Larry Bird jumped on the Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday, and the conversation covered Bird’s Pacers, Magic Johnson, and then Patrick asked Bird if he thought LeBron James had a killer instinct:
Everybody is a little different but I will tell you what. That LeBron James is about as good as I’ve ever seen. I mean this guy is unbelievable. I’m not going to say he’s a Michael Jordan and all that, but he ain’t too far behind. He ain’t too far behind Kobe either. He just hasn’t made some plays down the stretch and he will. He will win multiple championships before he’s out of this league. You can’t be as good as him and not win.
Why are we still trying to put LeBron James on Michael Jordan’s pedestal? They’re different players. The game itself is different. If anybody is close to being MJ, it’s Kobe. Even Jordan himself thinks that. If you want to talk about popularity, then yes, LeBron “ain’t too far behind” Jordan.
Also, Bird didn’t specify if he was talking about LeBron With Wade or LeBron With Wade Out Hurt. They’re two different players. LeBron With Wade Out Hurt may very well win over eight titles like he so eloquently predicted.