LeBron James meant well.

After Thursday night's win in Miami, James said that regardless of where he plays next season — a topic he is no longer discussing — he will wear No. 6 instead of the No. 23 he has worn since entering the NBA in 2003.

James is making the change to honor Michael Jordan, who will forever be No. 23 across the entire sports world.

"I'm gonna change my number next year," James said. "Probably (to) 6, my Olympic number."

It was an ideal setting for his revelation. AmericanAirlines Arena is home to the Heat, who retired Jordan's number in 2003 (even though some thought they did it last night) because Pat Riley wanted to honor all Jordan has meant to the game. And Jordan actually was on hand, sitting next to Riley and watching as Dwyane Wade debuted his Jordan brand of sneakers.

In addition to his own genuflection, James also suggested that Jordan's number be retired for the entire NBA, the way baseball has done for Jackie Robinson's No. 42 and hockey has done for Wayne Gretzky's No. 99.

"No guy in the NBA should ever wear No. 23," James said. "He can't get the NBA logo — much respect to Jerry West — so I think his number shouldn't be worn by any player in the NBA, just to show the tribute of what he did for this game."

As we said, James meant well. It was a somewhat magnanimous gesture that shows a certain respect for the game and Jordan's undeniable impact upon it.

But it is also misguided, dismissive and narrow-minded, belittling those who left indelible marks on the game before Jordan was even born that still stood when Jordan left the NBA in 1993, and left again in 1998, and left again in 2003.

Look, Jordan is arguably the greatest player of all time. But so is Bill Russell. And Wilt Chamberlain. And Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And Oscar Robertson. And Larry Bird. And Magic Johnson.

And I'm getting more than a little tired of how Jordan is automatically anointed as the greatest, like it's not even a topic of discussion.

Besides, there has to be more than mere greatness. That's where hockey got it wrong. We may be ruffling the feathers of Bobby Orr supporters here, but Gretzky has a clearer argument than Jordan as to his standing atop his sport. Hockey aficionados should correct me if I'm speaking out of school, but beyond the utter dominance Gretzky displayed on the ice, there isn't much, besides a perpetual cultivation of an iconic image tarnished by his work as a coach and executive.

For all the heat Bud Selig takes, he got it right. Robinson's entry into baseball and his courage, determination and will in the face of unabashed hatred changed the game forever. You say you like watching C.C. Sabathia pitch to Jimmy Rollns and Ryan Howard? Robinson made it possible, nearly 20 years before our country's leadership thought it might be a good idea in other places, like public bathrooms.

Where was Jordan's imprint of his conscience? His positive politicizing? His unwavering stance on issues that transcended sports?

In this regard, Jordan was very much like Gretzky. He certainly compelled you to watch. But perhaps overly conscious of his image — which is still used to sell everything from sports drinks to underwear — he almost never compelled you to listen or think and instead cajoled you to buy.

Retiring a player's number across an entire league is not something that should be done lightly. The lasting image has to be something more than "buy batteries" or "gamble in moderation."

And to be fair, there is a bit more with Jordan. James touched on it when he said Jordan "laid down the steppingstones for everybody to come up through the ranks." His greatness as a player immeasurably popularized the game, evidenced by James and the 12 other current players wearing No. 23.

That popularization was manifested in the league's exponential economic growth during Jordan's heyday, with its peak in the late 1990s, when the NBA briefly overtook strike-torn baseball as America's second sport of choice behind the NFL. However, that popularization was highly enhanced by a brilliant commissioner with the vision to take the game worldwide, and a technology boom that made that world smaller and more reachable.

But Jordan doesn't have the additional greatness as an executive possessed by West, who it should be noted became the league logo without campaign and under considerably less fanfare. Known as "Gentleman Jerry," West's silhouette could be one of him in a suit as easily as the one of him in sneakers.

Jordan was not a bystander in labor negotiations, although he served more as the axe swung by his agent, David Falk, in collective bargaining issues. In that regard, he pales when compared to Robertson, a similarly dominant guard whose lawsuit paved the way for free agency. At the very least, Robertson's No. 14 should be retired by the NBA Players Association.

Jordan's popularization of the NBA is widely considered an extension of the foundation laid by Bird and Magic, whose rivalry and friendship as unselfish superstars committed to winning pulled the league out of an abyss of bad PR in the late 1970s. You could argue that without Bird and Johnson, Jordan would be Alex Ovechkin — a singular talent that no one watches.

With six titles, Jordan is clearly a winner. But is he half the winner that was Russell, whose 11 titles were collected in the face of overt racism that often saw his home arena fail to sell out despite the obvious presence of a dynasty? Maybe this is the real reason James is changing to No. 6.

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With five MVPs, Jordan's singular dominance is evident. But that is one less MVP than Abdul-Jabbar, the all-time leading scorer who also won six titles and changed the rule book with his dominance. Oh, yeah, No. 33 also made the unpopular but ultimately enlightening decision to convert to Islam in the face of close-minded criticism while at the peak of his ability.

And if we're going to immortalize dominance, should we consider Jordan ahead of Wilt Chamberlain, who rewrote the rule book, the record book and everyone's idea of the black book? Triskaidekophobics may have trouble with Chamberlain's No. 13, though.

Yes, James meant well. However, his idea has not been yet discussed by the league, which leaves the pomp and circumstance of retiring numbers to its teams.

Good idea. Besides, hasn't basketball always been a team game?

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