David Aretha - Lebron vs. Durant vs. Curry vs. Jordan

Published in 2020 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.

29 East 21st Street, New York, NY 10010

Copyright 2020 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Aretha, David author.

Title: LeBron vs. Durant vs. Curry vs. Jordan / David Aretha.

Other titles: LeBron versus Durant versus Curry versus Jordan

Description: First Edition. | New York: Rosen Publishing, 2020. | Series: Whos the GOAT? Using math to crown the champion | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Audience: Grade 5 to 8. Identifiers: LCCN 2019005869| ISBN 9781725348479 (library bound) | ISBN 9781725348462 (paperback)

Subjects: LCSH: Basketball playersRating ofUnited StatesJuvenile literature. | Jordan, Michael, 1963 Juvenile literature. | James, LeBronJuvenile literature. | Curry, Stephen, 1988 Juvenile literature. | Durant, Kevin, 1988 Juvenile literature. | Basketball playersUnited StatesStatistics. | BasketballMathematicsJuvenile literature.

Classification: LCC GV884.A1 A688 2020 | DDC 796.3230922 [B]dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019005869

Manufactured in the United States of America

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

L eBron James has won multiple National Basketball Association (NBA) championships and NBA MVP (most valuable player) Awards. He has been voted to fourteen All-Star Games and earned hundreds of millions of dollars. Countless factors motivate James to continue playing at a high level, but among the most important is the Chicago-based ghost of another all-time great: Michael Jordan.

In the 1980s, Michael Air Jordan soared and scored like no player in basketball history. He has the highest career scoring average in NBA history at 30.1 points per game (PPG). He led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA Finals and won all of them. He earned the NBA Finals MVP Award all six times.

LeBrons career scoring average hovers around 27 PPGless than Jordans. Yet King James is a bigger, more powerful player. Through 2018, he had taken his team to the NBA Finals for eight consecutive years, winning three championships in that time. The opponents he faces are taller, stronger, and quicker than those in Jordans day. Are they better? That is open to debate, as is the question that fans are always chatting about: Is LeBron better than Jordan? Is King James now the GOATgreatest of all time?

In recent years, two more players have joined the GOAT discussion: Golden State Warriors teammates Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. Once considered too small to play college basketball, Curry compensated by becoming the greatest shooter ever to set foot on the court, and the numbers prove it. Durant also ranks among historys premier shooters. Like James, he, too, has averaged around 27 PPG in his career. In his day, Jordan never faced a 6-foot-10-inch (208-centimeter) player with the athleticism and feathery shooting touch of KD.

Until 2000, Jordan reigned nearly undisputed as the top basketball player ever. In fact, ESPN ranked His Airness as the greatest athlete of the twentieth century. Wilt Chamberlain, another NBA legend, ranked thirteenth on that same list. Wilt the Stilt also averaged 30 PPG for his career, though at 7 feet 1 inch (216 cm) tall, he could easily dominate the shorter, slower centers of his day. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored the most points in NBA history (38,387), though his scoring average was 24.6 points per game. In short, Jordan is the greatest of the old legends. James, Curry, and Durantthe three biggest superstars in the modern gameare challenging to become the GOAT.

The NBA is often considered a statistics-heavy league, with analysts able to predict points, rebounds, and other outcomes with relative accuracy based on past results. The players in the GOAT discussion, of course, have the stats to back up their lofty aspirations, and their greatness extends beyond just raw numbers. By combining averages, percentages, and other basic records, all of these players have also posted elite advanced stats that require additional calculation. Those calculations are important because finding an answer to the GOAT question is far from a simple task.

All statistic information is taken from sports-reference.com unless otherwise noted.

CHAPTER

AIR JORDAN

B y October 29, 1984 in just his third NBA gameMichael Jordan had whipped the city of Chicago into a frenzy. The rookie exhibited so much talent that Bulls fans believed he would lead them to their first-ever NBA championship. On this magical night at Chicago Stadium known as the Madhouse on Madison StreetJordan erupted for 37 points against Milwaukee. He not only knew how to score points, he was also already an expert at getting the crowd hyped up. Rather than relying on easy two-pointers, he soared through the air to demonstrate his trademark dunk.

From 1983 to 1993, Magic Johnson (left), Michael Jordan (center), and Larry Bird (right) each won three NBA MVP Awards. Their talents helped popularize the game.

In the 1980s, the NBAs popularity skyrocketed thanks to emerging superstars Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and especiallyMichael Jordan. In December 1984, still in his rookie season, MJ appeared on the cover of SportsIllustrated. He had already become the new face of the NBA.

Jordan advanced his legend at the 1985 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. On one jam, he took off from the freethrow line and dunked. The effort earned a combined score of fifty from the judgesa perfect ten from each.

How could he jump so high? Maybe his shoes made the difference. By the fall of 1986, Nike had already sold $100 million worth of Air Jordan sneakers. Magic Johnson once humorously described Jordans leaping ability: Once Michael gets up there, he says, Well, maybe Ill just hang up here in the air for a while, just sit back. Then all of a sudden, he says, Well, maybe Ill 360. No, I changed my mind. Ill go up on the other side. Hes just incredible. His ability to float as he jumped up to dunk became his trademark characteristic.

RISE (AND RISE AND RISE ) TO STARDOM

Born in 1963, Michael Jeffrey Jordan grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina. Both of his parents worked, and together they raised five children. As a sophomore at Laney High School, Michael tried out for the varsity team but did not make it. He used the snub as personal motivation.

Working relentlessly, Michael starred on varsity as a junior and earned All-American honors as a senior. That season, he averaged 26.8 points per game (PPG). To determine his PPG, divide his total points for the season by the total number of games:

617 23 = 26.8

While playing for North Carolina, Jordan established himself as an elite NBA prospect.

After graduation, Jordan attended the University of North Carolina. As a freshman in 1982, he hit the game-winning jump shot in the national championship game. The next two years, he earned first team All-American honors. While in college, MJ took his jump shot to a new level. He would jump high into the air, seem to hang there, then shoot. His sweet shooting and blasts to the rim helped him score on the majority of his attempts. As a junior in 1984, he recorded a field goal percentage of .551. Field goal percentage is calculated by dividing a players made field goals by their number of attempts. For Jordan: