Recently on Facebook, a friend of mine made a post asking "the panel" (i.e. the nebulous and ever-changing circle of friends/acquaintances who weigh in on matters of substance like NBA basketball) who the better player was, Kobe Bryant or LeBron James. In order to truly answer this question, we need to think about what creates wins. I also need to reiterate an important point that many NBA fans seem to lose sight of:
Offense and defense are equally important.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way, we can begin to resolve the Kobe vs. Lebron debate with some level of clarity.
"Hey LeBron.. there ain't a big enough headband to cover that hairline bro"
I'm gonna tackle these two Hall of Famers one at a time.. and to be fair, I'm comparing these players at their peak. For Kobe that was obviously a few years ago. For LeBron, it may not have come yet, but I'll go by what he is today.
Kobe Bryant
One of the top ten players of all time IMO, and the most talented and effective SG in the league since His Airness hung up his Nikes. He can score in any way imaginable, and has several NBA titles on his mantle. A fierce competitor with relentless drive, he has a well-rounded offensive game complete with fadeaways, a competent three-point shot, an array of spins and post moves, and (moreso in his prime) raw explosiveness enabling him to finish around the basket with authority. He's not afraid of the big moment and can create his own shot at-will. Has aged gracefully due to an improved outside shot and high basketball IQ. In his heyday was an All-NBA caliber defender, and even at age 33 is still plus in that area.
Kobe has so much faith in his ability to score that he tends to use too many possessions at the expense of his teammates (and by extension his team's overall offensive efficiency). Oftentimes the shot he takes is not the best one that the team could have gotten, and when he's not feelin' it this habit can put his team in a hole. A much more natural scorer than creator; while certainly more than capable of finding open teammates for easy offense, he passes these opportunities up too often in favor of more difficult shots. While Kobe's extreme skill as a scorer can at times justify such forays into selfish basketball, too much usage on his part can hinder the offense as a whole, both in terms of allowing his teammates to find their rhythm and also through lower percentage shooting on his part. No longer an elite defensive player at this stage of career, although he's still an asset at that regard.
LeBron James
If you had to build the optimal basketball player from scratch, you'd probably end up with something resembling LeBron. At 6'8" and 275 lbs. with elite speed, strength and explosiveness, the physical skills are obvious and unparalleled in the history of the game. But his acumen as a distributor, a plus jump shot and the ability to create for himself as well truly set him apart. The NBA has never seen a combination of skills and athleticism quite like LeBron. Simply put, he generates more wins above replacement than any player in the game through a near-optimal balance of efficient scoring and frequent, productive passing. By generating extra possessions (via rebounding), finding open teammates with regularity, and scoring the ball at a high percentage (is putting up a career-high .534 mark from the field this year), LeBron plays the game how it should be played. Also an elite defender who can guard nearly any position effectively, and can be dominant for long stretches on that end of the floor.
Lacks a well-developed post game, although work in the 2012 offseason with Hakeem Olajuwon seems to have paid dividends in that area thus far this season. Has had several high-profile postseason failures in his career thus far, which have led some to label him all sorts of "unclutch". While I don't completely agree with this premise, he has experienced dry spells at a few painfully crucial times (to the point where people have either forgotten or discounted the triumphs he's experienced during these times as well). All in all though, it is still open for debate whether or not LeBron has the necessary mindset to be the "alpha dog" when the game is on the line.
Summary
Kobe's a better closer at this point, a more talented pure shooter and better at getting himself open looks off the dribble. LeBron is a better distributor and defender, and does more than Kobe does in terms of positive overall impact on the game as a defender and distributor while still performing at an elite level as a scorer himself. All things considered, both of these players crack the top 10 of all-time already IMO in terms of peak talent and production.
But.. if I start a team tomorrow and have the choice of getting either player at age 25 and healthy, I'm going with LeBron. If you're convinced that LeBron plays poorly in the clutch due to some inherent personality flaw, I can't stop you from believing that. I personally think that last season was the first time he's had a talented enough team to even think about a title, never mind win one. The bottom line is, LeBron does more to ensure a win throughout the course of a game than Kobe does.
That being said, I'll admit that if I need one player to create their own shot to win or tie a ballgame, I think Kobe would be the correct choice right now. However, that is only one of many important skill-sets, and if my overall object is to win the game, the greatest percentage chance of that happening lies with LeBron. He carried mediocre Cavs teams to relevance for years; Kobe did not do the same when given a subpar supporting cast during the dark ages after Shaq and before Gasol. Bryant has won a handful of titles, but I'm fairly convinced LeBron would have as well with the teams Kobe had. I realize this is an impossible hypothetical exercise, but it really just serves to emphasize the point that Kobe's titles weren't just his doing while the rest of the Lakers came along for the ride. Basketball is the ultimate team sport, and blindly looking at titles as a means to break ties between all-time greats is overly simplistic at best and foolish at worst.
Feel free to drop some knowledge in the comments area if you feel so inclined, but come with facts and evidence, lol.
