Lakers' LeBron James hit with harsh media reality amid Michael Jordan GOAT debate

Rich Paul thinks it would have been hard for Michael Jordan and other greats if they were to deal with the same coverage as LeBron James'

LeBron James is the most scrutinized player in the NBA today, and perhaps in league history. Everything he does makes news, and many fans and pundits are quick to comment on his every move like they are experts and know everything there is to know about the Los Angeles Lakers superstar. With that said, his agent and good friend Rich Paul believes LeBron has it the hardest when it comes to dealing with such media coverage.

In a recent appearance on Gilbert Arenas' show, Paul highlighted how vastly different LeBron is being covered today compared to the likes of Michael Jordan and other NBA greats in the past. With social media's presence in everyone's lives, it just makes it easier for anyone to comment on everything he does and even spread misinformation and uninformed opinions that many quickly believe. Sure it's nothing new, but Paul expressed his belief that no other player had to deal with such massive pressure and actually still thrive.

“LeBron is the first player to have to deal with a 24/7/365 news cycle of sports and opinions,” Paul explained.

“LeBron [James] is the first player to have to deal with a 24/7/365 news cycle of sports and opinions.”

Rich Paul on how the media coverage of LeBron is different than other all-time greats 🗣️

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— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 4, 2023

Sure enough, Rich Paul makes a good point about the criticisms that LeBron James has to face on a daily basis. Even though many of those criticisms were uncalled for, the Lakers star takes plenty of hits everyday. One of the best recent example of that is perhaps the mocking he took when the eighth graders from his “I Promise School” in Akron, Ohio failed to pass the state's math test. Many saw it as LeBron's failure and blamed him for what happened even though he has been nothing but supportive to the school.

And how about the constant coverage of his family, who also has to deal with the hate from the media and other people?

James certainly did great in navigating through such environment. And as Paul hinted, other greats would have probably have a hard time overcoming that if they're in the same situation.