LeBron James Says Pursuit of Michael Jordan's Legacy a 'Personal Goal'

On Thursday, LeBron James spoke about his desire to create a legacy on par with that of Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.

"It's just a personal goal of mine," he said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. "It has nothing to do with passing the rings, passing the points, passing MVPs. It's just my personal goal to keep me motivated—that's all."

He continued:

"You guys are going to have the conversations about who is greatest of all time and things of that nature. It doesn't matter to me. At the end of the day, it's so funny that the conversation is always talked about in the NBA about who is the greatest but it's never talked about in the NFL about who is the greatest quarterback. It's just like: [Dan] Marino, [John] Elway, [Peyton] Manning and [Tom] Brady. All great quarterbacks, you know—and it should be the same for us."

"We go out and just try to be as great as we can be every night. The comparison of always trying to compare people either living or still playing or not playing, I think it's great for barbershops, but for me I'm just trying to put my mark on the game and leave a legacy behind so I can inspire the next group of kids that want to play the game the right way."

While it's fair to point out that the greatest quarterback in NFL history is debated constantly, James' perspective is nonetheless an interesting one. The debate for fans is often about determining the best player. But James prefers to have a legacy that's as impactful and memorable as the one Jordan created for himself in his career. 

Both on and off the court, James is on his way. On the court, he already has three titles, is on the cusp of reaching his seventh straight NBA Finals and is a four-time league MVP and three-time Finals MVP. Like Jordan, he's the most dominant player of his generation.

Off the court, James is the most marketable player in the sport and has already begun sowing the seeds to become, as Pablo Torre of ESPN called it, a "global entertainment icon" after his playing career ends.

And he's also been vocal about social issues. As Harvey Araton of the New York Times wrote in Dec. 2014, "In addition to wielding influence that Jordan apparently never did in Chicago, James has figured out something Jordan never did or was inclined to do: His corporate underwriters need him at least as much as he needs them, liberating him to weigh in on real-world issues, especially those affecting African-Americans."

James' legacy indeed will be different from Jordan's. He may never reach six titles. He also never left the sport altogether to play baseball in his prime, as Jordan did, though his handling of "The Decision" when he left the Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat was one of the more controversial moments in recent NBA history. 

But his legacy will nonetheless be on par with that of Jordan. It's hard to deny that James is the definitive superstar of his generation. 

Just like Jordan.