George Gervin Explained Why Michael Jordan Is Not The GOAT: "He Got More Championships Than Bill Russell? He's Got More Points Than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?"

George Gervin revealed why he didn't see Michael Jordan as the greatest player of all time.

Credit: Fadeaway World

Michael Jordan is widely considered the greatest player to set foot on an NBA court, and even though many have started praising LeBron James as that player who stands above everybody else, it's safe to say that Jordan remains the greatest in many eyes around the world. 

His Airness played against and with many incredible players, leaving a mark on almost every one of them. Even those who now claim to hate him once showered MJ in praise, but some of the veterans he found along the way had a different opinion on Jordan and the way he had to be treated or acknowledged. 

Besides Robert Parish telling MJ to chill out after No. 23 trash-talked him, George Gervin wasn't too fond of Jordan either. The San Antonio Spurs legend shared a single season with the Chicago Bulls in the mid-80s, sharing touches with the future GOAT. 

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George Gervin Explained Why Michael Jordan Is Not The GOAT

Moreover, Gervin once claimed that the shooting guard wasn't the best player ever. While talking with The Post Game in 2017, George talked about his time with Jordan in Chicago, claiming that MJ isn't the best player of all time. 

TPG: How did he look at you? Did he study you every night?

GERVIN: No, we weren't that close. Mike's different. He did what he wanted to do. He didn't need no help. I know he had to learn something from me because I wasn't no slouch. I could play and I could play for a long time, whether he said it or not. You're sitting there and you're looking at greatness. You're gonna have to see something. I ain't saying he emulated me, but I could flat out put the ball in the hole. I ain't saying he did learn something from me. You'd have to ask him. I ain't taking no credit for his success. He's definitely one of the best to ever do it. Everybody says he's the greatest of all time, but I'm not convinced. What criteria are you using to say that? It's easy to say that on ESPN. Stephen A. Smith: "Greatest of all time." What do you mean? He got more championships than Bill Russell? He's got more points than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar? What criteria are you using? He's one of the greatest entertainers? Hell yeah. But what about Magic Johnson? Magic Johnson's one of the greatest entertainers of all time. And winners. I'm not taking nothing from no one. But a lot of times today, people just throw out greatest of all time. To be the greatest of all time, you got to be really really special, man. He is. But we had some special guys before him too. This is from a ballplayer. I'm not just a guy coming in from the street or who played college ball or a guy who just wears his shoes. I do wear his shoes. I got a closet full of Mike's shoes. They're a conversation piece and they're comfortable. And I play in his golf shoes. I'm a Michael Jordan fan. Bar none. Whether he knows it or not, I'm a Michael Jordan fan. I'm just proud of how he was able to manipulate this system to be where he is today. That's kind of like how I feel about that.

He also explained that to name somebody the GOAT, you need to think better and see what you're looking for in that player, which is why more than one legend could have a case for the GOAT title.

TPG: So to round all that up, if someone asked you who the greatest player of all time is, who would you say?

GERVIN: I'd say, hey now, what criteria are using? That's the only thing I can say. He's one of the greatest entertainers, one of the greatest winners, he could flat out play, his stats proved themselves, but he couldn't score like Ice. He had his own way of scoring. He didn't score like me. I didn't score as many points as he did, but I didn't shoot as much as he did. Mike and Kobe shot more times than anyone in the history of basketball. So that means they missed a lot. He shot 50 percent though (49.7 percent, technically). That kind of makes up for it. At guard. That makes a guy special.

Jordan was definitely a great player, showing huge dominance during his best years in the league. He went to the Finals six times and never lost once, beating big rivals in the process. Some could argue why other players are the greatest of all time, but MJ has everything to his name to get that honor for many more years. 

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