What I thik Melle Mel was trying to say is that we shouldn't put him on such a pedastal because in a lot of ways he or his life was a negative influence on hip-hop.
Is Pac the greatest figure ever in hip-hop? Without a doubt. Was he the realest? Unquestionably. The deepest? Arguably. But was he the best in terms of rhyme skills? No. There are a dozen rappers who could eat him up lyrical. Rakim, KRS-One, Big Daddy Kane, Nas, Biggie, and Eminem to name a few. It's when we take into account all the other aspects of the art that we have to put Pac at number 1.
Just throwing that out there..