"Michael Jordan was the GOAT because Allen Iverson wasn't 6'6" Max Kellerman believes the Philadelphia 76ers legend deserves more credit

Max Kellerman is well-known for his controversial takes and now he has one opinion involving Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson. It's not uncommon for both these player names to appear on all-time lists, but only MJ is a regular presence in the greatest of all time (GOAT) debates. Kellerman wants to change that notion a bit.

During Tuesday’s edition of ESPN's First Take, Kellerman argued that former Philadelphia 76ers legend Allen Iverson would have been the GOAT had he been as tall as Michael Jordan.

"You know why Michael Jordan’s the GOAT? ’cause AI [Allen Iverson] wasn’t 6'6' [6-foot-6]. If AI was 6'6', he would have been the greatest player of all time,” Kellerman said during Tuesday's First Take edition.

.@maxkellerman doesn't doubt that Allen Iverson would've been better in football than basketball. "AI's one of the greatest athletes of all time. His name doesn't come up enough in great athlete conversations." pic.twitter.com/WJLn8BxpOM

— First Take (@FirstTake) August 24, 2021

ESPN quoted Kellerman's remarks and posted them on their official social media accounts, where fans were quick to comment. Although fans acknowledged Iverson's greatness, most didn't buy Kellerman's comment on the GOAT debate.

Does Allen Iverson have a real case to be compared to Michael Jordan?

Allen Iverson greets Michael Jordan on the court

There's no doubt that Allen Iverson was a generational player and during his peak, there were not many who could touch his ceiling. Philadelphia 76ers selected Iverson with the 1st overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft and he was an instant hit. Iverson clocked 23.5 points per game during his rookie season.

Iverson peaked during the 2000-01 season when he took the Sixers to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Kobe Bryant-led Los Angeles Lakers. Iverson (31.1 PPG) was named the MVP for the same season after leading the scoring charts.

Iverson is also a four-time NBA scoring champion, 11-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA All-Star Game MVP.

Having said that, most NBA enthusiasts hail Michael Jordan as the best player ever to play the game. He averaged 30.1 points per game over his career, while his 6-0 record in the NBA Finals, which he achieved with the Chicago Bulls, winning three-peat, remains unmatched.

LeBron James, Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are amongst the handful of players who could be put in a GOAT debate with Jordan. But as good as Allen Iverson was, he doesn't have the credentials to be considered in the same bracket.