Rodman: LeBron James Would Be 'Average' If He Played In The '90s
(CBS) As LeBron James continues to garner more accolades and praise, the comparisons between he and Michael Jordan will only grow louder.
But don't try starting that conversation with Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman.
"If LeBron was playing in the late '80s or early '90s," Rodman told The Dan Patrick Show, "he'd be just an average player."
Rodman, who won three NBA titles with Jordan, said if Jordan, a six-time NBA Finals MVP, was playing today, he'd be far-and-away the best player on the court.
"If Michael played today … really? If he played the game today at 28 years old, he would average 40 points a game, probably more," said Rodman.
"I'm just sick and tired of people always comparing (James) and Michael Jordan. It's a whole different era, man."
When Patrick took exception to Rodman's comments that James would be just an "average" player, Rodman responded with:
"Look at those teams (when I played)," Rodman explained. "Look at the Cleveland Cavaliers. Look at Golden State when they had Chris Webber and all of those guys. If those teams then could play now, they would kick anybody's ass today. Are you kidding me?"
So what if today's Heat played his Bulls in the 90s?
"No contest," Rodman said. "The Heat have better talent than we had, but we had smarter players. We would match up with the Heat easy. I would take Bosh out of his damn game easy. That's not even a problem. How would Dwyane Wade match up with Scottie Pippen? Really? Scottie Pippen would guard LeBron easy. How are you going to cover those two guys (Jordan and Pippen)?"
