“LeBron James needs to do this to overtake Michael Jordan”: Shaquille O’Neal explains what will give Lakers star the edge in the GOAT debate

Shaquille O’Neal believes he knows what LeBron James can do to convince people to pick him over Michael Jordan as their GOAT.

This is a debate that really caught fire 5 years ago after the Cavs completed their improbable comeback. Up until then, nobody ever thought James could seriously challenge the incumbent Jordan. Even today, Jordan is the GOAT in a sizeable number of people’s eyes – a clear majority.

LeBron is definitely not going to be able to touch the levels of peak Michael Jordan in performance terms. The version of MJ we saw from 1986-1993 is something way above any other player. But his case hinges a lot more on longevity, and with that may come the success to rival Mike.

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After James led the Lakers to their 17th title and his 4th, he is now closer to MJ than ever before. Chasing the ghost of Chicago has never been so on for LeBron.

Shaquille O’Neal explains what LeBron James can do to overtake Michael Jordan

Shaq believes that at the end of the day, the LeBron-MJ debate comes down to rings.

“I know LeBron and I know he thinks about what people think. He already passed Kobe and Jordan in points … he’s gonna be creeping on Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) too. I think he’s looking to pass Kareem.”

“I think LeBron is looking to tie Kobe and tie Jordan with championships, “Shaq said. “If he tied Mike, I think people will probably lean a little bit more towards LeBron being the best player in the world.”

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The Lakers will be the favorites this season once again as James and AD look to defend their title. James might be pipped by Davis to both the MVP and the Finals MVP awards going by the trends.