LeBron James wants to be greater than Michael Jordan

LeBron James did it.

The NBA superstar fulfilled the promise he made when he rejoined the Cavaliers two years ago by delivering Cleveland its first major sports championship in 52 years.

But that was six weeks ago.

A prospect attending the Nike Skills Academy at the Hawthorne Municipal Airport last week asked James what will motivate him now that his town is no longer in pursuit of that elusive title.

It was a good question — but James’ answer was even better.

“My motivation is this ghost I’m chasing,” James said. “The ghost played in Chicago.”

See the most-read stories in Sports this hour »

That ghost, of course, is Michael Jordan, who won six NBA championships and is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time.

James has won three NBA titles, including two with Miami, and is considered by many to be the greatest player of this era.

In other words, James still has a ways to go to catch that ghost — which is probably why he’s already setting his alarm for 5 a.m. and is in the gym working out by 6 a.m. these days. He told Sports Illustrated he usually doesn’t train this hard this early in the off-season.

“My career is totally different than Michael Jordan’s,” he said in the article. “What I’ve gone through is totally different than what he went through. What he did was unbelievable, and I watched it unfold. I looked up to him so much.

“I think it’s cool to put myself in position to be one of those great players, but if I can ever put myself in position to be the greatest player, that would be something extraordinary.”

MORE SPORTS NEWS

Dodgers Dugout: Breaking down the Rich Hill-Josh Reddick deal; Yasiel Puig’s mysterious day

2016 Rio Summer Olympics: Keep track of all the Rio Olympics news

LeBron James wants to be greater than Michael Jordan