LeBron James vs. Kobe Bryant: Who Will Win the Christmas Day Showdown?
LeBron James vs. Kobe Bryant is going to make for an epic showdown on Christmas day.
Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers are the two-time defending NBA champs, while LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are hoping to take the Lakers' trophy come June.
And even though both teams hit a very obvious and highly publicized slump earlier this year, both the Lakers and Miami Heat are atop their respective divisions and nearing their conference's top record.
So who has the edge 10 days from now? Who will win?
Check out this slide show to find out.
5: Kobe Wins Because.....
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The have been defeated twice at home this year, both times by teams with sub-.500 records: the Phoenix Suns and Indiana Pacers.
So maybe they're not invincible at the Staples Center. But they were 34-7 there last season and only lost once at home in the 2010 playoffs.
On the biggest stage, they seem to play their best. Maybe they just don't want to get yelled at by Jack Nicholson or Justin Bieber.
5: LeBron Wins Because.....
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LeBron has already won the Christmas Day matchup with Kobe.
Last year, he led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a crushing 15-point victory over Los Angeles at the Staples Center.
Although Kobe scored 35 points, he shot just 33% from the field while James scored 26 and dished out nine assists.
And he did all that with a roster seemingly far less talented than the one he has now.
That was a year ago, and things are a lot different now. But after LeBron's return to Cleveland earlier this month, there might not be any forum in the world that can faze him.
4: Kobe Wins Because.....
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The Lakers have an overwhelming advantage when they take on the Heat on Christmas Day, and it doesn't really have much to do with Kobe himself.
Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum (who returned last night to score seven points in 17 minutes) are much better upfront than Chris Bosh and Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
Inside the paint, Gasol and Bynum will be effective enough to create space for Kobe to drive to the basket and create shots on the perimeter.
4: LeBron Wins Because.....
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Part of the reason why the LeBron-Wade-Bosh trio was so highly touted and penciled in for 70-plus wins in 2010-11 was because of what they can do on offense.
Both James and Wade have won scoring titles and Bosh has averaged better than 22 points per game his last five seasons with the Toronto Raptors.
Together, in 2009-10, the threesome scored 81 points per game.
But this year, while those figures are way down, the Heat do have the best defense in the NBA.
They have allowed the fewest number of points per game and the lowest collective field goal percentage of any team in the NBA. Against Kobe and Gasol, that defense will be a tremendous advantage.
3: Kobe Wins Because.....
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It may be obvious, but Kobe and the Lakers have been playing together a lot longer than the Heat and the James-Bosh-Wade trio.
That Laker team has changed a bit over the last few seasons, adding Matt Barnes, Ron Artest and Steve Blake. But the core pieces, Kobe, Gasol, Derek Fisher, even Bynum, have been in place for a while now.
The Heat have played only 26 games together and, even though they are riding a winning streak, are not yet a finished product.
3: LeBron Wins Because.....
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The Lakers are currently on a very long road trip. During a ten-day stretch they play six games on an east coast swing against Chicago, New Jersey, Washington, Indiana and Philadelphia before returning to southern California.
They have a warmup at the Staples Center against the Milwaukee Bucks a few days before Christmas, then have three days off before the Heat game. But that's still a lot of basketball and a lot of travel in a short time span.
The Heat will be home on Monday the 20th before heading west to play the Suns on the 23rd and the Lakers two days later.
Although they are the team traveling to Los Angeles, perhaps the Heat will be a bit fresher when they step on the court Christmas Day.
2: Kobe Wins Because.....
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While the Lakers may have fewer All-Stars than the Heat, they certainly have a better bench.
Shannon Brown is chipping in nearly 11 points off the bench and providing clutch outside shooting along with Steve Blake. And Matt Barnes has contributed at both ends of the court.
The Heat are without Udonis Haslem and Juwan Howard isn't getting them quite as much as they probably expected. James Jones is an excellent three-point shooter, but he hasn't given them much more.
In case any of the starters find themselves in foul trouble, the bench will be vital.
2: LeBron Wins Because.....
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The Heat are playing a very freestyle, open system right now and it's starting to come together. The team is winning even when LeBron is not the top scorer; he's been great at dishing out assists if need be.
Sometimes it's James who carries the load, sometimes it's Wade. Occasionally it's even been Bosh who leads the team in scoring, much like he did during the team's key Southeast divisional win over the Atlanta Hawks.
In short, the offense allows James to play to his strengths and, because he is so athletic and so talented, it makes him a bit more difficult to game plan for. At least Kobe and the triangle offense has some form to it.
1: Kobe Wins Because.....
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If the Christmas showdown comes down to the final seconds, which it very well may, the Lakers know exactly who to turn to for the game winning shot: Kobe.
And even though LeBron might be the game's biggest superstar, the same cannot be said about the Miami Heat as a whole.
The Heat don't have an unquestioned leader on the floor, even if James, Wade and Bosh are supremely talented.
The Lakers do.
1: LeBron Wins Because.....
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The Heat's starting five (minus Ilgauskas) are fairly young and even more athletic.
When Mario Chalmers is in for Carlos Arroyo (and Chalmers is averaging more than 25 minutes per game lately), four of the five Heat starters are under 28 and have plenty of speed.
Across the court on Christmas Day, they'll face a much older Laker team that has much more mileage: All five of the Laker starters are over 30 and both Kobe and Fisher are in the middle of their 15th seasons.
At the end of the game that could make the difference in the outcome.
Conclusion: Lakers Will Snap The Heat Win Streak
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The Heat probably won't come into Christmas day riding an incredible winning streak. They've won nine in a row, with games against the Knicks and Mavericks next week, but it's going to be hard to keep that going before the showdown with the Lakers.
Still, they have already proven once that when the spotlight is most brightly on them they can play fantastic; the game in Cleveland was proof of that. LeBron was at his best that day, scoring a season-high 38 points, dishing out eight assists and collecting five rebounds.
And although the intensity that day at Quicken Loans Arena was off the charts, the opponent for Miami doesn't compare to the team they'll play on Christmas. The Lakers are light years better than Cleveland and with the return of Bynum, Kobe has another option to clear the lane.
Kobe is a better pure shooter and a better scorer than James. In a game that figures to feature a lot of points, that means he has the edge, even if the Heat defense is playing great these days.
Prediction: Lakers 118, Heats 107
