Julius Erving, Philadelphia 76ers legend recently revealed in an interview that he felt that he was better than Michael Jordan.
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Michael Jordan is the most well know and influential player arguably of all time. Despite being retired almost two decades back, many still believe that there hasn’t been any other player better than the Chicago Bulls legend.
Julius Erving was one of the most dominant players in the 70s. He was often known as Dr. J and was popular because of his dynamic, outstanding dunks. He was selected for the All-Star Game every time through 16 years of professional basketball. But is his game and resume enough to term himself better than the GOAT?
The 71-year-old Hall-of-Famer, in a recent interview on the Dan Patrick Show, was asked if he considered himself better than Air Jordan. Dr J called himself better and revealed an interesting story:
“In the beginning you know it was interesting because uh when he (Jordan) came out of college and we actually me, he and Dominique Wilkins went to an event in Atlanta, Georgia and it was a golf event we ended up getting in the gym and playing some basketball.”
“So I saw what he had, but I also knew what I had and whatever so you know it was like he was a junior version, uh but as you know time will tell the story, that’s a six-time championship, five-time MVP or whatever he certainly surpassed my accomplishments.”
‘Julius Erving bought creativity to the game’: Michael Jordan
Despite what any of the two say, the players share respect, love and camaraderie among themselves. Michael Jordan has often stated how he idolised Julius Erving’s game as he grew up. MJ lauded about the 6-foot-7 Hall-of-Famer:
“The first person I saw was Julius Erving in the NBA. He brought so much creativity to the game. Under the hand against the Lakers, behind the basket, we all tried to do it once he did it. I guess I would have never had those visions if I hadn’t seen Dr. J in his time.”
“He played above the rim, around the rim, and underneath. You know, he did a lot of different things and you have to give credit to the doctor.”
The two players had their own unique skill-set. It is very difficult to compare two legends of the game. Although looking at Jordan’s insanely stocked resume, very few players come close to him. This is why Jordan is definitely the front-runner for the GOAT conversation.
