The hottest debate in the NBA these days seems to be whether LeBron James or Michael Jordan is the greatest player in history.
Kendrick Perkins, who played with James on the Cleveland Cavaliers, seemed to make the case that the four-time MVP is the greatest player of all time because he had less help than Jordan.
“[Scottie] Pippen never win the MVP, but he could have been the MVP a lot of seasons,” said Perkins. “I’m like, ‘Man, hold up, M.J. was playing with another MVP-type player his entire career.’ I’m like, ‘Bron never really played with a player like that until kinda he got A.D.’ (Anthony Davis), and A.D. never won an MVP. It’s not to knock on A.D., I’m just speaking facts.”
Pippen was a truly unique player for the Chicago Bulls teams of the 1990s. In addition to having a career average of 16.1 points per game, he perfected the point forward position.
In doing so, he took a huge burden of off Jordan’s shoulders by pushing the ball up the court, getting teammates easier baskets and initiating the team’s triangle offense.
Pippen was also one of the greatest defenders of all time, which made him that much more valuable.
However, the other side of the argument is that James has played with Dwyane Wade and Kyrie Irving, both of whom were much more offensive-minded than Pippen ever was.
