Very cool to look at. Maybe add the career average/totals for each? I think we can all agree they’re both very good at basketball.
Ladlow on
That’s honestly fascinating. I didn’t realize Jordan was so nasty on defense, but LeBron’s assists and three-pointers are mighty impressive as well vs Jordan.
Recurs1ve on
Durability and availability are a skill all on their own. Jordan is better as a peak performance athlete, but no one has the durability and high level play as LeBron does. He’s been an all NBA player like his entire career. Jordan did that too, but he wasn’t playing well into his 40’s at the level LeBron does.
easternseaboardgolf on
So Jordan generally has consistently better averages, while LeBron has a much longer career.
To see LeBron performing at that level at his age is impressive, but I don’t think longevity beats peak performance.
Jordan is the GOAT, IMO
offical_baby_jesus on
I originally read the title as Lebanon vs Jordan and was so confused
Clemario on
Retirements by age
MonTigres on
This is totally cool, OP. Am impressed. Was thinking to myself the other day–how would these two giants stack up?
DesolationRobot on
It’s uncanny how closely correlated the movement is in some of these. Not just “goes down when player gets older” but like blocks per game and regular season win percentage are eerily similar.
Also cool to see how LeBron adjusted his game as he aged. More assists. More threes. Fewer minutes and defensive stats. (Not tracked here, but he’s also famously a leader in fewest feet traveled per 36 recently—he’s figured out how to conserve energy during the game.)
irrelevantusername24 on
I haven’t watched the NBA since I was much younger (fuck you paywalls) but it really feels like Kobe often gets forgotten in these discussions. For a long time he was seen as the successor to MJ
My main takeaway from the data is that the old NBA was better because people did more than shoot 3 pointers and they knew how to play defense 🙂
OneOfMyOldestFriends on
Possibly worth factoring in is around the first time Jordan retired, NBA teams were averaging 94.8 points a game.
This season teams averaged 116.4 points a game.
Gatecitylee on
Advancements in recovery and rehab FTW.
liquefry on
Very nice graphic. Shows how close they are on multiple axes.
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Sources …
[Jordan 1995-96 table](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_1996_per_game.html)[LeBron 2025-26 table](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2026_per_game.html)
[`https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_YYYY_per_game.html`](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_YYYY_per_game.html)
[1996 playoffs](https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_1996.html)[2026 playoffs](https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_2026.html)
[`https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_YYYY.html`](https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_YYYY.html)
[1995-96 standings](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_1996.html)[2025-26 standings](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2026.html)
[`https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_YYYY.html`](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_YYYY.html)
Shouldn’t these all be adjusted for the era? For example the three point shot has become more important since Jordan played.
Edit:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-point_revolution](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-point_revolution)
Alternately, a different starting point would be VORP per season:
https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jordami01.html
https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html
Blue > Red
Very cool to look at. Maybe add the career average/totals for each? I think we can all agree they’re both very good at basketball.
That’s honestly fascinating. I didn’t realize Jordan was so nasty on defense, but LeBron’s assists and three-pointers are mighty impressive as well vs Jordan.
Durability and availability are a skill all on their own. Jordan is better as a peak performance athlete, but no one has the durability and high level play as LeBron does. He’s been an all NBA player like his entire career. Jordan did that too, but he wasn’t playing well into his 40’s at the level LeBron does.
So Jordan generally has consistently better averages, while LeBron has a much longer career.
To see LeBron performing at that level at his age is impressive, but I don’t think longevity beats peak performance.
Jordan is the GOAT, IMO
I originally read the title as Lebanon vs Jordan and was so confused
Retirements by age
This is totally cool, OP. Am impressed. Was thinking to myself the other day–how would these two giants stack up?
It’s uncanny how closely correlated the movement is in some of these. Not just “goes down when player gets older” but like blocks per game and regular season win percentage are eerily similar.
Also cool to see how LeBron adjusted his game as he aged. More assists. More threes. Fewer minutes and defensive stats. (Not tracked here, but he’s also famously a leader in fewest feet traveled per 36 recently—he’s figured out how to conserve energy during the game.)
I haven’t watched the NBA since I was much younger (fuck you paywalls) but it really feels like Kobe often gets forgotten in these discussions. For a long time he was seen as the successor to MJ
My main takeaway from the data is that the old NBA was better because people did more than shoot 3 pointers and they knew how to play defense 🙂
Possibly worth factoring in is around the first time Jordan retired, NBA teams were averaging 94.8 points a game.
This season teams averaged 116.4 points a game.
Advancements in recovery and rehab FTW.
Very nice graphic. Shows how close they are on multiple axes.