Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James: Sizing Up Christmas Day Showdown
Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James.
Oh yeah, it's happening again.
With less than a week until the Christmas Day showdown between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat, it's time to talk about the age old debate.
Who's better, Kobe or LeBron?
Well, that argument's been going on for years now, so I'll narrow it down a bit.
The question isn't just who's better overall, it's who's been better this season.
I'm prepared to have my page flooded with people who disagree with me, because it's time to open up the ultimate can of worms.
Here is the "who's been better in 2010" debate: LeBron or Kobe?
I'll break down five aspects of each player's game, decide who's been better this season, then crown "The King" or the "Black Mamba."
5. Making His Teammates Better: How Has Bryant Played?
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I'll be honest, "making his teammates better" is just a fancy term for assists.
Kobe Bryant has never really been phenomenal in that area, and he's taken another step back this season.
Bryant's averaged 4.6 assists per game, which is right on target with his career average but is his lowest since the 2005-06 season.
5. Making His Teammates Better: How Has James Played?
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LeBron James will likely never touch his career-high 8.6 assists per game from last season, but he's been very good in that area again this season.
James has averaged 7.2 assists per game, and has six games with double-digit assists.
He leads all small forwards in both categories.
Advantage: James
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James has always been among the league's best facilitators, especially at the small forward position.
That hasn't changed this year.
Advantage: James
4. Rebounding: Does Bryant Clean Up The Glass?
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Kobe Bryant has grabbed 5.1 rebounds per game this season, which is just a tad below his 5.3 career average.
Bryant averages one offensive rebound and 4.1 offensive rebounds per game.
He has one double-digit rebounding game during the 2010-11 season.
4. Rebounds: Does James Clean Up The Glass?
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LeBron James' rebounding has steadily declined every year since the 2007-08 season, and he's dipped all the way down to 6.4 rebounds per game this season.
But he's got five games with double-digit rebounds, two of them coming during triple-doubles and three of them coming in the last five games.
James hasn't had quite the impact that he's used to on the boards this year, but he does frequently turn in impressive performances on the glass.
Advantage: James
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It's hard to compare these guys in this aspect, considering they don't play the same position.
But the numbers are in favor of James any way you slice it.
Plus, he has an uncanny ability to take over the glass fairly often.
Advantage: James
3. Impact On The Game: How Does Bryant Fare?
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By impact on the game, I mean whether Kobe Bryant hurts his team in certain areas.
And he has this season.
When Bryant attempts at least 20 shots, the Lakers are 7-7.
When he attempts less than 20 shots, the Lakers are 14-0.
The good thing about Bryant, though, is that he's only turned the ball over 2.8 times per game.
He's only had one season since the 2003-04 campaign in which he averaged less than that, so he's definitely made less mistakes in that aspect of his game this year.
3. Impact On The Game: How Does James Fare?
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Similarly to Kobe Bryant, LeBron James' ability to shoot and score has hurt his team at times.
When James is the team's leading scorer, the Miami Heat are just 8-6.
James is also fourth in the NBA in turnovers at 3.8 per game, behind only Rajon Rondo, Russell Westbrook and Amar'e Stoudemire.
Advantage: Bryant
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Though Kobe Bryant's shoot-happy mentality has cost the Lakers dearly, so has LeBron James.
The main difference between their play, however, is that James has had the most turnovers (per game) of his career, while Bryant has actually improved in that area.
Advantage: Bryant
2. Defense: A Look at Kobe Bryant
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Kobe Bryant has been an elite defender throughout his career, but how's he played in 2010?
Well, Bryant's defensive rebounding numbers are right on par with what he's done since he entered the league--4.1 this season and 4.1 for his career.
Bryant's also averaged 1.3 steals in 2010, slightly below his 1.5 career average, and just 2.1 personal fouls per game, significantly below his 2.6 career average.
He's been getting it done on defense but not fouling in the process.
The only major dip in Bryant's defensive production this year has been his inability to block shots.
Bryant has just four blocked shots all season, which translates to less than .1 per game and is well below his career .5 average.
2. Defense: A Look at LeBron James
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LeBron James has also been stellar on the defensive side throughout his career, and that's extended into 2010.
James has averaged 5.7 defensive rebounds, slightly below his career average of 5.8, and 1.4 steals per game, which is a dip from his 1.7 average.
Though James has only been called for two personal fouls per game, he's struggled in one of his strongest areas: blocking shots.
James has only averaged .5 blocked shots per game, after averaging at least one per game in his previous three seasons.
Advantage: LeBron James
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Though both LeBron James and Kobe Bryant are among the NBA's best defenders, the Miami Heat boast the league's top defense so far in 2010.
They're No. 1 overall and No. 1 in points allowed at just 91.24 points per game.
Though that's obviously a team statistic, there's no denying that a big reason why is because of the play of James.
Advantage: James (slightly)
1. Shooting: Spotlight on Bryant
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Kobe Bryant is in the midst of his worst season shooting the ball since 2004-05.
He's making 8.8 shots per game and shooting just 44.6 percent from the field.
But Bryant's three-point field goal percentage is actually slightly up from the 2009-10 season.
He's shooting 33.1 percent from downtown as compared to 32.9 percent from beyond the arc last year.
Bryant's 84.1 free throw percentage is right on par with his career average of 83.8.
1. Shooting: Spotlight On James
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LeBron James has the second lowest shooting percentage of his career at 47.0 percent, but he's raised his three-point field goal percentage slightly from 33.3 percent last year to 34.0 percent so far in 2010.
At 76.5 percent, James is also hitting more than 2 percent more of his free throws than he has for his career (74.3 percentage).
However, it's important to note that James' field goal percentage has taken a hit even though he has attempted just 17.5 shots per game this season, well below his career average of 20.6 per game.
Advantage: LeBron James
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Both players have experienced shooting slumps in 2010, but Kobe Bryant only beats out LeBron James in free throw percentage.
James has made 2.4 percent more of his field goals than Bryant and is slightly better than Bryant from downtown.
Advantage: James
Who's Better Right Now: LeBron Or Kobe?
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Despite what you Lakers fans may think, I'm not a Kobe Bryant hater.
It's just that the numbers and the play on the court support LeBron James being a better player right now.
He doesn't score as much as Bryant, but James has the edge in shooting, rebounding, assists and defense.
The key difference between the two is that James has more of an ability to contribute in other areas if he's not dropping 30 points.
The debate could probably go either way, but...
The Verdict: LeBron James is better than Kobe Bryant today.
