Why is MJ considered better than Bill Russell?

[Mr. I'm So Rad]

Wilt and Russell don't count because they played before the advent of ESPN.

Muhammad Ali Was a Rebel. Michael Jordan Is a Brand Name.

In celebrating Jordan as a hero, are we merely worshipping capitalism?

By Michael Crowley

http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/report...rand-Name.aspx

This is the reason. MJ was basketball's cash cow. He was the 80s and 90s pre-decision LeBron James as far as his star power and sheer impact on the business side of the NBA. No other athlete was promoted like MJ. Hell even Wilt's 100 Point game wasn't even televised. That's why. People only cite stats and rings to further justify their stance on the subject but MJ was a huge star and was selling out arenas even before he was winning titles because he was such a huge attraction and was promoted so heavily.

[eppelp]

Russel has a case, just like Kareem, Jordan and Wilt. It all depends on what you value more. Stats, Team success or individual accolades? That's a lot harder to decide than you might think, especially with players you never saw. Also it is the GREATEST of all time, not the BEST of all time. Some of you might even consider the hardships a player went through to get to the top (For example the racism especially players from the early years had to deal with).

Truth be told, I prefer to rank player in tiers and Russell, Wilt, Jordan and Kareem are the ones in the GOAT-Candidate tier.

[DeronMillsap]

This is the reason. MJ was basketball's cash cow. He was the 80s and 90s pre-decision LeBron James as far as his star power and sheer impact on the business side of the NBA. No other athlete was promoted like MJ. Hell even Wilt's 100 Point game wasn't even televised. That's why. People only cite stats and rings to further justify their stance on the subject but MJ was a huge star and was selling out arenas even before he was winning titles because he was such a huge attraction and was promoted so heavily.

Yeah, the NBA had major network contracts back in 1962. One of those 4 networks should have given a new league money.

[raptorfan_dr07]

Definitely a legitimate question. Personally, I believe that Jordan is the greatest player ever but that's just my opinion. Bill Russell definitely has a case for GOAT and only idiots would say otherwise. The way I see it, Jordan, Kareem, and Russell are the 3 players who can be in the discussion for GOAT. Maybe Wilt to a lesser extent.

[Mr. I'm So Rad]

Yeah, the NBA had major network contracts back in 1962. One of those 4 networks should have given a new league money.

My point exactly. The NBA wasn't the media giant it is now so no one really got to see Wilt, Russell and others unless it was in person. MJ came in and electrified people with his crazy athleticism and showmanship. He made the NBA marketable, very marketable. He made the NBA what it is today. It wasn't his crazy stats or his rings but his promotion that made him a star. More people grew up watching Michael Jordan winning dunk contests and hitting game winners more than Bill Russell grabbing a bunch of rebounds and winning championships. MJ is more recent and is the biggest NBA star ever and one of the most if not the most famous American athlete ever.

[DeronMillsap]

My point exactly. The NBA wasn't the media giant it is now so no one really got to see Wilt, Russell and others unless it was in person. MJ came in and electrified people with his crazy athleticism and showmanship. He made the NBA marketable, very marketable. He made the NBA what it is today. It wasn't his crazy stats or his rings but his promotion that made him a star. More people grew up watching Michael Jordan winning dunk contests and hitting game winners more than Bill Russell grabbing a bunch of rebounds and winning championships. MJ is more recent and is the biggest NBA star ever and one of the most if not the most famous American athlete ever.

So it was all about marketing, and that's why Jordan is considered the GOAT?

[eppelp]

So it was all about marketing, and that's why Jordan is considered the GOAT?

That's at least why he's considered the clear cut GOAT by many. No one is gonna argue that you can consider Jordan the GOAT, but he isn't worlds ahead of the others. And from my experience I have to say, the less people know about basketball the clearer the cut between Jordan and the others becomes.

[andgar923]

For those of you that are saying MJ is considered better due to marketing here are 2 words:

Babe Ruth

[2010splash]

Celtics fans crack me up. Bill Russell's skillset resembled a Deke Mutombo at best. He played in a weak era and won a lot... who cares?

[Mr. I'm So Rad]

For those of you that are saying MJ is considered better due to marketing here are 2 words:

Babe Ruth

Well baseball is different in that baseball is an older sport that relishes in the past and sometimes can't seem to move on from it. And I'm not sayin MJ is considered GOAT solely due to marketing but that is the main reason. Casual fans want to be entertained. They don't care that MJ was averaging 37ppg on 54% shooting along with 8 rebounds and 8 assists. They just wanted to see his highlights.

