The "Michael Jordan or LeBron James" debate has gone on for years, but it took an interesting turn Thursday. According to Public Policy Polling, only 54 percent of polled Americans believe the Cleveland Cavaliers star could beat Jordan in a 1-on-1 match ... if they played today.
People go back and forth over who's better: Jordan in his prime or James? The majority of people usually side with Jordan, and the latest Public Policy Poll indicated that's still the case. But it also indicated something even more surprising: Not everyone is convinced James could beat the 52-year-old Jordan if they went 1-on-1 against each other today.
Per Policy Polling's Tom Jensen:
"There's no such division when it comes to who NBA fans think is the best player of all time. 77% pick Michael Jordan on that question to only 14% who think it's LeBron James. In fact despite his being 52 years old, 34% of NBA fans think Jordan could beat James one on one now- as in the year 2015- to just 54% who think James would win despite being in the prime of his career."
It's hard to compare the two players. They played different positions in different eras, with Jordan playing out his career in a time when opposing players were allowed to be far more physical. Sure, Jordan has six rings compared to James's two, but it's incredible there's a sizeable segment of the American population - at least as implied by the poll - who doubt whether James could beat a 52-year-old man.
What do you think?
