LeBron James is starting to stomp on sacred ground.
For the past decade, maybe a little longer, NBA enthusiasts have engaged in a lively debate about who is the best NBA player of all time.
Most seem to think it is Michael Jordan, who led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships, three before he retired to play baseball and three more after he came to his senses and returned to basketball.
He averaged 30.1 points, 5.3 assists, 6.2 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks per game.
One of his nicknames was "Air Jordan" because he seemed to take off like a fighter plane and float through the air like a balloon. He rolled his considerable endorsements into investments, including owning the Charlotte Bobcats.
Kobe Bryant has five rings and has averaged 25.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.
His most-used nickname outside the Los Angeles Lakers nation can't be printed in a family newspaper, but he is a great basketball player. He has missed most of the past two seasons but intends to play again next year.
He lost most of his endorsements after a claim of sexual assault by a female hotel employee in 2003.
Now comes James, owner of two championship rings and career averages of 27.3 points, 6.9 assists and 7.1 rebounds per game.
His name has lingered in arguments about who is the best ever, and he's picking up steam in the debate game after leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 2-0 start in the Eastern Conference final.
Cleveland was supposed to be hurting and shorthanded, but the 6-foot-8 James -- whose nickname is "King James" -- has scored 31 and 30 points in the first two games of the series, both on the Atlanta Hawks' home court.
James, like Jordan, has used a great smile to make boatloads of endorsement money.
But as time passes (all too fast, it might be added) great players seem to be forgotten, their feats diminished by the calendar.
Some old-timers will always argue that 7-2 center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the all-time best.Abdul-Jabbar remains the all-time leading scorer with 38,387 points. It is a record that may stand forever. James could get close if he played 10 more years, but he's already experiencing some knee problems and he's 30. He will have more knee problems.
I won't say Earvin "Magic" Johnson was the best ever, but he played all five positions in the NBA and played them all very well. At 6-9, he averaged 19.5 points but also 11.2 assists and 7.2 rebounds per game.
If you were starting a team, it might start with Magic Johnson.
And if Johnson is in the argument, so is his most noted rival, Larry Bird. Those two made the NBA popular, and the games between Johnson's Lakers and Bird's Boston Celtics are still talked about.
Bird averaged 24.3 points, 10 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game. He also had 755 blocks and 1,556 steals.
All of these players were surrounded by good players, though James' supporting cast has fallen off because of injuries. Jordan was a scoring machine but became a complete player when the Bulls acquired Scottie Pippen. Bryant won three of his rings with Shaquille O'Neal (and all five with Derek Fisher).
Any argument about who is the best is subjective.
On a list of greats, all of these guys and many more, such as Bill Russell, would make it.
Which one is the all-time best is in the eyes of the beholder, and in these eyes, the greatest player may not have played yet. Heck, he may not even have been born yet.
The game of basketball is evolving and improving.
Sports on 05/24/2015