The debate over who holds the title of NBA’s GOAT often centers on LeBron James and Michael Jordan. Draymond Green recently highlighted a critical factor that gives James a slight edge over Jordan. However, LeBron has long believed in his superiority before stepping onto an NBA court.
In a recent episode of “The Shop,” James shared a story from his senior year in high school. The 40-year-old reflected on his realization of his potential to become the GOAT at 17.
“I think I was about 17 [years old]. It was the summer of my junior year going into my senior year, and I was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. They had dubbed me ‘The Chosen One.’ And every tournament I was going to and playing against consensus number one players or top 100 guys. I was doing sh*t that sometimes was out of body for myself,” James recalled.
“I couldn’t even believe some of the sh*t that I was doing. And then at that moment, around 17, I knew I could be LeBron, not Jordan, not Penny. I could still use them as inspiration and get some creative ideas from them by watching and studying them because they’ve done it for a long time. But I started to feel like, Oh sh*t, you can now be a part of that room,” he added.
Tony Parker Compares Victor Wembanyama’s Rookie Season to LeBron James’
Due to LeBron James’ athleticism during his rookie season, his name often appears when a rookie star performs well. Recently, Tony Parker compared San Antonio Spurs rookie star Victor Wembanyama and LeBron for his impressive rookie season performance.
“He’s not bothered by the pressure or the expectation. He’s a little bit like LeBron. The only one who can compare to so much expectation before his arrival is LeBron James,” Parker said.
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In his rookie season, LeBron won Rookie of the Year with averages of 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game. Wembanyama also won Rookie of the Year, averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, an NBA-leading 3.6 blocks, and 1.2 steals per game.
Also Read: Basketball Olympics: Top 5 All-Time Scorers For Team USA Men’s Basketball.
