It's transparent what's going on here. Laimbeer being Laimbeer, he's still bitter about how their little pretend dynasty ended, so naturally he elevates James above Jordan.
No, James is not a better player than Jordan at his peak. The predictable, "new is better" voice will of course like this position. I didn't like Jordan at all, in the interests of full disclosure. Kobe over Jordan? I'm perfectly willing to entertain that one.