When it comes to the best NBA player of all time, Michael Jordan and Lebron James lead the pack, and Space Jam 2 can see them go head to head. There have of course been many great all-star players in NBA history, including Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Julius Erving, and Karl Malone, and that's just scratching the service. It's hard to argue with the idea that Jordan and "King" James are the best overall to ever grace an NBA court though, and definitely the best of their respective generations.
Their track records of success are both legendary. Jordan is a six-time world champion, while James has won four world titles so far. Jordan has been the MVP of five different seasons, while James has accomplished that feat four times. Both men tend to rack up the points in most games they play in, and generally act as the generals of their teams. That's not to say that the help of other great players doesn't make their odds of winning better, but both Jordan and James can and have won games almost entirely due to their own efforts.
Jordan and James have also both managed to transcend the very sport of basketball, becoming pop culture icons even to those who aren't dialed into the goings-on of the NBA. In that sense, it's a perfect bit of kismet that when it came time to make a sequel to Jordan's 1996 hit Space Jam, James got the call. However, with Jordan now confirmed to cameo in A New Legacy, they should look to Rocky 3 for how to proceed.
Space Jam 2 Should End With Michael Jordan Vs. Lebron James
Rocky 3 famously ends with old foes Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed having a private rematch against one another, this time done with nothing but personal pride on the line, and from a place of friendship and respect. The credits roll without showing a result to the fight, leaving fans with the impression that it didn't really matter, as the two champions were evenly matched and both great. Well, that's until Rocky revealed that Apollo won in the Creed spinoff, but that came after decades had passed.
Sadly for fans of dream match-ups, there will never be an actual showdown on the basketball court between Michael Jordan and Lebron James. Jordan is now 58-years-old, and has been retired for nearly 20 years. Even if for some reason it ever happened, a prime James vs. a middle-aged Jordan isn't a fair game. But with Jordan set to participate in Space Jam: A New Legacy, there's a perfect opportunity to treat fans to a scripted version of such a battle for supremacy, at least for a few minutes.
At the end of Space Jam 2, after James and the Looney Tunes have presumably beaten back the threat of the Goon Squad and saved the day, he and Jordan can be shown having a friendly one-on-one session. The two can joke around about their respective encounters with the Monstars and the Goon Squad, their time playing alongside Bugs and Daffy, and even playfully compare notes on who played their big cinematic game better, all while showing off their skills on the court. The most important part will be that the result of their encounter isn't shown, the same as done with Rocky and Apollo Creed. These are two athletes with nothing left to prove, and both are all-time greats.
