Has LeBron surpassed Bird?

[knuckleballer]

In a close out game, Lebron goes 2-10 for 7 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists.  He did not want the ball at the end of the game. 

He'll have a chance to redeem himself, but it's laughable to me when people try to put him at Jordan's level.

[bknova]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IPMMO7xiLQ

Clearly, I have made my bed in this thread.

And I will lie in it, warmly and very comfortably.

I feel like guys were more creative with their passing back then than they are now.  Magic was incredibly creative with his passing as well.  Not sure if there's a reason for it or it's just how I remember it.

Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, and Ricky Rubio are amongst the most creative passers I've ever seen.  They throw Magic, Isiah, Larry type passes.

[ram]

With an air-conditioning failure making it feel like a sauna and causing James to battle cramps that knocked him out of the decisive stretch, the Spurs pulled away to win the opener of the first Finals rematch since 1998.

"After I came out of the game, they kind of took off," James said. "And it was frustrating sitting out and not be able to help our team."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Game 5 was a classic, with Bird coming up with a huge game in one of the (literally) hottest games ever (97 ?F (36 ?C)) in the non-air conditioned Boston Garden.  Bird shot 15-20 from the field and pulled down 17 rebounds while playing 42 minutes.

[LatterDayCelticsfan]

Probably drank more water too.

[dysgenic]

Lebron came into the league at age 18 and will play much more healthy seasons than Larry Bird did so right from the top most people would assume Lebron because of all his stats. I will compare Larry from 83-87 and take those years over Lebrons best years.
Lebron is the better defender and of course has a stronger game to the basket then Bird.
LeBron has a good basketball IQ but Larry still edges him in that department. Bird had no where near the physical abilities that Lebron was born with yet Larry still dominated the league.

Bird was by far a superior shooter than Lebron and by far more clutch. Bird was also the better rebounder and even though Lebron is a good passer Larry still has him beat there.

I would have also loved to see how Lebron would have responded getting knocked around in a tough 80's league  for a guy his size he doesn't like contact were Bird seemed to thrive on it and get p---ed.

So don't fall in love with ESPN hype machine of Lebron, yes he is a great player but give me Larry from 83-87 over Lebron any day of the week.

TP.  Lebron probably has the better career, but Bird's prime was better.  Kind of like Pedro Martinez in baseball. There may have been better pitchers career wise, but no one was as good as Pedro for 3-4 years- ever.

[EJPLAYA]

Bird made his teammates into elite players. Lebron skipped town and convinced other elite players to join him. No... He has not nor ever will.

[Cman]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IPMMO7xiLQ

Clearly, I have made my bed in this thread.

And I will lie in it, warmly and very comfortably.

oh man, TP. So fun to watch those. Those were the days, weren't they.

[cb8883]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

[Smokeeye123]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

......2 wins 3 losses in the finals > 6wins and 0 losses in the finals?.....

My god I would love to hear a detailed description as to why Lebron is better than Jordan cb8883.

Walk me through it; love to hear it.

[knuckleballer]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

Saying that he has passed Bird is a fair argument.  Saying that he has passed Jordan is ludicrous.  He simply lacks the ability to consistently take over close games and will his team to victory like Jordan did. 

[D.o.s.]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

Saying that he has passed Bird is a fair argument.  Saying that he has passed Jordan is ludicrous.  He simply lacks the ability to consistently take over close games and will his team to victory like Jordan did. 

That's true, but you're not really talking about career accomplishments at that point, are you?

As such, it's a silly thing to try and introduce into the argument.

[knuckleballer]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

Saying that he has passed Bird is a fair argument.  Saying that he has passed Jordan is ludicrous.  He simply lacks the ability to consistently take over close games and will his team to victory like Jordan did. 

That's true, but you're not really talking about career accomplishments at that point, are you?

As such, it's a silly thing to try and introduce into the argument.

It's that quality, in addition to his extraordinary talents of course, that led to Jordan's accomplishments, six straight championships.  It's that quality that made his game so awe inspiring and why he became so popular... and why he's still so popular.  It absolutely is a part of the argument.

[BballTim]

Yes anyone who disagrees is holding on to past memories. Lebron would wreck Bird. However lebron can wreck most people so it's not so much a knock against Bird.

  Bird was a much better shooter, passer and rebounder than James, and didn't spend the bulk of his career dealing with the questions about how big he plays in big games that LeBron has. Other than that, you'd go with LBJ. It's not that people are holding on to past memories, it's that they realize that Bird didn't play in the Bob Cousey black and white tv era.

  LeBron's still going strong and he's already had a few more healthy seasons than Bird did, so he'll clearly end up with the better career, but his play over the last few years was no more dominant than Bird's in the mid 80s.

[freshinthehouse]

I'm not a Lebron hater by any means, but I'd still put Bird ahead of him.  Bird was the better passer, rebounder, and shooter, and lebron was the better defender, penetrator, and ball handler.   Where Bird separates himself is in the clutch.  Bird thrived on clutch moments.  Then watch Lebrons last few possessions in game 6 of the 2013 finals.  Then watch them again. 

[slamtheking]

He passed Bird three years ago. The question should be has he passed Jordan. I would say Yes.

Saying that he has passed Bird is a fair argument.  Saying that he has passed Jordan is ludicrous.  He simply lacks the ability to consistently take over close games and will his team to victory like Jordan did. 

That's true, but you're not really talking about career accomplishments at that point, are you?

As such, it's a silly thing to try and introduce into the argument.

It's that quality, in addition to his extraordinary talents of course, that led to Jordan's accomplishments, six straight championships.  It's that quality that made his game so awe inspiring and why he became so popular... and why he's still so popular.  It absolutely is a part of the argument.

Jordan didn't win 6 straight championships.  he won 3, retired and Houston won 2 in a row, then came back and won 3 more