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Survey: 82 percent of college coaches pick MJ over LeBron in GOAT debate

Streeter Lecka / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Michael Jordan or LeBron James? It's a debate that will rage on forever, but according to a recent survey, an overwhelming majority of college basketball coaches believe the title of GOAT belongs to Jordan.

CBS Sports college basketball writers Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander anonymously polled more than 100 coaches for their annual Candid Coaches series, asking them, among other things, to choose between Jordan and LeBron. Jordan easily won, receiving 82 percent of the votes.

"Not to take anything away from LeBron, but the game is so different now from when Jordan played," one coach who picked Jordan said. "If Mike played in in this day and age, with freedom of movement, he'd average 40 points a game.

"LeBron's done so many great things on and off the court. But if somebody put a gun to your head, and you had to go win a game, who are you going to go with? Michael Jordan or LeBron James? My money and my life is going to be with Jordan. He played both sides of the ball as good as anybody. He was the best offensive player and defensive player in the league every night."

Another coach said they voted for LeBron primarily because of his off-court contributions.

"If we are going off the man as a whole, I'm taking LeBron. Basketball-wise he is not far off from Jordan - and the numbers he has put up year in and year out are absurd. Where I think LeBron has separated himself from Jordan is with his stances on what he believes in," the coach explained. "The school he just opened is awesome and will change lives. And what he has stood for, and stood against, throughout his career is what puts him on my Mount Rushmore of Athletes."

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