Indulge me.

It’s pet peeve time.

Today, I’m going to rail about an American penchant that annoys me to no end—that of arguing nonstop about questions that cannot be resolved through argument, if at all.

The one that irritates me the most now is the debate over who should be considered the greatest of all time—GOAT, for short—at playing basketball, Michael Jordan or LeBron James.

Not long ago, when I was in the locker room of the gym where I work out, two guys got into a screaming match over this dispute. They were face to face, inches away from each other, while they yelled back and forth. Friends, acquaintances and possibly just concerned observers pulled them apart.

But as they backed away, they continued their caterwauling, neither listening to the other.

Or it makes much sense, for that matter.

Those guys just took into everyday life a disagreement I’ve seen played out on TV and radio sports shows and social media.

Always, these verbal altercations end without resolution for either side because no such resolution is possible.

I’m fortunate. I’ve seen both Jordan and James play in person.

I can testify that, in their primes and even afterward, they both were amazing—athletes and players of spectacular inherent gifts that were enhanced with unrelenting work ethics. They each were the best of their time not just because they were born with tremendous natural ability but because they brought more discipline to their pursuit of excellence than almost any other person could.

I played some basketball when I was young, enough to know that I couldn’t stop either man from scoring if I had a small army with antiaircraft missiles backing me up.

Frankly, I’m shocked anyone—or any team—could do so.

Both men had the quickest first steps I’ve ever seen, so explosive that they seemed to defy the laws of physics. Trying to stay in front of either when he attacked the rim must have felt like jumping before a missile after it had been fired from the howitzer.

Much has been made of how high each man could jump. Jordan famously could start his leap from beyond the free throw line and still dunk the ball.

But the altitude they could reach doesn’t tell the whole story. Once, when I saw James play, he went up for a jump shot with such power that his leap should have had a launch code. Then, he seemed to hang in the air as the defender guarding him swatted helplessly at the ball.

How he did that, I have no idea.

But then I don’t know how anyone could start a leap more than 15 feet from the hoop and still be able to slam it home.

What I do know with absolute certainty is that when I watched Michael Jordan and LeBron James play, I was watching something marvelous.

Something rare.

Something to inspire awe.

I have no idea which man would win in a fair contest between them on the court. In fact, I have no idea how to even structure such a contest, because basketball is a team game.

Having them play one on one in their primes, even if someone was able to go all Marty McFly/Doc Brown on us and invent a time machine, wouldn’t answer the question. Part of each player’s greatness was his ability to elevate the play of his teammates, his skill at making a squad more than the sum of its parts.

When Michael Jordan played, a cottage industry focused on discovering the “next Michael Jordan” came into being and flowered.

Season after season rolled by, and player after player failed to meet those lofty expectations—because there cannot be a “next Michael Jordan.” He was singular, a talent like no other.

The same goes for LeBron James. We will not see his like again.

What frustrates me about this endless GOAT argument is that it demeans both men.

They were exceptional, and we were privileged to watch them perform at levels unseen before.

We should honor such distinctive excellence, not cheapen it with pointless disputation.

Witnessing such excellence in any field of human endeavor is a gift, one of surpassing rarity.

I don’t want to argue about people who achieve such excellence.

I want to appreciate them.

End of rant.

Thanks for listening.