On the latest episode of the Mind the Game podcast, LeBron James spoke candidly about Michael Jordan’s influence on his career and how their playing styles could have worked together.
“When you talk about inspiration, there was nobody more inspiring to me than Michael Jordan,” James said during the conversation, via HoopsHype.
James explained that he believes their skill sets would have meshed well if they had ever shared the court. “For me, I think our games would have complemented each other well. MJ was a flat-out scorer. He had a scorer’s mentality,” James added.
The four-time NBA champion also joked about how his comments might be interpreted online. “I can see the headline already. LeBron wants to play with Michael Jordan. Like, I see it already. That’s weird. Don’t be weird,” he said, noting that he was simply answering a question posed to him.
In addition to Jordan, James mentioned Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, and Scottie Pippen as players who influenced his approach to the game. He described how their versatility and ability to play the point-forward role shaped the way he developed as a player.
James also paid respect to the late Kobe Bryant, saying, “I was going to say Kobe Bryant, but I actually played with Kobe in the Olympics, so rest his soul. Great Kobe. Great Kobe.”
