Just days ago, Michael Jordan’s former agent, David Falk, stirred the GOAT debate. While speaking at the Sports Business Journal 4SE conference in Manhattan on May 20, Falk didn’t hold back. He crowned Jordan the GOAT—and even slotted Kareem or Kobe at No. 2. Naturally, that left everyone wondering—where does that leave LeBron James? And that one question was enough to spark another round of fire in the never-ending debate.

Pressed on whether LeBron even cracks his top 10, Falk nodded: ‘Probably,’ then dropped the real bombshell: “I really like LeBron. But I think if Jordan had cherry-picked what teams he wanted to be on and two other superstars, he would’ve won 15 championships.” That comment sent the internet into a frenzy.

Soon after, LeBron’s longtime agent, Rich Paul, jumped into the mix with a fiery rebuttal. He argued that Michael Jordan never had to struggle the way LeBron has. With the internet ablaze, Falk reprised his stance on First Take with Stephen A. Smith, refusing to backpedal. The discussion kicked off with Smith’s take that “makes the road tougher for a guy like LeBron James compared to what Jordan had to endure during his playing career.”

To build on that, Falk didn’t disagree entirely. He acknowledged that, “Clearly, social media has brought the fans closer to the players. Everyone can express their opinion. You don’t have to work for a newspaper or a television station to have an opinion.” However, he pointed out that even without Twitter or Instagram, criticism followed greatness. “But I think it’s the natural tendency when you’re the best at anything, there’s a human tendency to try to tear people down, and certainly Michael had that because of his immense popularity.”

Wrapping it up, Falk reminded everyone that even MJ wasn’t spared back then. “You know, people criticize him, for example, for not being political enough, not expressing his desire for certain candidates,” he said. So while the game might’ve changed, the criticism hasn’t. But now let’s look at what Rich Paul said about MJ.

Rich Paul’s fiery Michael Jordan response

When David Falk went on record calling Michael Jordan the GOAT and leaving LeBron James out of his top three, it was bound to ruffle a few feathers. But what caught more attention was Rich Paul’s swift response. The Klutch Sports CEO, who’s been instrumental in building LeBron’s off-court empire, didn’t hold back during his interview on The Rich Eisen Show. He called Falk’s take “beneath him” and pointed out the double standard in his comments.

“The cherry picking terminology of it all, coming from someone who literally had John Thompson, Dean Smith, and Mike Krzyzewski supporting his business, putting superstar athletes in his lap. I think he was part of the cherry clan,” he said, taking a direct shot. “I just thought it was very unfair and a little beneath David Falk for a number of reasons.”

And he didn’t stop there. Paul questioned the narrative that Jordan faced more adversity. “We can’t have revisionist history,” he added. “When you look at that, right, again the cherry-pick, I’ve discussed that. The two other superstars—Michael never had to leave. Michael’s never been the underdog in any Finals. Not one time.” That contrast between LeBron’s uphill battles and MJ’s team stability was hard to miss.

On top of that, Paul made a strong point about the media’s role. “Michael never had a 24-hour, 365 news cycle. He never had shows built strictly to criticize him. People made millions of dollars criticizing LeBron James.” LeBron’s career brims with uphill battles: a 2007 Finals run from a sub-50 win team, Cleveland’s 2016 drought breaker, and the bio-bubble title in 2020..

In the end, this isn’t just about GOAT rankings—it’s about two legends who shaped the game in totally different eras. And that’s why this debate is far from over.