Who is LeBron James' Ultimate Rival?

[rand]

LeBron's temporal rival is Curry but is true rival is Jordan even though they were never in the league together. That's the guy he's been chasing his whole career, the one whose career his is compared against like no other.

[Loneshot]

Lebron doesn’t have a rival, that is one reason he's the GOAT. None of the real GOATs have a rival beyond the early years before entering their prime, in which no one could rival them.

Its ok to give respect where it's due. How can Steph be Lebron's rival when Steph's rival are his own ankles?

[Karate Diop]

If you look back to the start of his career it was Carmelo, as comical as that seems now.

[JustBuzzin]

LeBron ultimate rival is LeBron James.

[Ssj16]

To me it's Jordan. Lebron has been chasing ghost for a while and there is no current player who has the overall resume combined with actual talent that threatens his legacy.

Jokic is the first person who I've seen (since Lebron has been in the league) who has put up goat like numbers but he has a ways to go to keep cementing his legacy before he can be in the convo.

KD show glimpses but his career was too up and down and Giannis also doesn't have enough accolades and is held down by his lack of defensive bag.

Curry, I always had a tier below though if we are talking career vs who is actually a better player, I could see him as the only current rival.

Duncan is amazing but because they did not play similar positions, and they did not play against each other during their primes, and lastly, Lebron has passed Duncan already on the all time great list, which is why I have to go with Jordan himself.

[EmpireFalls]

Kevin Durant not Curry.

[AdamSSSlither]

MJ because he’s the only one close to his level.

Curry needed to beg KD to join his 72 win team to beat LeBron so even Curry knows they’re not on the same level.

Lebron needed to beg Wade to join the Heat and still lost to Dirk, then later Duncan. At least when KD joined Curry they won 2 straight right away.

Lebron had to beg and cry to the media too to have Draymond get suspended by the league in 2016. So it’s only right for Curry to get revenge and get KD to level it out.

draymond should have been suspended for life after his third kick to a guys nuts, then hitting lebron in the nuts in the same playoffs.

[Stan]

There's zero doubt career wise it's Steph, though unfortunately KD ruined the rivalry over their last 2 Finals matchups.

Historically it's Jordan.

[AdamSSSlither]

its def curry even though they are not on the same level.

2016 lebron would destroy curry 1on1.
w/o moving screens the best shooter ever would be luck to get an open shot.

[hauntedcomputer]

His own ego.

He's the one who started the "legacy" discourse.

[hugepatsfan]

Feel like Lebron-Pierce is, to some degree, comparable to MJ-Isaiah Thomas in the 80s where one guy is obviously way better but you had a better team on the other end and the better player a bit younger/coming into his own still. Lebron-Curry was more fairly matched in a Magic-Bird kind of way except Lebron being established for so much longer before Curry never really made it as much of a contemporary battle. It kind of had that old guy-young guy flare to it. Now that Curry is old too we still group them together but live time it was more of an old guy-young guy thing.

[Optms]

Like I've said you all better thank Curry came into this era, otherwise Lebron would have more than 4 titles already. In the same light so would Curry.

Jordan is really fortunate he never had a GOAT level player challenge his reign like Lebron has. A team like the Warriors in the 90s and Jordan no way in hell ends up with 6 rings.

[Iwasawitness]

MJ because he’s the only one close to his level.

Curry needed to beg KD to join his 72 win team to beat LeBron so even Curry knows they’re not on the same level.

Lebron needed to beg Wade to join the Heat and still lost to Dirk, then later Duncan. At least when KD joined Curry they won 2 straight right away.

Lebron had to beg and cry to the media too to have Draymond get suspended by the league in 2016. So it’s only right for Curry to get revenge and get KD to level it out.

LeBron haters sure do love distorting reality don't they?

[ball_takes23]

Like I've said you all better thank Curry came into this era, otherwise Lebron would have more than 4 titles already. In the same light so would Curry.

Jordan is really fortunate he never had a GOAT level player challenge his reign like Lebron has. A team like the Warriors in the 90s and Jordan no way in hell ends up with 6 rings.

There was a team like the Warriors in the 90s, it was lead by MJ. Maybe if Lebron plays for another 50 years he will learn how to lead a team as good as Steph or MJ

[Bornstellar]

How could it be anyone but Curry?

[bledredwine]

The entire West.

[Effigy]

MJ because he’s the only one close to his level.

Curry needed to beg KD to join his 72 win team to beat LeBron so even Curry knows they’re not on the same level.

But Curry beat Lebron in 2015 without KD.

Lebron had to instigate Draymond into getting himself ejected and suspended to come back and beat Curry in 16.

[Dino353]

Could have been Curry but Durant had to go save him from the incoming gauntlet

[Lockdown504090]

His own ego.

He's the one who started the "legacy" discourse.

before lebron was in the nba they were talking about kobes comparison to michael already. They were calling michael the GOAT in year 3 already and comparing him to the greats, wilt was doing the thing comparing eras with michael and himself. This is just a patently false statement that lebron started legacy discourse. he just happens to be the first one where people can monetize the discussion on social media en masse with little startup cost.

[Lockdown504090]

Like I've said you all better thank Curry came into this era, otherwise Lebron would have more than 4 titles already. In the same light so would Curry.

Jordan is really fortunate he never had a GOAT level player challenge his reign like Lebron has. A team like the Warriors in the 90s and Jordan no way in hell ends up with 6 rings.

The suns were really good, jazz made the finals twice and got packed up. detroit gave him tons of problems, Mike himself performed extremely well in those playoff runs in the 90s. The east at the time was the stronger conference and he still won 6 championships in the 90s. You can say he had the benefit of stable rosters, and injury luck, but jordans leadership plays a role there as well. Michael jordan would not have let draymond get out of control and get in arguments with kd, or puch poole. jordan wouldnt have treated irving in a sonning, manner, but more like a competitor, you can see that with pippen, who was just as much of a headcase as irving, if not more. and dennis, and longley. he held those crazy bastards togehther for years.