Few NBA players have done what LeBron James has done in his career. After returning home to the Cleveland Cavaliers for the 2014-15 season, James’ mission was clear. He had two years to bring a title back to the city that has been starved for a championship unlike any on the American sporting landscape.
He couldn’t get it done in the first year, but returned the favor to the Golden State Warriors this past season.
What could possibly be left for a player who has won it all individually and as a member of the team, right?
James was asked about his motivation at the 2016 Nike Skills Academy by a camper, just like himself back in 2002. His answer may have surprised some, because it was not more championships or MVP honors.
It is simply a ghost.
“My motivation,” James says, “is this ghost I’m chasing. The ghost played in Chicago.”
Given all the success James has had, there really isn’t much more to motivate him other than collecting more rings before riding off in to basketball immortality himself.
The NBA championship won in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform already cemented James’ legacy as one of the best of all-time, but for the biggest competitor the NBA has seen since MJ himself, being just “one of the best” isn’t good enough.
He also knows that there is little comparison between Michael Jordan and himself, something he admits when pressed on what he means by chasing the ghost of Jordan.
“My career is totally different than Michael Jordan’s. What I’ve gone through is totally different than what he went through. What he did was unbelievable, and I watched it unfold. I looked up to him so much. I think it’s cool to put myself in position to be one of those great players, but if I can ever put myself in position to be the greatest player, that would be something extraordinary.”
He wants kids to stare at hist poster, chasing his ghost the same way he has chased Jordan all these years.
Will he be able to catch Jordan? Six titles is the mark, but given the differences between their careers getting to six may not even be relevant to the discussion.
For James, what was just accomplished may have cemented his argument as the greatest of today and maybe of all-time. After all, he broke a 52-year title drought for the city of Cleveland, led his team back from the brink of a 3-1 disaster in the NBA Finals and then led his team in all five major statistical categories.
Not even MJ has that on his resume. Still, don’t expect James to quite chasing the ghost of MJ until he has made no doubt about who the greatest of all-time really is.
