"He paid me" - Devonte Graham reveals switching his GOAT from Michael Jordan to LeBron James for sly reason

Former star Michael Jordan had control over the Charlotte Hornets as the majority stake owner for quite some time. His influence extended to decisions regarding player acquisitions, trades, and team direction. Unfortunately for Devonte Graham, he fell victim to Jordan's decisions and was traded away.

Graham, a second-round pick by the Hornets in the 2017 NBA Draft, had a decent three-year stint in Charlotte until he was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. Being traded has its aftereffects, as the San Antonio Spurs guard quickly changed his opinion about who he thought was the GOAT for a sly reason.

"I played for the GOAT, Michael Jordan. He paid me," Graham said. "When I played there, he was definitely the GOAT. Once I got traded, it became LeBron."

Since he wasn't on the Hornets' payroll anymore, he immediately changed his allegiance to LeBron James.

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Which players went on record and named Michael Jordan as their GOAT?

Apart from Graham, seven other players participated in an anonymous poll conducted by HoopsHype to determine the GOAT. Gui Santos, Harrison Barnes, KJ Martin, Dennis Smith Jr., Cody Zeller, CJ McCollum and Bojan Bogdanovic all chose Michael Jordan as their GOAT.

Barnes shared a lengthy response for choosing Jordan as his GOAT.

"Obviously, if I have to give an answer, I’ll go with Jordan," Barnes said. "He’s my favorite player. He stacks up with the wins argument, impact on the game, and individual performance."

Bogdanovic, on the other hand, said:

"He was 6-0 in the Finals. I think he brought basketball all around the world to the fans. He was an icon."

Several other players, including Spencer Dinwiddie, Matt Ryan, Malik Monk, Malcolm Brogdon, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Zach Collins, Bruno Fernando and Dyson Daniels named the LA Lakers star LeBron James as their GOAT.