LeBron James: Why King James Is Merely a Foil to Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan

Early in the 2011 NBA Playoffs, fans began to compare LeBron James prematurely to Michael Jordan.  

After clutch performances against Boston and Chicago, analysts were not only calling LeBron the best player, but the most clutch in the league today bar none. 

ESPN's Rick Reilly said that LeBron would win enough rings to start a pawn shop.  Those praises and more led to the confusion between James and Jordan. 

MJ’s own teammate, Scottie Pippen, even went on to say that James was the better player.  Here’s Mr. Pippen’s quote: "Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to ever play the game.  I may go so far as saying LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game."

Yes, Scottie did say that LeBron may be the greatest player, but if you look at the entire context of the quote, reducing Jordan to the greatest scorer, he was without a doubt labeling King James the greatest of all-time.

Poor Pippen didn’t know then what we do now: LeBron was going to choke, again.

True superstars take their game to another level on the biggest stage.  LeBron averaged 27.6 points during the regular season.  Instead of his production rising, it plummeted...averaging 17.8 points a game in the 2011 NBA Finals. 

He didn't make up for it in other ways, either.  LeBron’s rebounding and assist averages dropped as well, but one of his numbers did actually go up: turnovers. 

The numbers he put up aren’t bad at all for the average starter, but LeBron’s not the average starter.  When a go-to guy doesn’t play up to his ability, the consequences are far worse than if, say, a role player went scoreless.  James relinquished his role to Dwyane Wade and that’s something real stars do not do.

Jordan never let Scottie Pippen take over the scoring load in a playoff series.  Larry Bird never stepped back to let Kevin McHale do his thing.  Magic Johnson never let James Worthy run the offense.

LeBron had a chance to fulfill every expectation that’s been laid upon him since high school, but he failed not just by missing shots, but also by failing to shoot.

There was no respectable argument to compare James to Jordan in the first place.  Six rings to as many rings as the fans watching on TV: enough said. 

Now though, comparisons to Jordan aren’t just premature, they’re crazy: crazy as in only the LeBron homer of homers would actually believe there is still a legitimate argument.

The LeBron-Kobe debate though is still alive and kicking. 

When Kobe’s name comes up in an argument, LeBron backers have always been quick to point at Game 7.  Bryant went an embarrassing 6-for-24 shooting in the biggest game of his life against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals. 

See, Kobe didn’t have the night of his dreams, but he did everything LeBron didn’t do to come away with a win.

Kobe kept shooting, while LeBron just played hot potato.  James averaged three points a fourth quarter in the 2011 Finals and Bryant scored 10 in the final period of that Game 7, leading a Laker comeback. 

Not only did he get hot late, he made up for his early scoring woes by pulling down 15 boards.

Five rings: tell me when the King wins one.  And please, Kobe didn’t ride Shaquille O’Neal’s coattails on the way to three of those titles.  It was not even close to a Jordan-Pippen relationship.

Pippen never averaged over 20 points in the postseason in any of the six years the Bulls won NBA titles.  Kobe put up averages of 21.2, 29.4 and 26.6 during the three-peat: Robin to Shaq’s Batman?  Try again.

Here is a simple concept that must be re-addressed in light of this argument:

Basketball is a game.  The goal of a game is to win.  When you don’t win, you’re a loser.

Those are simple elementary facts that are often overlooked in debates such as these.

Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James all play basketball.  Their only goal in the game of basketball is to win.  MJ and Kobe win, LeBron doesn’t.

LeBron James is indeed in a league of his own, a step two or three lower than true superstars, winners.

David Daniels is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and a Syndicated Writer. Follow him on Twitter.