LeBron vs MJ: The Goat Debate and Data Manipulation
- Allie Lorton
- Dec 13, 2020
- 4 min read
If you know a thing or two about basketball, my guess is that at some point in time you have come across the question, who is the GOAT? The two players' names that are often used as a response are Michael Jordan and Lebron James. To pick a side, you could have been brought up as a fan of a certain team, been a bandwagon who only likes certain pliers because they win, or you could look at statistics and “reliable” sources from the internet. But, just how reliable are those sources, and how much are they doing to try and get you to join their team? Today, we find out.
In an article on Zoomtens.com titled “10 Reasons Lebron James is Better Than Michael Jordan” perfectly illustrates a one-sided narrative. When explaining why Lebron is a better all-around player, he says, “Surpassing Jordan on total rebounds, this says a lot as he has an average of 8 rebounds a game in one season. During the playoffs, James goes out of his way to showcase his rebounding skills, averaging over 2 more rebounds than Jordan did in [the] playoffs” (Wes). Even though upon initial evaluation this seems rooted in statistics and facts, when you take a closer look it brings up a few questions. How many games has Lebron played vs MJ? If Lebron has played many more games, it wouldn’t come as a surprise that he has more total rebounds. This is an example of leaving data out. To deepen his argument, it isn’t noted that Lebron has almost played in 1,265 vs Jordan’s 1,072. Additionally, comparing rebounding statistics needs to be given more context. The author leaves out that Lebron James is 3 inches taller than Jordan and plays small forward, whereas Michael Jordan played shooting guard. This is data that needs to be added as key components of rebounding have to do with your size and position. Small forwards tend to be playing defense against players closer to the paint, and shooting guards tend to guard players on the perimeter. Yet again, more data and context that has been left out.
When discussing how Lebron is a team player, he notes, “He doesn’t play for personal glory but for his team, hometown, family, and friends” (Wes). This is an example of the burden of proof. Despite having any hard evidence to make Lebron’s motivation behind playing a fact, he relies on the fact that no one has any evidence to refute this argument. It is almost like being innocent until proven guilty. He has made this claim and it isn’t technically false because no one has tried to prove otherwise.
In an article by Forbes titled, “5 Reasons Lebron James is the Greatest of All Time”, the author provides more commentary on the Lebron vs MJ debate. After explaining the NBA expansion teams and “dilution” of talent in the league, the author writes,” Following their era of dominance in the '80s, the Lakers and the Celtics naturally found themselves in rebuilding mode in the early '90s because of the ebbs and flows of sports. Michael Jordan’s teams were able to take advantage of the lack of these powerhouses and won their first three-peat from 1990-93” (Steinberg). Here, the author pulls a classic Texas sharpshooter. He gives us a specific subset of time-based on the rebuilding going on in the league to try and say that the three-peat was essentially invalid to be played against Lebron. Within full context, this could change the reader’s perception of this situation. Even in the 1991 finals against the Lakers, the Bulls still competed against Magic Johnson, a player now in the basketball hall of fame. Additionally, the author leaves out that every single one of Michael Jordan’s 6 finals appearances ended with a victory. So, just ½ of those doesn’t tell the whole story of MJ’s playoff and finals difficulty.
To further analyze the way that data on the subject can be swayed, let’s take a look at these diagrams, representing the statistics between the two players:
a.
b.
Diagram a takes into account their whole careers, making the total points, rebounds, assists, championships, all-star nods, and MVP’s without data to show how many seasons and games were being taken into account for the two players. This is another example of leaving data out. This graphic seems to be in Lebron’s favor as he has played in more games and without that knowledge, it looks as if all of his numbers are higher. Diagram b shows similar statistics as if when they had both played the same number of games. As you can see, that drastically changes who it paints to be the better player. Michael Jordan here has more than Lebron in points, MVPs, finals MVPs, and titles; figures that weren’t fully included in diagram a.
Overall, all of this is just speculation based on the statistics that people want to use and think are applicable. When you get debates that people are so passionate about you are sure to have a bias that is reflected in the way they tell the story and present the data. All we can do is ask questions and keep an eye out for manipulation. Honestly, we will never really know who is the GOAT unless we see them both lace-up and go one-on-one while both at the prime of their careers and athletic ability. I don’t know about you, but I would sure buy a ticket.
Citations:
Steinberg, Leigh. “5 Reasons LeBron James Is The Greatest Of All-Time.” Forbes, 30 June 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/leighsteinberg/2018/05/31/5-reasons-why-lebron-is-the-greatest-of-all-time/?sh=60915be522bf. Accessed 13 Dec. 2020.
Wes. “10 Reasons Lebron James Is Better than Michael Jordan - Page 2 of 3 - ZoomTens.” ZoomTens, 3 Mar. 2017, zoomtens.com/10-reasons-lebron-james-better-michael-jordan/2/. Accessed 13 Dec. 2020.
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