MJ, a world class hater, hates on GOAT debates
His Airness mistakes historical appreciation for cross-generational disrespect.
His Airness mistakes historical appreciation for cross-generational disrespect.
Good morning. It's been a week since anyone has scored 80 points. Are they just going to let Bam Adebayo be the only guy? Let's basketball.
A little more than a week ago, NBC ran another edition of A Sockless Mike Tirico Interviewing A Sockless Michael Jordan In A Highly Controlled Setting. Tirico asked about MJ's Olympic experiences and, more notably, the G.O.A.T. debates. If you expected His Airness to treat the latter topic with disdain, congratulations, you will not be disappointed.
Jordan says that cross-generational comparisons can breed contempt from some legends who feel their contributions to the game have been disrespected. Jordan himself isn't susceptible to such feelings, according to uh Jordan himself. But others are, and it can be proven right or wrong, so it's circular and dumb.
The issue here is that there are few better ways to engage current fans in appreciation of players they didn't see in real-time than through this comparison. The reason Jordan is still Jordan to kids born after '98 is because we keep talking about Jordan. And the way we most often talk about Jordan is in the GOAT debate, specifically with respect to LeBron. This isn't academic study of history. We don't have textbooks and contemporary literature to teach kids about Oscar Robertson or Jerry West or Larry Bird or Magic Johnson or Jordan or Hakeem Olajuwon. We have YouTube and TikTok and group chats. And while Remembering Some Guys is a nice pastime for us folks on the other side of 40, kids aren't sitting around doing that.
So how do you get anyone to engage in appreciation of the history of the sport? You talk about GOATS! You engage in cross-generational comparison. You compare current players for which younger fans have context via direct observation (say, LaMelo Ball) to players they've only seen in grainy clips (say, Pistol Pete). The fact that no one can definitively know whether Jordan would have disrupted Bill Russell's Boston dynasty or whether LeBron's Heat could have taken out Jordan's Bulls in the ECF helps give the debate alive, which furthers the discourse and the appreciation. It's good that it's unknowable. That makes it's interesting and worth debate.
It can't be the whole of discourse about the league. And it's probably a good thing that LeBron as center of the NBA galaxy is waning, with Steph Curry and Kevin Durant to follow, just as it was healthy when Jordan walked away for the second and third times. A field needs to burn once a generation to stay healthy. But the GOAT debates are a generally healthy way to ensure that what has passed remains adjacent to the zeitgeist for a little longer, and bridges the generations of fans and appreciators. GOAT talk hits every sport, but is perhaps most interesting in basketball given the nature of the game: a team sport with a massive amount of variables that often relies on a singular player. It's not cut and dry like an individual sport like tennis, but impact is not so distributed as, say, American football. There's lots of room for debate, and as long as debate doesn't crowd out all other conversations, it remains a valid way to tap into the history of the sport. Broader recognition and appreciation for the history of basketball can only be good for guys like Jordan, West, Big O, Bird, Magic and eventually LeBron, Steph and KD.
By the Way
I think of GOATs as a progression of titles, like the Black Panther mantle. Bill Russell was the first GOAT, succeeded by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was succeeded by Michael Jordan, who was succeeded by LeBron James.
Scores
Pistons 130, Wizards 117 – Cade Cunningham left early with back spasms. Hmm.
Thunder 113, Magic 108 – Alex Caruso is such an unhinged defender that he taught us all a rule we've never before needed to know.
If you block a shot with your sneaker, it's a goaltend and a tech. Good to know.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander outgunned Paolo Banchero. Best scorer alive.
Heat 106, Hornets 136 – LaMelo just tries stuff and too often it works.
Pacers 110, Knicks 136 – Josh Hart is the least decorated player who could mess around and win an Eastern Conference Finals MVP trophy.
Cavaliers 123, Bucks 116 – Giannis is out another week. Season from hell.
Suns 104, Timberwolves 116 – This is some good officiating. I aspire to this level of de-escalation in everyday life.
