LeBron James is widely regarded as one of the two greatest NBA players of all time, but a Los Angeles Lakers legend doesn’t have him in his top five. Content creator Bryan Matti recently asked Hall of Famer Michael Cooper to share his list of the five greatest players of all time, and James had to settle for being the Sixth Man.
“In no necessary order, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Kobe [Bryant], and Michael Jordan,” Cooper said. “… LeBron will be my Sixth Man. He’s up there, too.”
Cooper clearly wasn’t trying to be disrespectful, but having James down at sixth is an interesting decision. It’s not a surprise, though, that he chose those five above him. Cooper either played with or against four of them.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the first name Cooper mentioned, and he won six titles, two Finals MVPs, six MVPs, and one rebounding title. Abdul-Jabbar also made 19 All-Star, 15 All-NBA, and 11 All-Defensive teams.
Magic Johnson came next, and he won five titles, three Finals MVPs, three MVPs, and four assists titles. Johnson made 12 All-Star and 10 All-NBA teams.
Johnson won those five championships with Abdul-Jabbar on the Lakers in the 1980s, and Cooper was a key piece on those teams as well. He was the best defender (won DPOY in 1987) and was tasked with guarding the best players they faced, like the great Larry Bird.
Bird won three titles, two Finals MVPs, and three MVPs with the Boston Celtics. He made 12 All-Star, 10 All-NBA, and three All-Defensive teams. Cooper once called Bird the best player he played against. He got to play against Michael Jordan as well, but retired before he hit his peak.
Jordan won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY, and 10 scoring titles. He made 14 All-Star, 11 All-NBA, and nine All-Defensive teams. Jordan is considered the greatest player of all time, and Cooper has admitted he is glad he didn’t play against him when he got older. He called the Chicago Bulls icon a force that you could not deal with.
Lastly, we get to Kobe Bryant, and he is the only one among these five that Cooper didn’t play with or against in the NBA. They did go up against each other once, though. During Bryant’s pre-draft workout with the Lakers in 1996, Cooper was tasked with guarding him. The youngster famously got the better of him that day.
That workout convinced the Lakers they had to get Bryant, and they did. He’d go on to win five titles, two Finals MVPs, one MVP, and two scoring titles. Bryant has also made 18 All-Star, 15 All-NBA, and 12 All-Defensive teams.
So, those are five players with amazing resumes. None of them is out of place. You would argue, though, that James’ resume is better than some of theirs. He has won four titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, one scoring title, and one assists title. James has also made 22 All-Star, 21 All-NBA, and six All-Defensive teams.
James’ longevity is remarkable, and he is going to play a 24th season in the NBA. Cooper, who is now a head coach in the G League and college, wishes it were with the Lakers, as he had made it clear the team must not move on from him.
James decided to leave, though, and it’s unclear where he is going. Winning a championship remains one of his big goals, and if he wins another, he’d strengthen his case for that GOAT title.
