More Impressive, Tom Brady Or LeBron James?
Tom Brady wrapped up his career in New England to take over at Tampa Bay before this past season. Many wondered if leaving such a stable environment would tarnish or dent the end of his career as he prepared to play a season at 43 years of age.
Instead, Brady is now preparing for his tenth Super Bowl. As a Lions fan, I literally can't comprehend that. Brady has been to 10 Super Bowls. My poor Lions haven't sniffed one.
Meanwhile, the Patriots failed to make the playoffs for the first time in 11 years this season. The Pats finished just 7-9 with Cam Newton running the show all while TB12 was smiling ear to ear down in The Sunshine State.
LeBron James has also been to the pinnacle of his sport ten times. It pretty much seems like whichever team LeBron is on, is in the Finals. He's missed the championship series a handful of times throughout his career, but he's literally gone from team to team and taken them to the top. With Cleveland, the Cavs essentially went from worst to first in the matter of a season or two once LeBron returned to his home team.
For him to play with the athletic prowess he has, avoid injuries, lead and stuff stat sheets heading into his 18th season is also beyond remarkable.
With both of them still playing at the highest of levels so deep into their career, it has sparked a great debate...
Most will say that Brady is the GOAT in football and LeBron is the GOAT in basketball, but who is the GOAT? It's a fun discussion to have and frankly, there isn't a wrong answer.
Brady has the better championship record — 6-3 vs. 4-6, but LeBron has done it with more teams and during the "super team" era. Brady will have a chance at No. 7 in a couple of weeks, while LeBron and the Lakers look to be the favorite again in 2021. LeBron came into the professional ranks with more pressure than any athlete in the history of sports and has surpassed even those lofty expectations. Brady came in as an afterthought, sixth-round pick and has become the greatest quarterback of all time with a focus and a drive like we've never seen at the position. It's hard to say which is more difficult to do, but we do know that no one else have ever done it the way these two have for as long.
For me, Brady's accomplishments are just a bit more outstanding. What LeBron is still doing physically is more impressive, but Brady's overall record and success in a league driven by parity gives him the edge. It's just unbelievable to have the kind of success Brady has had in the NFL. As I mentioned earlier — 10 Super Bowl appearances. The Lions.....you remember.
LeBron's 10-series total is also insanely impressive, but we have seen lengthy runs and dynasties by other NBA teams pretty recently — the Bulls, Rockets, Spurs, Warriors and the early-2000s Lakers just to name a small handful. Granted, LeBron is almost doing it by himself in some cases, and he's the common denominator, doing it in the NFL is still so rare. Even if Brady loses in two weeks he'll still have two-game lead on LeBron in the stat that seems to carry the most weight during these types of debates.
