Stephen A Smith Refuses to Put LeBron James Over Tom Brady in Top 100 Rankings

LeBron James and Tom Brady are the epitome of longevity and consistency in the world of North American Sports. They are also widely considered the Greatest of All Time in their respective sports, collectively boasting 11 Championships. Recently, ESPN released a list of the Top 100 Players since 2000 where they put James at #4 and Brady at #5. However, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith seemed to disagree with this list, making a case for Brady to appear ahead of LBJ on the list.

On First Take, SAS’s co-host Molly Qerim recently asked him if LBJ has been rightfully inserted ahead of Brady in the Top-100 rankings. The 56-year-old discarded the idea immediately, arguing that Brady’s seven Super Bowl Championships outweigh the Lakers superstar’s four NBA titles.

Therefore, the NFL legend has a better case to feature ahead on the list. Stephen A. said, “Brady is a seven-time champion, period, LeBron is four. Brady is 7-3 in 10 trips to Super Bowl, LeBron is 4-6 [in NBA Finals]. It’s just that simple to me.”

“LeBron deserves to be up there. I think they both deserve to be up there higher, but I put Brady higher than LeBron,” he added.

.@stephenasmith is putting Brady ahead of LeBron in the top 100 pro athletes since 2000 👀 pic.twitter.com/CfvBj4ayju

— First Take (@FirstTake) July 22, 2024

Therefore, the ESPN analyst once again religiously followed his mantra of Championships meaning more than any other accolade. He has followed this same litmus test in the case of the Michael Jordan-LeBron James GOAT debate as well. 

The people ahead of Brady and LeBron on the list are Michael Phelps, Serena Williams, and Lionel Messi. There can be an argument made here of Brady and LBJ potentially surpassing any of these three candidates. However, Stephen A. rightfully gives Brady precedence over LeBron, simply because the NFL legend, unlike the latter, is the undisputed GOAT of his sport.

However, both Brady and LeBron share one thing in common, their durability.

Tom Brady and LeBron James have extended their primes

It is unusual for athletes to last in a sport till the age of 40. Their bodies start to break down slowly after taking the brunt of numerous injuries and endless toil. There are few examples when it comes to athletes who could hit the field after the age of 40. However, to dominate like Brady and James after nearing 40 is just unheard of.

Brady was still breaking single-season records in his 40s. He acquired his seventh and final Superbowl championship at the age of 43, also earning the MVP award in just his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He proved that he could win anywhere after winning his six championships with the New England Patriots dynasty.

Meanwhile, LBJ has continued to be one of the top-ten NBA players even at the age of 39. He hasn’t won a championship since the age of 35, but the NBA has been deeper since then too.

Therefore, it’d perhaps not be wise to compare the athletes from two different sports with different variables.