Baseball and Basketball are totally different

[guy]

Bill Russell has 5 NBA MVPs and guess who else has just as much? Michael Jordan. He played against 8 nba teams at the time, which means that they were stacked and that there was at least a minimum of one HOFer on each team...

No offense, but there is so much wrong with this way of thinking. The only way you can say 8 teams mean they were all stacked relative to today is if you think the popularity and the talent pool as a result was as large. There's no way it was. Had nothing changed since Russell's day, half the black players today probably aren't even playing, and barely any if any of the players from overseas are playing. Good chance guys like Hakeem, Ewing, Duncan, Dirk, and Kobe never even pick up a basketball.

I don't get it, do people think today's equivalent of the 8 team NBA in much of the 60s the same as if we just cut 300 out of the 400 players in the league? So someone like Luol Deng would be an 8th man in the league? Sorry, but thats ridiculous.

And as far as HOFers and MVPs go, as the NBA, the worldwide talent pool, and popularity have grown, there have always only been 5 HOFers per class and 1 MVP every year. These have not increased proportionately as the game has gotten bigger.

I don't think the older eras should really get penalized. They're obviously pioneers and they did what they did with what was in front of them. But there's a lot of holes in this common way of thinking.

[andgar923]

Well baseball is different in that baseball is an older sport that relishes in the past and sometimes can't seem to move on from it. And I'm not sayin MJ is considered GOAT solely due to marketing but that is the main reason. Casual fans want to be entertained. They don't care that MJ was averaging 37ppg on 54% shooting along with 8 rebounds and 8 assists. They just wanted to see his highlights.

Baseball and Basketball are totally different

The 'main' reason?

And btw.... 'casual' fans aren't the only ones that think MJ is the GOAT you know.

Its actually insulting to assume that this is the case.

Also, without MJ's feats on the court there is no marketing machine. It wasn't like today where marketing comes before the game, MJ had to establish himself on the court and then maintain it. People tuned in to watch MJ in droves BECAUSE he performed and 'continued' to do so.

MJ is considered the GOAT because he could do it all, and he did it in spectacular fashion... he was the perfect storm.

MJ's game was just flat out BETTER in every aspect.

[NoEasy9]

No offense, but there is so much wrong with this way of thinking.

You are allowed to have an opinion. Just understand it is dead wrong and you are an idiot. That is all.

[guy]

You are allowed to have an opinion. Just understand it is dead wrong and you are an idiot. That is all.

LOL wow why doesn't your smart ass elaborate and tell me why I'm dead wrong then instead of being a dick?

[Mr. I'm So Rad]

The 'main' reason?

And btw.... 'casual' fans aren't the only ones that think MJ is the GOAT you know.

Its actually insulting to assume that this is the case.

Also, without MJ's feats on the court there is no marketing machine. It wasn't like today where marketing comes before the game, MJ had to establish himself on the court and then maintain it. People tuned in to watch MJ in droves BECAUSE he performed and 'continued' to do so.

MJ is considered the GOAT because he could do it all, and he did it in spectacular fashion... he was the perfect storm.

MJ's game was just flat out BETTER in every aspect.

Yes the main reason. I'm not saying casual fans are the only ones that think MJ is the GOAT, but there are more casual fans that watch basketball because it's basketball rather than the fans that dive very deep into it.
I would say its the former.

I'm not taking away his feats MJ's numbers were legendary and spectacular. What I'm saying is the NBA saw he was marketable. Wilt's stats are far more impressive than MJ's yet more people consider MJ the GOAT instead of Wilt. Is it because of titles? Well Russell has more titles than both of them combined but more people consider MJ the GOAT. I'm not saying that you are wrong in believing that MJ is the GOAT because I believe he is, but I'm saying just consider why.

Magic and Bird were winning titles and Bird's teams were sweeping MJ out of the playoffs yet MJ was still the bigger star even though Magic was a triple double machine and Bird was a trashtalkin, sharpshooting basketball genius. It's the same with LeBron James. He was a superstar before he even entered the NBA and was displayed as being the best guy in the league before he even won anything because the league promoted him so much. And even with his recent "villain turn" he is still the biggest star in the league.