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Tottenham Hotspur's star player, Son Heung Min, rattled the sports world by ommitting LeBron James from his list of the four greatest athletes of all time, which included Michael Jordan, Tom Brady and soccer maestros Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Son's bold choices have ignited debates and speculation about the criteria he used to curate this exclusive roster of sporting legends.
“Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Messi & Ronaldo,” Son Heung Min said.
Tom Brady reigns supreme in the NFL. He boasts seven Super Bowl championships. The three-time NFL MVP just retired at 45 years old and defied age-related decline, which the 38-year-old James is still far from reaching.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are two names that are synonymous with greatness on the soccer scene. Both stars have dominated the sport with numerous Ballon d'Or between them, and they are household names.
In basketball, Michael Jordan still stands out among all others, even two decades after retiring from the sport. His six championships and countless iconic moments have solidified his place in basketball greatness, which James is still chasing late in his career.
Son Heung Min choosing to leave LeBron James off his list of the greatest athletes of all time is a matter of preference. In his eyes, James didn't meet the criteria to be chosen among his top four, which consisted of Jordan, Brady, Messi and Ronaldo.
The Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James GOAT debate
Michael Jordan and LeBron James have been synonymous with greatness in the world of basketball, and fans have been debating who is better than the other for years.
Those who choose Michael Jordan will always state that he never lost an NBA Finals during the six times he went there in the 1990s. From 1991 to 1998, Jordan dominated and had two years in between three-peats where he retired for 18 months to play baseball.
LeBron James, on the other hand, has been in the basketball GOAT debate as he changed the game on how big men should play. Even though he is the size of Karl Malone, LBJ has the speed of a guard, and he continues to dominate the league at the age of 38.
Both Jordan and James raised the bar for basketball players.
