I’d argue that nobody can guard KD. The guy is 7 feet with a 7’2”+ wingspan and his shooting form is such that he releases the ball from the highest point possible. Also, if you face guard him a la Shane battier, he still hits his shots! He’s too fast to be guarded by 7 footers but too tall to be guarded by anyone else. The reason he lost in OKC was he couldn’t handle the pressure alone. On GSW super team there is no real pressure for him because teams can’t double and triple team him without getting burned somewhere else!
What about the year he singlehandedly dragged the Cavs into the finals by scoring the cavs’ last 25 points against the Celtics only to have to play a stacked Spurs squad? Or the year he had to play against an epic spurs squad with poor performances from Wade, Bosh and that garbage bench? I would argue there has only been one finals his team lost when it was the favorite: when they played the Mavericks! They definitely choked in that Finals, but aside from that you can’t say he choked because he played epic but the team was not as good as the competition! It’s a team sport! You need stars but the team has to perform. You can blame stars like Harden, but if you do then you ignore how many wide open 3’s he setup for his teammates only for them to go 0-27!
MJ couldn't have defended KD. Championships are a team accomplishment, Lebron's squad wasn't good enough to win this year.
Those Miami teams were best team on paper all 4 years he was there. I think it's on him 100% they weren't way more dominant and looked at as one of the best teams of all time. When your teams not performing the way it's supposed to you have an entire offseason and 82 games to work on that and get everyone playing at the level they need to be and every year we meme about Lecoast as he half asses his way through the regular season then wonder why teams with less talent give him a hard time. The truth is Kd and Bron didn't want to put that work in to overcome the adversity they would face in the playoffs. So they stack the deck and front run. Really the saddest timeline for the 2 best players of this generation.
I don't understand your second paragraph Lebron also built his legacy on the back of hard work and he also added to his game every year, what's your point? If you don't count GSW and SaS since you say you are giving him a pass then except for the loss against Dallas Lebron has won every time he went to the Finals. He has only lost to San Antonio Spurs (with a lottery team), GSW and Dallas so far. When's the last time Lebron got stopped when they were the best team on paper apart from the Dallas year? Lol you literally gave Lebron a pass every time he got stopped so by your definition he is better than Jordan because Jordan lost a lot in his early years but Lebron has a pass every time he lost except for when he lost against Dallas.
They were the best team on paper but in reality Bosh and Wade sucked, that last year Bosh and Wade combined for 9 pts their last game 7. It's not Lebron's fault his teammates played like trash he won MVP every year he was in Miami so its not like he didn't carry his team. Rings are a team accomplishment even Jordan lost every year he didn't play with Pippen. Lebron can coast because this is his 16th year playing in the NBA, do you realize Jordan retired by his 15th year? Prior to that he was the league minute leader so Lecoast? Really? League minute leader is Lecoast???? I understand you are Jordan homer and a Lebron hater but you need to get your facts straight. Jordan won not because he "worked hard", its because he had a stacked team. How come 6 years he couldnt get out of the first round? Does that mean he was lazy his first 6 years?
I'm not even a Jordan homer. Having watched both of them play I think Lebron is more talented and a better overall player. Jordan was the better teammate/winner and always got the best out of his teammates. I have Lebron ranked high and I get it he's your guy I'm just saying he took the easy way out and its disappointing. And that Miami team was 100% the best team on paper. The moment he joined that team the odds were overwhelmingly in his favor to win the championship at the start of the year. I mean for a month Espn shows debated if they would win 82 games the first year lol. The odds swung when the team didn't perform to the level of talent.
He's struggled plenty of times against eastern conference teams with very little talent in comparison.. He could have very well lost to a handful of the WC teams those years even though he had a stacked team.. His teams never really performed to their talent level and at some point thats on the shoulders of the best player in the game.
All of Jordan's "Winning" happened in 6 years and a core group that included Pippen who was clearly the 2nd best wing in the entire league. So it's like having Durant and Steph on your team, you don't need a lot more to win a ring esp. when your opponent has only 1-2 stars. If Jordan won by himself and against a team full of stars then yes you can get on your high horse and say Lebron took the easy way out blah blah. But Jordan never won with a weak team his entire career. In fact the year he left his Bulls reached the ECF with the exact same roster without him! So why are you blaming Lebron for looking for strong teammates when Jordan had everything handed to him? If Lebron had the fortune to get drafted by the Celtics or the Spurs then he wouldnt have needed to leave. I already said it multiple times Jordan never even got past the first round with a garbage team around him so what would have happened if he didnt have Krause building his team or PJ coaching his team? Jordan wouldnt even get past the first round and he wouldnt be GOAT in the first place. You are not a Jordan homer? LOL you are clearly drinking the Jordan gatorade, wearing the Jordan sneaks and watching Jordan's space jam. Don't give me that crap.
Not sure about you but I trust a player who’s all NBA defensive first team 9 seasons, 3 times league steal leader, with a defensive player of the year award can defend KD better than Tony Allen (who’s 6’4 btw) did in 2014.
We can argue if MJ would've been successful at guarding KD. But there is no question on if MJ would've took the task of actually guarding him. Lebron was afraid of guarding Kevin Durant because of legacy reasons. You can't be the "King" and scared to guard the other teams best player lol. The GOAT conversation is over with Lebron
Jordan is the 2nd best 1v1 player in the game (after Hakeem) but he definitely wasn't a great leader. Almost all of his teammates were afraid of him because of his bullying. Dude was just not a good human being. https://www.thesportster.com/basketball/top-15-nba-players-who-were-bullied-by-michael-jordan/
KD now is way better than 2014 c'mon now. MJ won thise awards when he was in his peak if Lebron was also in his peak not playing his 16th year and 8th b2b Finals appearances he could guard KD too.
MJ retired by year 15th, you see him play on the Wizards and think that dude can guard KD? At least Lebron is still playing by year 16th, MJ retired already by his 15th year so he can't guard anbody let alone KD. If you are taking about peak players I put my money on Lebron over Jordan any day of the week.
Yes, towards the end Michael Jordan just tired out but if you talk about peaks, Jordan is easily the better closer IMO. Sometimes the team needs a closer. While Lebron can do it, he passes up the opportunity way too often, the pass to Korver, then in the first game vs Warriors he refused to shoot jumpers late.
Yes but Lebron is more of a "jack of all trades master of none" tyoe of player. He can do almost everything well but except for playmaking none were the best of the best. Closing may be the most dramatic but its just one aspect of the game. Overall impact of Lebron is still bigger.
True. Lebron rarely had equal talent other than in Miami. Depending if you have a closer on your team. Kyrie was good but I dun think he could hold a candle to prime Wade or 90% Wade. Scottie Pippen was their version of Lebron. A lesser version but very skilled and a HOFer.
