In the ever-present GOAT debate, LeBron James is going to win for those who care about longevity and those who are under a certain age and Michael Jordan on his greatness at the peak of his powers, as well as for how much winning he did at the highest stage.
For those in the latter group looking for something to support their argument, here’s this research that could help you out: In playoff series’, Jordan (almost) couldn’t be outscored.
It only happened once and narrowly in 1985 in the first-round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls, when Terry Cummings, a 23-year-old All-Star at the time, scored 118 points in the series to Jordan’s… 117.
So even with Jordan getting outscored in that one lone series, it happened by a single point.
Sheesh.
Below, check out the players with the highest percentage of playoff series in which they were the leading scorer. Jordan is first by a mile.
Note: We only looked at players with at least 10 playoff appearances in their careers.
1. Michael Jordan: 97.30 percent
(Sporting News via Getty Images/Sporting News via Getty Images via Getty Images)
Top scorer in 36 of the 37 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 33.4 ppg on 48.7 percent shooting
2. Allen Iverson: 78.57 percent
Top scorer in 11 of the 14 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 29.7 ppg on 40.1 percent shooting
3. LeBron James: 73.47 percent
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 36 of the 49 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 28.7 ppg on 49.5 percent shooting
4. George Mikan: 70.0 percent
Top scorer in 14 of the 20 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 24.1 ppg
5. Karl Malone: 63.16 percent
(GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images)
Top scorer in 24 of the 38 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 24.7 ppg on 46.3 percent shooting
6. Kevin Durant: 62.07 percent
John G. Mabanglo/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 18 of the 29 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 29.5 ppg on 47.8 percent shooting
7. Hakeem Olajuwon: 58.62 percent
(Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images)
Top scorer in 17 of the 29 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 25.9 ppg on 52.8 percent shooting
8. Giannis Antetokounmpo: 58.33 percent
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 7 of the 12 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 25.9 ppg on 53.5 percent shooting
9. Kobe Bryant: 55.81 percent
Top scorer in 24 of the 43 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 25.6 ppg on 44.8 percent shooting
10. Rick Barry: 53.33 percent
(Neil Leifer /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
Top scorer in eight of the 15 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 24.7 ppg
11. Carmelo Anthony: 50.0 percent
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in eight of the 16 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 23.1 ppg on 41.4 percent shooting
11. George Gervin: 50.0 percent
(AP Photo/SC)
Top scorer in six of the 12 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 26.9 ppg
11. Tracy McGrady: 50.0 percent
(Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Top scorer in six of the 12 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 22.2 ppg on 42.6 percent shooting
14. Dirk Nowitzki: 48.15 percent
Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 13 of the 27 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 25.3 ppg on 46.2 percent shooting
15. Moses Malone: 47.62 percent
(AP Photo)
Top scorer in 10 of the 21 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 22.0 ppg on 47.8 percent shooting
16. Jerry West: 46.43 percent
Darryl Norenberg-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 13 of the 28 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 29.1 ppg
17. Stephen Curry: 45.45 percent
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in 10 of the 22 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 26.5 ppg on 45.0 percent shooting
18. Reggie Miller: 41.38 percent
(MATT CAMPBELL/AFP via Getty Images)
Top scorer in 12 of the 29 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 20.6 ppg on 44.9 percent shooting
19. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 40.82 percent
(AP Photo)
Top scorer in 20 of the 49 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 24.3 ppg on 53.3 percent shooting
20. Larry Bird: 40.63 percent
(AP Photo/Steve Pyle)
Top scorer in 13 of the 32 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 23.8 ppg on 47.2 percent shooting
21. Dolph Schayes: 40.0 percent
(NBA Photo Library/NBAE via Getty Images)
Top scorer in 10 of the 25 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 19.1 ppg
21. Baron Davis: 40.0 percent
(Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
Top scorer in four of the 10 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 18.8 ppg on 44.2 percent shooting
23. Elvin Hayes: 38.89 percent
Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Network.
Top scorer in seven of the 18 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 22.9 ppg on 46.4 percent shooting
24. Dominique Wilkins: 38.46 percent
USA TODAY Sports
Top scorer in five of the 13 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 25.4 ppg on 42.9 percent shooting
25. George Yardley: 36.36 percent
(AP Photo)
Top scorer in four of the 11 playoff series he played
Playoff stats: 21.3 ppg
