Daryl Morey: LeBron James Is Best Player in History by 'A Bit of a Big Margin'
August 15, 2018
Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said Wednesday that Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is clearly the most valuable player in NBA history from an analytics standpoint.
"At this point, it's become a bit of a big margin that [James is the best player in NBA history]," Morey said during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show.
Morey cited James' ability to "generate wins and championship probability" to explain his thought process, though he added: "You don't need all the numbers. You can watch as well and see that."
James' track record puts him firmly in the conversation as the best player to ever step on a basketball court. He's won four MVP awards, was named NBA Finals MVP in all three of his championship triumphs and has been selected to 14 straight All-Star Games.
Although there's no single stat to determine the No. 1 player in history—those debates are a major part of what makes sports fun—LeBron's case is strong.
He ranks fourth all-time in regular-season win shares behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain and Karl Malone while sitting first in postseason win shares ahead of Michael Jordan, his most common counterpart in the GOAT discussion, and Tim Duncan.
In August 2016, James said after leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to the franchise's first title that surpassing Jordan now headlined his basketball to-do list.
"My motivation is this ghost I'm chasing," he said, per Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated. "The ghost played in Chicago."
James told Jenkins: "My career is totally different than Michael Jordan's. What I've gone through is totally different than what he went through. What he did was unbelievable, and I watched it unfold. I looked up to him so much. I think it's cool to put myself in position to be one of those great players, but if I can ever put myself in position to be the greatest player, that would be something extraordinary."
Jordan won six NBA championships during his legendary career with the Chicago Bulls—double James' current total. Unless the 33-year-old Ohio native meets or exceeds that total, he'll never receive a clear consensus in the GOAT conversation, regardless of what the analytics say.