The Real GOAT According To NBA Superstars..

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
Now, with there being a constant debate of who's the best basketball player ever, who do NBA players themselves say is the GOAT? Now, it's definitely no doubt that recently drafted Zion Williamson is going to be one of the biggest names in spotlights all year long. And with that being said, last season while making headlines and labeled as the next LeBron, he was actually asked who the basketball GOAT to him was. And Zion had a lot to say about the constant debates of MJ, LeBron, and Kobe. He said, I mean, me personally, I'd go with Jordan. I mean, I don't know, it's all my opinion, but Jordan was my GOAT. Like, that's what my parents taught me. When Zion was asked about Kobe in particular, he said, Kobe's obviously up there, but I mean, I'm gonna go with Jordan. That's my pick. LeBron and Kobe are probably tied for a second because it's hard to compare them. What LeBron is doing, nobody else has done that. But for me, that's what I grew up watching. I think what people grew up on, that's what they're gonna pick. Now, Kevin Durant recently sat down with Darius Miles on a podcast where the two went over various topics about basketball. But the more interesting question came when Darius asked Durant who his top five players of all time was, and KD said, Mike Jordan, obviously a one. Kobe Bryant, two. Shaq O'Neal, three. Hakeem Olajuwon, four. Magic Johnson. Just the way they move, I don't understand why people don't realize what they're seeing in these, especially Jordan and Kobe. I get to play with Steph every day, so I know his game inside and out. But watching Kobe and Mike, I'm like, how do you not realize how good these dudes are? How do you not say they're by far better than anybody who's played the game? Just by the way they move, how fluid they are. Everybody that comes to my house, whether it's friends or family, I make them watch Jordan highlights. This is equivalent to Albert Einstein, Beethoven, or Barack Obama. This is the greatest talent in athletes and minds of the world. Just because they play sports, people think one way, but they're masters, they're geniuses. I just started realizing that a few years ago. Watching those guys can really spark my creativity. Durant was also asked about Kobe in general, and Durant said, he's the greatest of all time. His skill is second to none. Him and MJ are neck and neck as far as skill. Kobe's the top two best ever in just having skill, footwork, shooting the three, shooting the pull up, posting up, dunking on guys, and ball handling. Kobe and Jordan are one in 1A. Now, with that being said, with Katie and Lebron having a history of going back and forth over the years, Durant was also asked why he didn't include James in the debate, and he said, I like to put these dudes in there when they retire. That's when I really want to evaluate their careers. But as far as talent in today's NBA goes, there's one player who stands out the most to Kevin at this point in time, and that's Giannis Antetokounmpo. Durant said, the Greek freak I think is a force. I've never seen anything like him. His ceiling is probably, he could end up being the best player to ever play if he really wanted to. That's pretty scary to think about. He's by far my most favorite player to watch.
Now, with Joel Embiid being known for his on-court antics, trash-talking other superstars, and of course his social media posts, once again he had a completely different take than most when it came to the greatest of all time debate. Rather than MJ, LeBron, or even Kobe being considered, when Joel sat down with the ringer, he went in-depth about who's really the GOAT to him, and he said, to me, you got Wilt Chamberlain. I mean, he has all the records. They're never gonna be beaten. I don't see anybody getting 100 points in a game. That's it. He's the GOAT. And also in an interview with Bleacher Report, and beat Double Down on this, once again saying, to me, the GOAT has always been Wilt Chamberlain. He would have been dominant in this era.
So with Allen Iverson completely revolutionizing the game during his era, he's often been considered one of the better point guards in NBA history due to his ridiculous scoring ability. And that's what also makes his opinion extremely credible when debating who's the best players of all time, because he has well faced many of the top players ever, going up against Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James. But with that being said, AI chimed in on the debate and said, all right, I have to weigh in on this goat conversation. I have to. I'm hearing a lot of people these days fronting like they have LeBron over Mike. Man, listen, first of all, I love LeBron. I have nothing but love for LeBron. That's the best player of his generation, one of the best ever. A great husband, great father, great role model, and it's even beyond that. What he's doing with that school in Akron, it's a beautiful thing. But y'all, we're talking about Mike. We're talking about Mike, okay? We're talking about Black Jesus himself. And I don't really have much more to say beyond that. Mike is the goat. Mike is always gonna be the goat. And please don't even insult me with any of this stats, AI business. Like you have a chance of changing my mind. Also in an interview with The Unguarded, Iverson did explain how he doesn't understand the fact that Kobe Bryant is so often snubbed from this debate. In an Instagram post, AI said, what bothers me is when they compare LeBron to Mike. I don't understand how they don't have the debate with Kobe. Like, I don't get it. You forgot or something? They forgot? I really think they forgot the Mamba Man. Now with James Harden having an insane run over the last few seasons, winning MVP and averaging nearly 40 points per game in the following year, he also had some choice words when talking about who he believes is the greatest of all time. Harden said, Kobe Bryant, Wilt Chamberlain, and Jordan. Now we're talking about the elites of the game, the greatest to ever touch a basketball. It's honorable to be up there with those names. Honestly, I have a long way to go. I'm not even close to what they accomplished in their careers, but it's pretty cool to be in that conversation and almost there, but I have a lot of work to do. That's one of the reasons you play the game of basketball, to be, when it's all said and done, mentioned as one of the greats, the greatest that's ever dribbled a basketball, whether it's Wilt, whether it's Jordan, and the list goes on. Obviously, you want to win championships, you want the individual accomplishments, but every day when I'm in the gym and work out moves, I think about that. When I'm done, whenever that is, I want my name up there with them. It's a good place to be in. Now, prior to James going off in 2017, he had already let the world know he felt he was the best player in the league, when he said, I feel like I'm solid in everything. IQ, studying the game, I can score the basketball, make my teammates better. There are not a lot of guys that have all those characteristics in one. They might be way more athletic, can shoot the ball way better, but everything's solid in one human body. You can ask all those top guys who the best player is, of course, they're gonna say themselves, because as a basketball player, you're confident in your craft. It's not taking shots at anybody, it's confidence.