Chris Ekstrand

If Ronald Reagan was president when you were born, and you consider yourself a fanatical NBA fan, you probably aren't going to like what I have to say a whole lot. But I've got to say it anyway. 

The 2003 NBA draft class of LeBron, D-Wade, Carmelo and Chris Bosh has a LOOOOOOOOONG way to go before it can even be mentioned in the same breath as the class from the 1984 NBA Draft.

And I'm not just saying this because I am a fogey old enough to remember what Michael Jordan looked like in his rookie year (yes, he had hair!).

It's because the accomplishments of the 1984 draft class — a class that included Rushmore-caliber names like Jordan, Olajuwon, Barkley and Stockton — transcend those of every other draft class in the history of professional basketball.

Of course, I'm playing with a stacked deck here. LeBron and Friends have only three seasons worth of miraculous deeds to ante with, while Jordan, the ultimate ace up a sleeve, alone made the NBA a player in the billion dollar game of global entertainment for the first time.

No group of 20 year-olds, no matter how supernaturally gifted, can measure up against someone who became as iconic a worldwide sports figure as anyone since Muhammad Ali. And I'm only talking about Jordan, and mostly only about the cultural touchstone he became that transcended basketball. Now I'll get back to what happened on the court.

Check the numbers
The above-mentioned four players managed to do quite a few things that the Big Four of 2003 might have trouble matching. And so far, I'm not even talking about the sparkling careers authored by other members of the 1984 class, people like Otis Thorpe (17,600 points, 10,370 rebounds), Kevin Willis (17,241 points, 11,893 rebounds), Sam Perkins or Alvin Robertson.

Comparing 2003 to 1984   Images: Stars of '03, legends of '84 Part 1: 2003 could become best ever Part 2: 1984 set a golden standard Part 3: LeBron already ahead of MJ Part 4: 2003 hidden gem: Howard or Diaw? Part 5: Darko no Bowie, yet Vote: Better? | Vote: Best of '03?|   Discuss

Jordan, Olajuwon, Barkley and Stockton combined to score 102,706 points in 4,887 games. They made 47 NBA All-Star appearances, and won seven NBA Most Valuable Player awards (Jordan won five of those). That group won eight straight NBA Finals MVP awards from 1991 to 1998.

They won 10 NBA scoring titles (all Jordan's) and nine NBA assists titles (all Stockton's). In the 1989-90 season, a member of the quartet led the NBA in scoring (Jordan), rebounding (Olajuwon), assists (Stockton), steals (Jordan again) and blocked shots (Olajuwon).

Special feature Team needs, predictions for season Curran: Are Celtics hungry enough to repeat? Walters: LeBron comfortable on NBA's throne Ventre: Lakers look to turn up the defense Expert: With Brand, 76ers are title contenders Celizic: Knicks, Nets have long roads ahead VOTE: Which team will win the title?

Nobody in the 2003 class of mostly skill-position players will ever get as many rebounds as either Olajuwon (13,748) or Barkley (12,546).

For eight straight seasons from 1985 to 1993, either Jordan, Stockton or Robertson led the NBA in steals. Olajuwon, Robertson and Jordan were each named NBA Defensive Player of the Year at least once, with Olajuwon getting the nod twice.

Here's my personal favorite: for 15 straight seasons from 1985 through 1999, at least one player among that quartet was named to an all-NBA team. No member of the 2003 class was named All-NBA in 2004, so there will be no matching of that record.

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