Paul Pierce outlines only condition for LeBron James to cement his GOAT status

The LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan GOAT debate is a never-ending argument for most basketball fans. However, former Boston Celtics champion Paul Pierce thinks there is one way for LeBron to finally surpass MJ as the greatest basketball player of all time.

Based on how the standings are in the Western Conference right now, the LeBron-led LA Lakers have a chance to do something no team ever has before. They can come in as a seventh or eighth seed and be the first team in that position to win the NBA Finals.

According to Paul Pierce, if LeBron James is somehow able to will his team into accomplishing this feat, then that would propel him over MJ as the greatest of all time.

"The Lakers get to the Finals and they happen to win a championship this year," Pierce said on Wednesday's episode of FS1's 'Undisputed.' "LeBron James will be the undisputed GOAT."

Pierce put the situation into perspective by adding, "Who's even come from a seventh or eighth or sixth seed to win it all? That's probably happened maybe once."

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So far, no NBA team has ever rallied from the eighth seed to become the NBA champion. The '99 New York Knicks and the 2023 Miami Heat came close to making it into the finals but were both defeated.

The lowest seed to ever win the NBA title was the Houston Rockets in 1995. They accomplished this by beating No. 1 seed Orlando Magic to win their second title in a row.

LeBron James and the LA Lakers went to the Western Conference Finals as a 7th seed last season

LeBron James and the LA Lakers had an arduous journey to the playoffs last season. They had to scrap and claw their way for a playoff berth through the Play-In Tournament last year.

In the playoffs, they beat both the Memphis Grizzlies and the Golden State Warriors in six games in the first round and the conference semifinals, respectively, before running into the eventual champion Denver Nuggets in the conference finals.

Nikola Jokic and his squad were too much for LeBron and the Lakers as they were swept in that series, ending their dreams of winning another championship.

As it stands, the LA Lakers look like they will be fighting for a playoff berth again. With only 10 games left in their schedule, they remain the ninth team in the West. Unless the teams ahead of them collapse completely in the following weeks, the Lakers are bound for the Play-in Tournament again.

Even if they enter the post-season through the play-in, one should never count out LeBron James. This season, he might have a chance to prove Paul Pierce right and his doubters wrong by winning championship number five from an unlikely position.