Is it safe to say Lebron is better than Magic Johnson or Larry Bird?

[iamgine]

Can we safely say that Lebron James is better than Magic and Bird? Not in accomplishment, but more in the way we say MJ is better than Magic and Bird. Is Lebron on that level yet?

[RoundMoundOfReb]

Peak Lebron (current) is better than peak Magic and Bird. Obvs they had more career accomplishments though.

[fpliii]

IMO Bird but not Magic (based on his offensive impact), though the latter is one of my three GOAT candidates (Jordan and Russell being the other two).

[AngelEyes]

I would agree that he's on the same level, no telling what things may look like in a few years.

[Big#50]

Better than Magic with no doubt. Bird??? I think never.

[Rubio2Gasol]

Yeah I'd definitely say better than Magic - but not Bird.

[plowking]

You could point to a number of Lebron seasons to state his better basketball ability than Magic.

With Bird its closer, and maybe only the last two seasons surpass that of Larry's best seasons.

EDIT: His first MVP in Cleveland could also be argued over Bird, but I don't think so personally.

[D-Wade316]

Without a doubt his peak and prime is EASILY better than Magic and Bird. F[COLOR="Black"]u[/COLOR]ck nostalgia.

[Rolando]

It is now OK to mention Lebron in the same breath as Magic and Bird. That's it.

Lebron needs to keep going though. He needs more huge moments and more rings.

[sipitri]

Better than Magic? Maybe
Better than Bird? I don't think so

Comparisons aside he's playing like a legend right now. No one can even contain him or slow him down a bit.
I mean, 0.567 fg%..

[All Net]

He's in the convo for sure.. When it's all said and done he may go anywhere from 2-6 depending on his success.

[midatlantic09]

Anyone who says no is just biased (for one reason or another) and is likely giving too much weight to team accomplishments instead of looking at the individual player and how effective and efficient he is as an individual player. Although Lebron hasn't won as many championships as the other two, he's clearly a better basketball player than both of them. Look at the guy's stats...I mean, my goodness..the guy has a PER of nearly 32 this season and has averaged a 30-31 PER for the past 5 years. That said, I think it's pretty obvious that Lebron has already surpass Bird and Magic and should now be in the same conversation as MJ.

[midatlantic09]

Better than Magic? Maybe
Better than Bird? I don't think so

Comparisons aside he's playing like a legend right now. No one can even contain him or slow him down a bit.
I mean, 0.567 fg%..

Can someone please explain how Bird is better than Lebron? What exactly makes Bird a better player? Is he a better scorer? No. Better ball handler? No. Better passer? Not really. Better defender? No. More versatile? No. More athletic? No. Better shooter? Maybe, but not by much ( especially with Lebron shooting over 50% from the field since like 2008). Better rebounder? Sure, but not by much.

[dunksby]

God damn ISH becoming LeBronville :

[SacJB Shady]

Rick Barry ===> LBJ