Stephen A. Smith dropped possibly the biggest name in sports on Wednesday, leaving the ESPN studios in New York with a resounding thud. That person would be Michael Jordan.
Smith said to co-host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, “I have to read you a text that I received this morning at 5:54am.”
The topic of discussion was who the greatest point guard in NBA history was. Earlier in the week, Russo favored Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers, while Smith chose Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors.But before the two could carry on their disagreement on Wednesday afternoon, Smith asserted that Jordan, who was unwaveringly loyal to Magic, had texted him.
Smith said, “Good morning, sir,” not disclosing who had sent the SMS. Magic Johnson is without a doubt the greatest point guard of all time, the message continued. “Greatest of anything is always up for debate,” I beg to differ. Steph Curry is not in front of Magic, but he is extremely close. A true discussion about point guard requires definition.
According to Jordan, the function of a point guard is the problem.
Point guards have typically been tallied in order to distribute. However, the role started to change in 1981 when Isiah Thomas moved to Detroit. Point guard Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers was the NBA’s top scorer by 1998. James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Stephen Curry have since followed in his footsteps.
‘Point guard’ may not even be appropriate in the case of Curry, the most prolific 3-point shooter in NBA history.
Conversely, Johnson retired as the all-time leader in assists in the NBA. Furthermore, throughout his 13-year career, he just three times led the Lakers in scoring average, despite his lifetime average of 19.5 points per game.
More than any other player except for Oscar Robertson and Westbrook, Johnson has 138 career triple doubles, which further highlights his all-around skill set.
Jordan texted back, “Steph Curry is the greatest shooter of all time, hands down.” “Magic invented the triple double, but his movement has created many shots for his teammates. He’s a career 43 percent 3-point shooter.”
