One of the more noteworthy instances of apparent political violence in recent memory occurred earlier this month. Tragically, conservative activist and Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk was shot and killed while speaking to a crowd at Utah Valley University.
Kirk’s widow took to Instagram around one week following his death and shared in a post that the two “bonded” over Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan being the G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time), a topic that is often hotly debated.
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Kirk was long a critic of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James — another player who’s frequently brought up in the G.O.A.T. conversation — during his time alive.
After James’ Miami Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks in six games all the way back in the 2011 NBA Finals, Kirk clowned the forward on X for still being ringless at the time.
James, of course, has won a number of championships since then.
LeBron, ZERO RINGS. #JOKE
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) June 13, 2011
In addition, Kirk went on record as saying that he thought the G.O.A.T. debate should be between Jordan and Lakers legend Kobe Bryant instead of between the former Bulls star and James.
It’s true that there is a very strong argument for having Jordan as the greatest basketball player ever over James. After all, Jordan was far more successful playing in the NBA Finals when he reached that stage than James has been. Jordan went 6-0 in his six trips to the championship series, while James has lost more NBA Finals than he’s won.
Jordan also has James beat in plenty of individual accolades despite having a significantly shorter career. In 15 seasons in the league, Jordan captured more Finals MVPs, scoring titles, league MVPs and Defensive Player of the Year awards than James has under his belt heading into his 23rd season in the league.
But James has certainly built a case of his own, which includes being the NBA’s all-time scoring leader, winning at least one championship with three different teams and displaying unbelievable longevity into his 40s.
It’s unfortunate that Kirk won’t be able to witness the end of James’ career, as while it doesn’t seem likely that he would’ve changed his mind about who the G.O.A.T. is, he at least would’ve gotten a chance to compare Jordan’s and James’ final resumes.
