There’s a big debate about who the greatest player for Team USA is. Some think it’s LeBron, Carmelo, and there is a strong argument for it to be Kevin Durant. Still, there is one man that rises above, not just for his contribution on the court but for popularising basketball on a global scale.
This man had fans in other countries yelling his name, paying absurd ticket prices just to watch him dominate their countries’ most beloved players. That man is Michael Jeffery Jordan and he might be the greatest USA athlete of all time.
Jordan was the leader of the 92′ ‘Dream Team’, arguably the team with the most talent on one roster, ever assembled. The ‘Dream Team’ consisted of players like Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, and Clyde Drexler. To be able to manage and lead the talents and frankly, the egos on this team could only be done by one player, which was Jordan.
He was the alpha of the team, a fact the other players accepted, which shows the level of respect and reverence they had for his game, simply unparalleled.
Michael Jordan’s international stats outclass Lebron James’
Michael Jordan has played for the USA men’s international team 2 times in his life, playing a grand total of 16 games, whereas LeBron James was able to join them 3 times thereby playing 24. Jordan played in 84′ as a rookie and again in 92′ with the ‘Dream Team’. James was part of the 2004 squad as a rookie, the ‘Redeem Team’ in 2008, and once again in 2012.
1984 Los Angeles Olympics
USA vs Uruguay
Groupe B | Game 3
Michael Jordan
16 pts
3 Stl
4 Rbds
3 Ast📹 Recorded on camcorder
📍The Forum, Inglewood, California#NBA #BullsNation pic.twitter.com/rb7KIqdyIy
— The Jordan Rules (@Rules23Jordan) May 3, 2023
The 1984 Summer Olympics was a coming-out party for Jordan, as the NBA world watched a 21-year-old rookie go toe to toe with the best basketball players in the world and still be able to hold his own. In 8 games played, Jordan was able to put up 17 points, 2 assists, 3 rebounds, and a steal and a half, to lead Team USA to his first gold medal in the Olympics.
It’s 2023 and there are still people blaming LeBron for the United States not winning gold in the 2004 Olympics.
In the game they lost against Argentina, LeBron played 3 minutes.
Yet he’s blamed for the United States not bringing home the gold. pic.twitter.com/X3O5P7rsoO
— Uncovering the Truth (@shendy456) May 22, 2023
Contrastingly, James’ first season internationally went much worse, in about 11.5 minutes played per game he only put 43 points, and that too in 8 games. James, Carmelo, and Wade didn’t get that much play time in the 04′ Olympics squad but nonetheless, their team cruised to a disappointing bronze medal, after losing to Greece in the semifinals.
Jordan and the Dream Team easily cruised to a gold medal finish back in 92′ and even LeBron and the ‘Redeem Team’ were able to fight back after their embarrassing performance in 2004.
He claimed his first gold medal in 2008, although a large amount of that must be attributed to the play of ‘The Black Mamba’ Kobe Bryant. Jordan finished his international career with averages of 16 points, 3.4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals, and of course, 2 gold medals for his country.
