Jordan vs. LeBron

By Stephen Proffitt | The Breeze

It’s America’s pastime. No, I’m not referencing yesterday’s coveted start to the Major League Baseball season. I’m talking about the ever-growing debate over who’s mightier: Michael Jordan or LeBron James. It’s becoming a topic that could decide who your father-in-law may or may not be.

No matter what side you stand on, both of these players will go down as two of the most iconic players to ever step on an NBA hardwood. James is coming off leading the Heat to a commanding 27-game win streak. Even the greatest team in NBA history, the 1995-96 Bulls led by Jordan couldn’t put together more than an 18-game winning streak during their historic 72-win championship season.

So now I’m going to throw you a 12-6 curveball and tell you why James will never reach the same level as Jordan — Jordan’s brief baseball career easily makes him the best basketball player ever.

I could’ve gone the usual route of six championship rings (Jordan) to one (James), but that would be ignorant, plus I like opting for the hipster highway. Since we can look back on Jordan’s career in its entirety, trying to compare it with James’ mere 10 years in the league (yes, it’s been that long) would be like comparing the still-new Washington Nationals to the legendary Yankees. It’s just not fair. James will win more rings, maybe not six, but definitely more than one; his next could come as early as this June.

In honor of a new season filled with pine tar and chewing tobacco, Jordan is light years better than King James for what he did on the diamond, not the hardwood. I’m as crazy as Dennis Rodman, right?

On Oct. 6, 1993, Jordan retired from basketball after nine seasons in the association. His reasoning was equivalent to Lil Wayne’s departure from music (thank God) to a newfound skating endeavor. It just didn’t make any sense, especially as the Bulls were entering the 1994 season as back-to-back-to-back NBA champions.

In the spring of ’94, Jordan took his talents to the Birmingham Barons, the Double-A affiliate to the Chicago White Sox. He went f

rom a jet-filled luxury lifestyle to taking charter buses through the back roads of Alabama.

While his numbers wouldn’t arouse Buster Olney, his journey into the unknown was commendable. Jordan finished at .202/.289/.266 in the three main batting categories (batting average, on-base and slugging percentage).

With his presence he brought a little slice of Hollywood to a colorless minor league baseball team.

It’s simply the concept here. He withdrew from basketball, his way of living, to pursue a childhood passion, and he wasn’t too terrible at it. No one does that. Do you think James could hang with the Richmond Flying Squirrels? I don’t.

Jordan then threw in his glove after one season and returned to the United Center, embracing his Bulls teammates once again at the end of the ’95 season. 1994’s MLB strike is said to have influenced his return to basketball. Many say that without it, he would’ve continued his journey to the big leagues.

While no one can be certain where Jordan’s baseball ceiling would’ve been, it’s fun to speculate.

In his first full season back (’95-’96) Jordan won MVP honors and led the Bulls to another Finals victory. They repeated again in ’97 and ’98.

The philosophy is simple: Jordan wins three MVP’s and three straight championships, quits basketball for an entire year to play baseball, returns and again brings three straight championships and two MVP’s to the city of Chicago.

If James is as good as Jordan, he’ll win the championship this year and next, then become a tight end for an arena football league team. After briefly getting his feet wet on the gridiron, he’ll need to return to South Beach and win another three straight Finals rings.

Well, that would be about as probable as the Houston Astros winning the World Series this year.

Stephen Proffitt is a sophomore media arts and design major. Contact Stephen at proffijs@dukes.jmu.edu.

Catching Up With Brady

By Stephen Proffitt | The Breeze


JMU may not have upset Indiana, but Tuesday, they were able to close out the 2012-2013 campaign with a “significant” win with another on the horizon. Redshirt senior Andrey Semenov will return for a sixth season after receiving clearance from the NCAA.

Head coach Matt Brady hopes that Semenov can remain healthy and take advantage of his additional year.

“I think it’s significant,” coach Matt Brady said Wednesday afternoon. “The challenge with Andrey is to find a way to keep him healthy.”

Semenov only played in seven games this season for JMU. The Dukes were 5-2 in those games. He missed much of the early part of the season, battling a groin injury, but was able to rejoin the team in December.

As the calendar turned, so did Semenov’s ankle as he injured it against Old Dominion on January 2 — he missed the rest of the season.

“We’re still not there yet, he’s still under the care of the doctor’s with respect to his ankle,” Brady said. “If we can keep him healthy for a year, he’s obviously talented guy with a great skill at putting the ball in the basket.”

Semenov will be the only senior starter on the team next season. It’s a big victory for a lineup that will feature four sophomores.

“I would be eager to watch him take a leadership role with next year’s team,” Brady said. “He’s been in a lot of games.”

Semenov’s scoring ability, especially from the perimeter, along with his experience will be welcomed with open arms. In his seven games this season, Semenov averaged 10 points per game while shooting 46 percent from deep.

“I think he takes the scoring pressure off a very young nucleus of guys,” Brady said. “Not that Andrey Semenov’s got to be a double-digit scorer consistently, because I think we have a talented roster of guys that can all score, having a guy that can clearly put the ball in the basket is helpful.”

Semenov’s clearance is probably not the only paperwork that the JMU basketball office will be completing in the coming weeks. Brady, who was just recognized by the National Association of Basketball Coaches as the Co-Coach of the Year for District 10, will likely be signing a new, multi-year contract in the coming weeks. His five-year contract expires on April 24.

“We still have a ways to go,” Brady said. “We still have some more conversations to have.”

He’s in a good spot to lobby for a new deal after recently completing his third 20-plus win season in five years. This coupled with three postseason appearances makes Brady a hot commodity. The negotiations are moving along at a steady pace though according to Brady.

As schools continue to leave their conferences, Brady is trying to prevent the complete loss of a great rivalry with George Mason, who recently announced their departure from the Colonial Athletic Association.


“First thing’s first, we are in contact with them to keep the rivalry in tact by having the game every year,” Brady said.

The game, if scheduled, would likely happen in the early, non-conference months of the season: November or December.

“It’s unfortunate that college athletics is changing so rapidly, but it’s a fact of life,” Brady said. “Change is inevitable at the college affiliation level.”

JMU has recently been tossed around in conversations involving the Sun Belt and Mid-American conferences over the past few weeks, but a jump would not be wise, at least right now, according to Brady.

“There’s going to be fallout in league’s around us,” Brady said. “And there’s going to be opportunities. It’s kind of like investing, you think that the stock market’s dropping, you got to get out.”

With Mason out and the College of Charleston in, the CAA basketball roster will include nine schools heading into next season.

“I think it’s paramount that the CAA figures out a way to keep our league as strong as it ever was under the leadership of [commissioner] Tom Yeager,” Brady said. “I think they are hard at work keeping our league not just in tact, but growing.”

JMU has been a part of the CAA since 1979. As Brady will seemingly enter his sixth year in Harrisonburg, he remains confident on where the school stands.

“There’s great potential in the CAA,” he claimed. “I think it’s too early to turn our back on this league.”

Contact Stephen Proffitt at proffijs@dukes.jmu.edu.