Tim Duncan vs Kobe Bryant vs Carmelo Anthony vs Lebron James

[makemerich]

as of now yea lebron is shinning but compared to kobes accomplishments lebron is only a small piece. i say all time kobe. now. lebron

[SportsTerminator]

81.

[cecbo]

Lebron can score anytime? Come on now...if he could do that, they would have beat Orlando last year. With that said, I do believe he is the best player in the NBA now talent-wise. He is a freak of nature physically. D-Wade is up there too. Kobe on the other hand, is on the downswing of his career, not to mention having to play with a multitude of injuries the past two seasons. But come crunch time, I'd rather have him on my team than anyone of else right now in the playoffs. Been there, done that. Yeah sure, he has lost before in the playoffs, but who hasn't? His mental toughness will help bridge the gap that he has lost in athleticism the past couple of years.

With regards to Durant, he's got a whole career ahead of him to try and catch Lebron, but he will surely pass Carmelo very soon. Durant and Anthony both got the physical ability, but I see Durant having a better mindset for improving more and thus become an overall better player. But no one is gonna pass Lebron until he reaches 30 as the best player in the NBA. Whether Lebron gets a Championship ring before then will be more about his mental toughness than his athletic ability alone.

[PlatinumBerg]

Duncan is a good player, but he is a PF/C and doesn't really belong in the same class as L. James, C. Anthony, and K. Bryant who are all SG/SF. Out of the three, Kobe has accomplished the most, and plays the best defense. Anthony is really just a thug that isn't that good. James has the potential to be better than Kobe as he is really young, but he has to win some Championships before that happens.

[Goat Milk]

I'm going to assume you are referring to Wade and Kobe. Lebron was the backbone of that team, both in games and in practice. The stats may tell you otherwise, but I think the players and the coaches of that team would agree.

Bro,

Kobe was the leader of that team. Kobe taught Lebron how to play defense. Look at Lebron defensively this year compared to last year. All that dedication and leadership is because of Kobe. Before Lebron played with Kobe on that Olympic team he was cocky and thought he was better than Kobe, then he played with Kobe and realized his greatest and how good a defender he was, and said that in an interview with Magic that he tries to mimic Kobe's game. Lebron is just a vocal leader, Kobe was always the leader on the court.

And BTW, D Wade was the best player by far during the Olympics. By far.

[williams22]

Bro,

Kobe was the leader of that team. Kobe taught Lebron how to play defense. Look at Lebron defensively this year compared to last year. All that dedication and leadership is because of Kobe. Before Lebron played with Kobe on that Olympic team he was cocky and thought he was better than Kobe, then he played with Kobe and realized his greatest and how good a defender he was, and said that in an interview with Magic that he tries to mimic Kobe's game. Lebron is just a vocal leader, Kobe was always the leader on the court.

And BTW, D Wade was the best player by far during the Olympics. By far.

Of course Lebron spent time learning things from Kobe, he would be stupid if he didn't. How does Lebron learned better D from Kobe equate to Kobe being the leader of the team? It wasn't Kobe instructing, it was Lebron observing.

Everything I've ever heard from the coaches and players of that reiterates that Lebron was their leader. D-Wade led the team in scoring because that was his role. Lebron was asked to be more of a playmaker.

[tealish]

Bro, Kobe was the leader of that team. Kobe taught Lebron how to play defense. Look at Lebron defensively this year compared to last year. All that dedication and leadership is because of Kobe. Before Lebron played with Kobe on that Olympic team he was cocky and thought he was better than Kobe, then he played with Kobe and realized his greatest and how good a defender he was, and said that in an interview with Magic that he tries to mimic Kobe's game. Lebron is just a vocal leader, Kobe was always the leader on the court. And BTW, D Wade was the best player by far during the Olympics. By far.

This.
And yet in the biggest moments of that game against Spain, when the Gold medal was in legitimate doubt, they went to Kobe Bryant. It's easy to hate the guy (I was one of the biggest haters; I mean, look at your avatar, Williams), but he was still THE MAN of that team. LeBron was a distant 3rd on that USA team, period.

[Goat Milk]

Of course Lebron spent time learning things from Kobe, he would be stupid if he didn't. How does Lebron learned better D from Kobe equate to Kobe being the leader of the team? It wasn't Kobe instructing, it was Lebron observing.

Everything I've ever heard from the coaches and players of that reiterates that Lebron was their leader. D-Wade led the team in scoring because that was his role. Lebron was asked to be more of a playmaker.

It wasn't only Lebron observing. Notice how everyone on that roster got better defensively after the Olympics- Wade, D Will, Bron, Mello, even Dwight. Lebron was just the vocal leader. Bryant set the tone on the floor with his defense and in practice, these guys were all in shock when they observed Kobe's workout regimen. They all picked up on that focus. So he was a leader in that sense.

For Wade, It's pretty sick too when your playing 5+ less minutes than any other starter and your still scoring more than any of them without having to shoot more.

[elchampion33]

I'm going to assume you are referring to Wade and Kobe. Lebron was the backbone of that team, both in games and in practice. The stats may tell you otherwise, but I think the players and the coaches of that team would agree.

How was Lebron the backbone of that US team??? Kobe changed the complexion of Lebron's career with the Olympics, yeah LBJ was marketed all crazy during the olympics but Kobe won the Spain game, got the most love overwhelmingly in China and Lebron and Melo in particular seeing how Kobe worked as hard as he did that influenced the both of them to improve the way that they have come along the past 2 yrs. Lebron saw Kobe's will and drive and because of that he's become that much better a player than he was, its especially noticeable in Lebron's progression as a defender, he didn't give a crap about defense before 08 and now he's an All-Defensive team caliber player.

Wade came back strong as hell too and as a whole he probably was the most consistent player throughout the tournament, right now though Lebron is the best in the league he's indestructible... Lakers are still gonna win the ring though

[Powderguy]

Kobe was the backbone of that Olympic team in China

[paul8888]

i have nothing to contribute really, but i am high as **** and this thread is really entertaining right now haha. lets keep it up!

[SparJMU]

How in the world is Carmelo Anthony included on that list? Before his career is over he will be considered one of the all time overrated players, right up there with Vince Carter although no one will ever compare with Vince.