Who is the greatest among Michael Jordan and Bill Russell? Despite both belonging to different eras, the debate over who is the greatest player is an ongoing discussion with no clear answer in sight. It’s a tough game to decide whether Jordan’s exceptional scoring abilities could beat Russell’s dominating shot-blocking abilities. Among many opinions, the most intriguing perspective was shared by Jordan’s old friend and filmmaker.

In the New York Times bestselling book, ‘Playing for Keeps: Michael Jordan and the World He Made,’ David Halberstam revealed the filmmaker’s argument.

Spike Lee believed in Michael Jordan

Russell and Jordan both exhibited dominance on the basketball court. Over his career, Jordan has averaged 30.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists, securing six NBA championships along with myriads of accolades. On the other hand, one of the greatest of the 60’s, Russell boasted an impressive career average of 15.1 points, 22.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists while clinching a remarkable 11 NBA championships. Russell’s exceptional rebounding skills earned him the Total Rebounding Champion award four times. Who do you think Oscar winning director Spike Lee had faith in? 

Speaking of Lee who watched Jordan’s game very closely, Halberstam wrote, “Spike Lee has come up with a devastating argument: Jordan was the best of all time, he said, because he was so complete a player there was nothing he could not do on the court: shoot, pass, rebound, play defense.” He added, “Therefore, Lee said, five Michael Jordans could beat five Bill Russells or five Wilt Chamberlains. It was a fascinating point, for it spoke to a certain kind of athletic completeness.”

Do you agree with Lee’s opinion? The two were great friends after all. But how did they cross paths? Their friendship dates back to the 80s, when the duo collaborated on a project.

Watch This Story: $120,000,000 Rich Superstar’s Fate Revealed as Stephen Curry and Warriors Wait for Steve Kerr’s Decision

Michael Jordan’s collaboration with Spike Lee

Basketball and pop culture have seen their thread intertwine myriads of times in history. Tracing back to the 1980s, when Jordan had just started to make waves with his skills, the legend met filmmaker Lee. Since then the two have shared a great friendship and have collaborated on numerous projects together. However, the most iconic remains the one in 1988.

In this iconic ad, Lee played the role of, Mars Blackmon, the character he played in the 1986 movie, ‘She Gotta Have It.’ The phrase, “It’s gotta be the shoes” used in the ad also gained global attention. It was one of the first ads that helped the 6x champion gain popularity. These ads didn’t just sell sneakers; they catapulted the Chicago Bulls legend into the realm of a global brand. Did you know about this? Let us know in the comments section below.

READ MORE: ‘Don’t Sleep on Tim Duncan’: Michael Jordan Saw Spurs Legend’s Potential Before the NBA World