By going to the Miami Heat LeBron James is 100% out of the greatest player ever discussion. Personally I feel that he was never in it but some basketball fans (97% un-educated basketball fans) felt that he was. LeBron flat out ran away from Cleveland because he was scared that he couldn't create a championship team where he was. Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson all made dynasties where they were, they didn't need nor want to leave their teams for greener pastures.
Michael Jordan:
Jordan went to an embarrassingly bad franchise in the Chicago Bulls and after several years of playoff failures he won 2 3peats which were separated by a short sabbatical in minor league baseball with the Burmingham Barons. Jordan had Scottie Pippen in each one of those championship seasons but he didn't run off somewhere to get him. Michael Jordan is the greatest of all time simply because once he started his championship run there was absolutely nothing you could do to stop him.
Larry Bird:
With the Bill Russell era long behind them the Celtics were in a horrible drought before Bird came along and pretty much singlehandedly resurrected the franchise. Yes, he did have Kevin McHale and Robert Parish but I contest that it was Bird who made them who they were.
Magic Johnson:
Magic got lucky and went to an already thriving franchise but Magic's competitive nature would never allow him to give up on his own team. As the Lakers floor general, Magic orchestrated the offense beautifully leading his Lakers to 5 world championships in his career.
The point is that all three of these guys have a competitive fire in them that would make it completely impossible to do what LeBron did. The second free agency opened a mysterious package was left on LeBron's door. Inside were the original Air Jordan sneakers and a short and simple question. The inside cover of the shoebox read, " You're a king but can you live up to a legend? Can you take on the greatest challenge in sports; look history in the eyes every night. And refuse to blink? The fans of Chicago have a question for you. Do you dare to fill these shoes?"
Lebron's decision to go to Miami proves that he can't. If he could he would. If Jordan, Magic, or Bird were given a similar challenge I think they would have been salivating at the opportunity. LeBron ran.
Beyond all of the legacy reasons for why LeBron is no longer a candidate for that discussion there are also statistical reasons. Presumably LeBron's PPG are going to go way down in Miami because he can no longer jack up as many shots as he wants. Now he has Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh who also expect to get their shots. Without the legacy and without ridiculous numbers LeBron simply has no chance. Even if he wins 5-7 championships with the Heat (which he won't). It still wouldn't put him in the conversation because he basically had to sell out to get them. Jordan, Magic, and Bird all had good pieces around them but they had to carry their teams. By relieving himself of that duty and honor LeBron relieves himself of any Jordan comparison he ever could have had.
