Lebron vs. Kobe...The Debate Might Be Over

The hottest debate in all of sports right now may just be what NBA Superstar is better, Lebron James or Kobe Bryant. But as the 2008-2009 Playoffs continue to unfold, one of these two players might be ending this debate and establishing himself as the superior.

INTRO
Kobe just finished his 13th NBA season while Lebron finished his 6th. Keep that in mind as we discuss various numbers because that does create a bit of an unlevel playing field for both Lebron and Kobe (depending on what we are comparing).

NBA RINGS
The first thing many people look at when discussing the best players of all-time are NBA rings. Kobe has 3, Lebron has 0. Kobe won his first ring in his 5th season and Lebron is in his 6th. However Kobe won all 3 of his championships with a man named Shaquille O'Neal on his team, arguably one of the Top 10 most dominant players ever. Lebron has never had, and probably will never have a player of that caliber on his team. So to give Kobe a huge nod over Lebron because of rings isn't really fair. Since Shaq left L.A., Kobe has made it back to the Finals once losing to the Celtics in 2008. Lebron also has made the NBA Finals in his 4th season losing to the Spurs in 2006. If NBA rings determines greatness, than Robert Horry needs to be in this argument. In my opinion, NBA championships doesn't determine greatness, it merely solidifies it.

GAME ON THE LINE
Another factor that people often look at is closing games and most people would agree (including myself) that right now, if you had one shot to win a game, you would want Kobe taking it. He has hit so many game winners and it seems that in one on one, he can always get a decent shot off. But once again this argument is weak as far as who is better for two reasons. One, Kobe is 31 years old and a 13 year NBA veteran. In his first 6 years, Kobe would not have been chosen as they one people wanted to take the final shot. In fact, I don't even know if he would have been chosen on his own team to take the final shot. Shaq would have probably been the first option and if he wasn't it was simply because he couldn't shoot free throws. Kobe hit game winners early in his career, but when a teammate draws two defenders and opens up a jumper, any NBA player should be expected to knock the shot down (i.e. Steve Kerr and Big Baby Davis).

CAREER NUMBERS
So after two topics that really are opinion and can't be measured (being a Champion and hitting the game winner), we get to the numbers game. What have these two players averaged in their careers?

Kobe: In his career Kobe averages 25.1 points, 4.6 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game. He shoots 45.5% from the field, has 134 career double-doubles, and has played in 948 career games (starting in 799).

Lebron: In his career, Lebron averages 27.5 points, 6.7 assists and 7.0 rebounds per game. He shoots 47.1% from the field, has 134 career double-doubles and has played in 472 career games (starting in 471).

Comparing the above numbers, Lebron has better numbers in every category than Kobe except number of games played (although he has started a higher percentage of the games he has played in). One statistic not mentioned which is significant is free throw percentage and Kobe (at 84%) far and away outshines Lebron (73.8%). only one time in his 13 seasons has Kobe shot less than 80% from the charity stripe whereas Lebron has never shot above 80%.

CLOSING ARGUMENT
Kobe is a great player. In fact, he is one of the best guards to ever play the game. But as we are seeing this postseason and have seen previously in his career, Kobe turns his game on and off and in my opinion, the best of the best need to come out every night and shine. Kobe has been blessed in his career to play with perhaps the best center ever (resulting in 3 NBA championships) and now has a team with savvy veterans (Gasol, Odom, Fisher). The supporting cast that have surrounded Lebron and Kobe throughout their careers can't be compared because Kobe's have been much better. So then, maybe this is why Kobe averages less points, assists and rebounds than Lebron. But if we ignore career averages for a second, and look at specific games, how many times have Kobe's teammates not shown up for a game (think NBA finals last year, Rockets game 4 yesterday etc.). In those games, the burden should fall on one of the best players ever to step up and win, yet Kobe didn't do that. Once again, every player, even Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain has games where their shot wasn't falling and they had a low scoring output. This point right here is where Lebron in my eyes leaps over Kobe. I agree players, no matter how dominant they are, have bad games scoring, but Lebron is able to score 10 points and still put up 6 assists and 10 rebounds. Kobe on the other hand, just doesn't do that. If Kobe's shot isn't falling, he keeps shooting instead of adjusting his game to get others involved.

In this years playoffs, Lebron is averaging 33.7 points, 6.6 assists and 10 rebounds per game (plus as of today his team is undefeated). Kobe has played 9 playoff games this season and only twice has had over 6 assists and never had over 10 rebounds. So take away the points and you still have one player that is clearly for valuable and dominant than the other.

Championships are not won by single players, so this post is not me saying the Cavs are better than the Lakers. That would be stupid considering the Lakers swept the Cavs this season, so if the Lakers win the championship it is a plus for Kobe because he did it without Shaq, but it is not a knock on Lebron necessarily. The argument here and today is simply whether Lebron or Kobe is a better player and being only 24 years old and already with numbers that equal if not surpass Kobe's, I would have to take King James.


With all that said, he still isn't the best #23 ever!