LeBron James vs. Kobe Bryant: Which Megastar Is the Real King of the NBA?

When examining who essentially owns the NBA, LeBron James or Kobe Bryant, it's all in the eye of the beholder.

At this point in their careers, James is the better overall player, a physical specimen who does virtually everything well.

But Bryant is a five-time champion who is arguably the second-best shooting guard ever to play the game. On top of that, he's more clutch than James, hands down.

James, at 27 years of age, already owns two MVPs. Bryant, despite all his success, has won only one MVP (2008).

Bryant is a 14-time All-Star. James is an eight-time All-Star. Bryant is a two-time NBA scoring champion. James, ironically, led the league in scoring the same season Bryant won his MVP.

But determining who is the real king of the NBA lies in your individual parameters. Are you looking at the better overall player (James) or the player who rises to the occasion when it matters most (Bryant)?

My take?

James has nothing on Bryant yet.

I've always felt Bryant has never gotten enough credit for what's he's accomplished. Sure, he's been selected to 14 All-Star games, but not doing so would have been a crime.

The fact that he's only won one MVP speaks volumes. He's always been compared to Michael Jordan, the greatest player ever to play the game, and that's simply not fair.

As explosive as Bryant was in his younger years, he never was as explosive as James is today. James is practically a linebacker on the basketball court who moves like a running back.

In short, he's so quick and physically imposing that I wonder how teams stop him at all (his critics would say he stops himself).

Is James' sheer electricity the reason he's already won two MVPs or is it simply because he's better than everyone else on the floor? I think it's both. Bryant was better than everyone else on the floor for a while, too, but he didn't win multiple MVPs.

But it's about more than the perception of James and Bryant. I've always judged players primarily on how they help their teams in the most pivotal moments of games. Bryant defeats James in this area in a landslide.

As of now, James is still not the king of the NBA. But he does have the team to win a championship, by far the most athletic and talented team in the league right now.

I won't say James should have won the title last season with the Miami Heat, because I think it's unfair to expect that much in his first season with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

Nonetheless, if he doesn't win multiple championships with this squad, beginning this season, he'll never equal Bryant. He'll never truly own the NBA.

You can go on for as long as you want about how magnificent James is overall, but until he starts making some big shots in the postseason, until he starts winning titles, he'll never be king.