LeBron James on GOAT debate: 'Not taking nobody over me'

LeBron James told Time magazine that he believes he is the greatest basketball player of all time.

When asked the age-old question of who is the GOAT in the NBA, James embraced his own name.

"I'm not taking nobody over me," he told Time in a profile published Monday. "There's no question."

James, however, admitted the NBA has other all-time greats, namely Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Larry Bird and Shaquille O'Neal, among others.

"But I think Mike will say the same thing," James said. "Rest his soul, Kobe will say the same thing. Magic will say the same thing. Bird will say the same thing. Shaq could say the same thing. The late great Wilt (Chamberlain), Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar). I don't think none of us are going to take somebody else.

"If there's a general manager and he's eyeballing all of us on a baseline, with the No. 1 pick, it's gonna be hard not to take me, champ."

James, 41, just completed his record-setting 23rd NBA season, and the league's all-time leading scorer is heading into unrestricted free agency.

"It's up to the mind," James told Time about whether he will suit up next season or retire. "Where the mind goes, the body will lay. When I'm not in love with getting to the arenas on game days five hours before to start my preparation, if I'm out of love with getting to practice 2 1/2 hours beforehand, then I know I'll be done. Because then I'm going to start cheating the game."

James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds this season with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 22-time All-Star, four-time league MVP and four-time NBA champion is the all-time leader in games (1,622) and points (43,440).

--Field Level Media