The case that Durant is better than Lebron James

SCORING:

KD definitely has the edge there. He is more efficient from everywhere but less than 10 feet from the rim. He also averages more points per 36 minutes and is(in my opinion) the second greatest scorer of all. Add in 4 scoring titles, a lower usage, and his ability to play off the ball, and he is obviously a better scorer than Lebron.

PASSING:

Lebron has the higher assist percentage and is a more natural playmaker, so he has the edge here by far.

REBOUNDING:

This one is closer than the other ones, but Kevin Durant has the edge here. Lebron James has the higher rebounds per game, but that can be associated to him spending more time in the paint, and the lack of rebounding on his team in comparison to Durant, Draymond is a good rebounder, and Curry is a great rebounding point guard, not to mention, the plethora of good rebounding centers they employed. Durant has a higher contested rebounding percentage(meaning he gets more rebounds he has to actually fight for), which is to be expected considering his size.

DEFENSE:

Kevin Durant wins out in this regard, but it is mainly a matter of effort. Kevin Durant contests more 2 point and 3 point attempts, he has a better plus-minus, and he is a better rim protector. KD wins out in this regard, but again, it is just a matter of effort. It doesn’t hurt that opponents shoot a lower FG percentage against Durant.


CLUTCH:
Kd has a higher FG percentage in the clutch, KD’s being %59.5, to Lebron’s %54.9. KD also shot 53 percent from 3 in the clutch, while KD is not even in the top 120. KD’s clutch effective field goal percentage is 69 percent, to Lebron’s 60.6 percent. Now a lot of people love to bring up Lebron’s clutch shots in the playoffs, but love to forget KD’s two clutch pull up 3s to win games in the NBA finals.

BALL HANDLING:
Durant takes the edge here. He is able to dribble his way into creating a shot, when you watch Lebron, he evidently struggles to create space for his own shot if he can’t fall back on his stepbacks, and while his ball handling has improved noticeably over the past couple of years, it is not on the same level as Durant.

ATHLETICISM:

Lebron, plain and simple

LEADERSHIP:

This is a toss-up. They have both led teams deep into the playoffs and carried subpar teams to punch above their weights, but Lebron has done more with less, and while prime KD seems he would be able to carry those subpar Cavaliers teams as well, that is a hypothetical, and all we know is what happened, and based off of what happened KD Is not the leader Lebron is.

CONCLUSION:

Lebron James is still a top three player in NBA history, while the same cannot be said about Kevin Durant, but based on their performances as of the past three years and their respective situations and skill sets, the facts seem to prove that Durant is the best all-around player in the NBA, a seven-foot shooting guard who has zero flaws in his game, while Lebron struggles with defensive consistency, free throws, and turnovers. Lebron is certainly more dominant and his presence might be more felt, considering his usage and his statistics, but basic investigation further into the matter shows that Durant has an edge.