Anthony Edwards didn't play and will miss 1-2 weeks with knee soreness. Hmm.
Sixers 96, Nuggets 124 – Games involving tank teams can be rough. But there's no worse game in the NBA than a game between any two teams that's over before halftime. Denver took a 33-point lead in the second quarter. It's just too much garbage time!
Spurs 132, Kings 104 – The good news: Maxime Raynaud had an impressive 32-9 against his countryman Victor Wembanyama. The bad news: Raynaud was a -22 in 42 minutes.
What a triumph it will be if the Kings can get to even five players worth protecting in an expansion draft.
The Spurs broadcast of this game also featured an unauthorized AI-generated ad starring streamer IShowSpeed. We might be completely screwed.
Lookin Like a Season
The WNBA and players' association announced a new labor agreement at the end of marathon negotiations. The next five weeks are going to be insane: there's still a draft, an expansion draft for two teams and most of the league is eligible to become a free agent. We don't have any details on the deal yet. But given the rising popularity of the league, it's just a really good thing that they won't skip a season.
What Free Subscribers Missed
Here's some of what paid subscribers received over the past week:
- A discourse on the many long, strong tentacles of the NBA expansion on the horizon
- A case for the Lakers as contenders thanks to an improving defense and otherworldly offensive play from Luka
- A deep read of Erik Spoelstra's nihilist defense of Bam Adebayo's 83 points
You too can become a paid subscriber by hitting this little button and paying $7 per month or $70 per year.
Links
Story of the year so far: McKay Coppins on his year as a degenerate sports gambler.
G. K. Chesterton once wrote about two people who encounter a fence erected across a road. One of them demands that it be torn down; the wiser of the two responds that they should find out why it was put there in the first place before deciding on a course of action. [...]
Practically overnight, we took an ancient vice—long regarded as soul-rotting and civilizationally ruinous—put it on everyone’s phone, and made it as normal and frictionless as checking the weather. What could possibly go wrong?
In related news, Arizona's attorney general has filed criminal charges against Kalshi, alleging it's an illegal gambling platform. Other states have sued in civil court.
Paul Flannery on Jaylen Brown's fight for respect from, well, everyone.
Whoa! The Ringer got the legend Michael Lee to write about Kevin Durant's legacy.
Tom Haberstroh with an excellent point: Erik Spoelstra's high-pace system in Miami helped make Bam Adebayo's 83 possible. Pace is jet fuel for explosive scoring numbers.
Kelly Dwyer on whether there are too many games or just too much travel.
Dan Devine on the upside of the new-look Hawks.
Katie Heindl with a lucid and frankly brave reflection on the tumult around Bam's 83 being centered on the brittle nature of the Kobe Bryant fandom. Nostalgia's one of the most fascinating elements of modern human nature. This is a good meditation on it.
One of the best things in my inbox every week: Channel 6's offseason The Rare Literal, which is a curation of good things explained brilliantly. TRL is free, but I strongly recommend getting a paid Channel 6 subscription even if you don't follow college football, because everything Spencer Hall and Holly Anderson do is wonderful. Until they talk inevitably talk about MAC powerhouse to be Sacramento State. Stingers tentatively up.
Stephen Noh talks to a stripper advocate about the NBA canceling Magic City Monday.
I haven't read this but plan to when I have some time: an oral history of the Sloan Conference. I've never been (I'm kind of a hermit) and feel like I totally missed the window during it would have been nice to attend.
Schedule
It's a 9-game slate. All times Eastern. Highlight game in bold.
Warriors at Celtics, 7, ESPN
Thunder at Nets, 7:30
Blazers at Pacers, 7:30
Raptors at Bulls, 8
Jazz at Timberwolves, 8
Clippers at Pelicans, 8
Nuggets at Grizzlies, 8:30
Hawks at Mavericks, 8:30
Lakers at Rockets, 9:30, ESPN
Be excellent to each other.
