Awesome post. Just wanted to add an explicit mention that hand checking was banned before the 2004-2005 season, which is typically another argument in favor of Jordan's case for best ever against Lebron.The Bobster wrote: ↑Sat Nov 30, 2024 7:49 pmThere have been several rule changes to change play, the most significant was the shot clock in 1954. The game from the first 10 years of the league would barely resemble what we see now.
1946-47 to 1953-54 - Clock Era implemented (1954) - the shot clock (along with the addition of athletic big men like Russell and Chamberlain, made lumbering players like Mikan obsolete) and made teams look for fast breaks as shooting percentages increased dramatically.
1954-55 to 1965-66 - Integration Era - the number of teams and rules were fairly consistent as the league moved from smaller cities (Minneapolis, Rochester, Ft. Wayne, Syracuse) to bigger ones (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Cincinnati, Detroit), the league also became more integrated with the addition of stars like Maurice Stokes (1955), Bill Russell (1956), Wilt Chamberlain (1959) and Oscar Robertson (1960) - causing the quality of play to increase
1966-67 to 1978-79 - Expansion Era (Chicago in 1966, Seattle & San Diego in 1967, Phoenix & Milwaukee in 1968, Buffalo, Cleveland & Portland in 1970, New Orleans in 1974, ABA/NBA merger in 1976) - the league increased from 10 teams to 22 (petty much relegating a thriving Eastern League to low minor league status)
1979-80 to 1993-94 - Emphasis on defense - 3-Point line added (1979), 3rd official added (1988) - Scoring began to decrease until it reached a league low in 1998-99 - the league, under League Counsel-turned-Commissioner David Sterne (1984) spent most of their time trying to fix problems with violence, drugs and collective bargaining.
1994-95 to 2011-12 - Emphasis on offense - Rules enacted to to increase scoring (hand-checking rules changes, 3-point line moved in) (1994), defensive contact rules revised (2001) - scoring begins to increase beginning in 1999-00 - after the rise of the "Bad Boy" Pistons league executives decided to enact rules to promote offense
2012-13 to present - Three-point Era - Block/charge restricted line added and flopping fines implemented (2012) - an emphasis on analytics causes teams to shoot more 3-point field goals and players who can defend multiple positions.
Just the fact that there is a credible debate to be had leaves me in disbelief, but the truth is that Lebron somehow managed to meet and then exceed the expectations placed over him as the most hyped prospect ever. But in the end I don't see that Lebron revolutioned the game or took it to unheard of heights, and Jordan did. Not to mention off the court impact as a global icon; which Lebron is but, again, not to the same extent that Jordan.