“LeBron James Is the GOAT”: Stephen A. Smith Shockingly Puts Lakers Star Ahead of Michael Jordan

Stephen A. Smith has made it clear that he’ll never place any player above Michael Jordan, but surprisingly, the longtime analyst finally admitted that LeBron James is better than MJ—in one category, at least. After listening to Brian Windhorst on ESPN’s Get Up, Stephen A. had a revelation regarding the Lakers star.

Smith explained that his perception of the GOAT is the player who could outplay all of their competition with everyone at their best. So it’s understandable why his opinion in the debate remains steadfast. However, Stephen A. did come to terms with the fact that LeBron has been greater for a longer period than anyone who came before him.

A point Brian Windhorst made prompted Smith to reevaluate the GOAT debate. “There’s nobody who has been as good for as long, meaning longevity, a sustained level of pristine excellence. LeBron James is the GOAT—in that category,” he stressed.

After years of questioning LeBron’s greatness, Stephen A. was able to agree with Windy that LeBron’s claim to greatness is his longevity and believes that should end the GOAT debate. LeBron and Jordan are unquestionably the greatest, but in two different aspects of the game.

“Jordan at his best is the greatest that I have ever seen. But Jordan wasn’t that good for that long.”

—@stephenasmith on LeBron James reaching 50K combined career points pic.twitter.com/lXWHlas5v2

— First Take (@FirstTake) March 5, 2025

Smith may have been able to come to terms with LeBron’s unmatched longevity after listening to Windhorst, but he wasn’t convinced when Shannon Sharpe brought him a similar argument.

Stephen A. shut down Shannon Sharpe’s MJ take

Stephen A. has always had wishy-washy takes, and his most recent claim is no different. Just days ago on First Take, Smith claimed that Jordan would easily be able to do what LeBron is accomplishing in the modern NBA. He even said MJ could have played 20 years in today’s league after Sharpe highlighted the 40-year-old star’s recent stretch.

“With the rule changes, no hand-checking, physicality having diminished so much, I mean please,” Smith responded to Sharpe’s assertion that MJ never could have achieved the longevity that LeBron has. Considering Jordan only played 15 years with two retirements in between, the Hall of Fame tight end made a valid point.

.@ShannonSharpe had to bring up these LeBron stats for the GOAT debate

“I know somebody who could never do that.” pic.twitter.com/ZK0pi4fX7l

— First Take (@FirstTake) March 3, 2025

Either Stephen A. wanted to retract his original statement, or James hitting the 50k points mark made him see the light. Either way, the 56-year-old has come to terms with at least one part of the game LeBron is the best at.