Miami Heat forward LeBron James said Saturday he appreciates Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen saying James "may be the greatest player to ever play the game." But James said he has a "long way" to go before being mentioned with Michael Jordan or anyone else who is considered the greatest of all time.

"Mike was an unbelievable player," James said after the Heat's practice Saturday at AmericanAirlines Arena in preparation for Tuesday's Game 1 of the NBA Finals against Dallas.

"I've got a long way, a long way, to be mentioned as one of the all-time greats. Not even just Jordan. It's a lot of great players that have played in this league. Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and all these guys floating around with multiple rings. Bill Russell.

"All these guys have pioneered this game for myself and D-Wade (Heat teammate Dwyane Wade) so I'm gracious, humbled by Scottie's comments, especially being a teammate of his and seeing Michael on a day-to-day basis. But as far as me, I don't know. I'm not going to sit here and say I'm better than Jordan or if I'm not better than Jordan. It's not about that."