NBA Great Says He Was Just As "Effective" As Michael Jordan

Shandel Richardson | Oct 11, 2024

Feb 7, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) celebrates with NBA commissioner Adam silver and former Lakers player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar after breaking the record for all-time scoring in the NBA during the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is often left out of the greatest of all-time discussion.

He's lost leverage in the GOAT debate because of Michael Jordan and LeBron James, who are generally pitted against each other for the title.

But Jabbar has a strong of case as anyone to remain in the conversation. He won six titles, six MVPs, was a 19-time All-Star and held the league's career scoring record until James broke it last season.

He has all the accolades of James and Jordan but gets slighted at times. Jabbar was recently asked if he was a better player than Jordan on the Dan Patrick Show.

"I'm not better than him but I was at least as effective as he was," Jabbar said. "I think that the effect you have on the game is how you should be judged. Bill Russell effected the game. You couldn't get a shot near the basket. He terrorized everybody for 13 years."

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Jabbar said he pays no attention to the GOAT stuff. He feels his accomplishments speak for themselves. He even think he is sometimes underrated but refuses to let it bother him.

He simply prefers to just enjoy his fans who appreciate his game.

"No, I made my money," Jabbar said when asked if he cares about the lack of respect. "I got my fans. People understand what I did. If they don't appreciate it, it's OK.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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