he'll be top 5 or maybe even top 3, but he only might be top 10. I can easily put Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, and Julius Erving ahead of him, and that's just off the top of my head.

   replyreport
   1. 69

      Missing Linkposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Yes we generally agree.  I think you are a long time basketball fan yes?

      replyreport
   2. 61

      KeenanEMposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I follow most sports, but yes I've followed basketball since the mid '90s aka since I was around 8-10 years old.

      replyreport
5. 61

   sethpowersposted 12 years ago

   It's difficult to compare apples and oranges as the game has changed so much over the last several decades. The simple answer is that this championship win doesn't mean anything besides the fact that LeBron is now ELIGIBLE to be included in the best of all time. As far as talent goes, he is certainly great, but so is everyone in the NBA, hence the reason they get paid to play a sport. I'm not saying LeBron isn't the best player in the NBA, he probably is. The point is once you begin to compare elite players, the margin for difference is razor thin, so you have to look at the entire picture. Championships is one way to do it as it demonstrates a players ability to lead and succeed under the most difficult of circumstances (The Yankees wouldn't be a great team if they had all the best players but never won a world series, would they?). But, there are other ways to compare as well such as overall stats (i.e. points, steals, rebounds, assists, etc.), experience (how many years has he played in the league? how many obstacles has he overcome in his career), other accolades (i.e. slam dunk championship, 3-point contest, all-star games, hall of fame induction, etc.), and intangibles (is he a likeable player? did he make others around him great? does he inspire and lead his teammates?).
   
   All of these things go into making the best player of all time. IMHO, Michael Jordan embodies all of these characteristics. When you stack them up against LeBron, you see some obvious discrepancies. He now has one championship so you can check that off the list (only 5 more to go!). But what else is he lacking?

   replyreport
6. 60

   AJ Flaniganposted 12 years ago

   Easily number one currently.  No one's debating that.  I don't put Jordan or Russell ahead of him by the time his career is done, but if he wins another MVP, and this is coming from a long time Celtics fan, in my mind, he'll be better than Bird, but he'd have to win 2-3 more rings to surpass Magic, Wilt, and Kareem.  Right now, I put him at 10 all time, between the logo and the dream.  If his career is half of what it's been so far, he's a lock for top 7, arguably top 5.

   replyreport
7. 50

   jeolmoz2posted 11 years ago

   After James left the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was hammered publicly for two years, specially by team owner Dan Gilbert. Dan Gilbert has refused until to this very day to take the Gentleman’s Path instead continues to Tweet on the Low Road. Gilbert has demonstrated to the world that sometimes your boss is not such a nice guy to work for after all. LeBron James Bear Hugging a fan during a halftime contest plus doing the Harlem Shake with his teammates on YouTube, The Chosen looks happy and his Decision has been validated. Moving from his native Home State of Ohio with his family, was the right move. After back to back appearances in the NBA Finals, the Miami Heat just looks primed for a dynasty. I have to admit it, I am going to miss all the Haters.

   replyreport