I know you already made this point. There's a huge gap between a conference not being as strong as the West and being "garbage." This point would have a lot more weight to it IF LeBron was on a superior team and they cruised through the conference.
It's not like MJ played in the 50's and we don't have most of us who lived through the era or tons of video evidence. Was that era "tougher"? Maybe a little bit but today's game is much more difficult mentally, physically, with conditioning, etc. Anyone who isn't having their records chase down seems to agree.
https://twitter.com/sp0rtstalkjo3/status/979078903498145792?lang=en
Pretty funny Twitter thread, but even if not 100% serious MJ played against some absolute scrubs that wouldn't stand a chance in today's NBA.
Plus, the era comparison thing is suddenly getting 'harder' to make precisely because LeBron's insane longevity is chipping away at MJ's legacy. Weird! It's not that MJ should've taken far better care of his body or got more sleep instead of gambling into the night. He was exhausted at 33 after 13 seasons because he basically participated in the WWE!
LeBron brought Cleveland its only city title in over 50 years against the greatest regular season team of all-time. If he's the GM things haven't gone that poorly. They really got screwed by the Kyrie trade, which in hindsight, looks bad but that wasn't the consensus at the time.
I actually think moving to the West is a smarter decision for him.