Isiah Thomas: 'LeBron James is a much better player than Michael Jordan'

The LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan debate has been edging closer and closer over the past few years, and many think that James’ Game 7 performance against the Celtics Sunday night may have put him in the lead, if only slightly.

Hall of Famer-turned commentator Isiah Thomas weighed in with his take on the situation Monday morning, and boy, is it hot:

On an episode of ESPN’s ‘Get Up,’ Thomas opened with the disclaimer that he “says this with no disrespect to Jordan,” and noted that he often takes heat for what is perceived as hating on Jordan. Even putting 1985 All-Star Game beef aside, Thomas had already said on NBA GameTime in March that if he had to pick one, it would would be James over Jordan.

His statement Monday only furthered that view.

“What I’m witnessing in LeBron James is a complete basketball player dominating this period of time,” he said, contextualizing his comments. “I haven’t seen anyone else do that in our league with the exception of two people. That’s Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell.”

He continued: “But when you talk about just a basketball player, a complete basketball player, LeBron James is a much better basketball player than Michael Jordan.”

Consider the mic dropped.