And we live in a society where, if you brag, you better back that shit up. If not, well, people are ready to pounce. Ask Cam Newton...he'll tell you.
Anyone, MJ included, would respect the game enough not to act like running off 7 would be EASY. LeBron of all people (who till that point had only been swept in the Finals) should have recognized it. I'm not giving that guy a pass because he let the hype of his existence seep in and turn him into who he is.
At some point, life and circumstances teaches you a lesson and 2 and 4 in the Finals for a King isn't special.
Kobe Bryant won 2 championships with considerably less than LeBron had for his two championships and you NEVER heard that guy rattling off how easy winning multiple championships would be.
How has he not backed it up? 6 straight finals appearances? 7 for his entire career? Everytime he gets there, his output is tremendous, legendary, some of the best performances we have ever seen. He's literally done everything he could be doing and more to make that earlier claim a reality, but at what point do you understand it's out of his hands and he's not the one to blame? He can only do so much, it's a team sport afterall, and he can't beat teams alone (even though he almost did it last year). His teams usually let him down, or the cards just don't fall in the right place. Luck still plays a role in sports, and Lebron has received the shitty end of the stick for many years. You keep digging at him like it's his fault. What do you honestly expect him to do? I've explained the reason for his overconfidence and wild claims, and we both know he's one of the greatest players of all time with historical outputs, so what's next? Please tell me.
MJ was a different beast entirely. First, growing up in a different era where he actually had some privacy and social media didn't jump all over him, we don't know what kind of thoughts he might have had or the claims he might have made. Second, MJs mentality was more of the underdog type, the silent killer, similar to Kobe (where a lot of the comparisons originate). He was the guy who everyone knew was dangerous, so he didn't need to always tell you. It fitted his own narrative. Lebron is just different, is all. He lives in a world where everyone is desperate to know what he thinks and what his next move is. He plays in a league that values individual stardom more than it does dynasties. The league today is more individualized than it was when MJ played, really cultivating the feeling of being "special" and "unique" on behalf of Lebron. Maybe Lebron just didn't have a figure in his life that taught him the value of being humble? That's ok too. After he started losing in the finals, what happened to his claims? They disappeared. He learned a valuable lesson and grew up a little as a result. Get off of his back.
Kobe had to be saved numerous times throughout his championship wins. His infamous shooting percentage when Gasol bailed him out in that game 7 especially. And it can be argued that those 3 in LA were more Shaqs's doing than Kobe's. Also, cant forget the fact that they had Phil Jackson on the bench. Kobe had the luxury of playing with players that are better than he is, which Lebron has never had, and playing for the best coach of all time. It makes a pretty big difference to have that surrounding you, even if you don't like to admit it. And that happened because Kobe was SELFISH and didn't want to play anywhere else. That all fell into his lap, and Lebron just hasn't had that same luck. Lebron has been unquestionably THE guy on every single run and effort his teams have made, regardless of whether it resulted in a win or loss. That says something about him as a player, and ties into my previous points about his overconfidence and mentality. The narrative of being a "King" and having control over the game. Someone is gonna say "ray bailed him out against the spurs" but that's not entirely true. Lebrons output throughout the year and up until that point put ray in the position to do that.