NBA: Top 7 dream 1-on-1 Matchups 

#5 LeBron James vs Scottie Pippen

Scottie Pippen and LeBron James

Some of you will probably say, "Blasphemous!". How dare the King (LeBron) not feature against Michael Jordan, or at least Kobe? Well, we hate to break it to you, but comparing LeBron to Kobe or Michael in a game of 1-on-1 is like comparing apples and oranges. Like comparing a sniper rifle and a shotgun. Like comparing two entities that are different in nature whilst being equally effective. 1-on-1 is not Lebron's nature, "The King" is a pass-first, kill-later player. While Kobe and Jordan were Kill-now, Kill-later, Kill-until there's no one left to kill players.

And hence we pick Robin to Jordan's Batman, Scottie Pippen. Scottie Pippen and LeBron James are similar players in their style of play. Their first instinct isn't to score first but to make the right play, which more often than not involved making the right pass. A 1-on-1 matchup between these two NBA champions will be prime-time coverage for sure.

Do we really need to introduce the King? LeBron James is currently a top-10 all-time NBA player already. He dominates his generation like Kobe and Duncan dominated theirs. James has been the face of the NBA for quite some time and rightly so. Never has the NBA seen a player so big, so quick and so dominant on the hardwood floor. We don't believe anyone is stopping the King in the open court, rushing down like a raging bull, jumping over defenders and stuffing the rim. The scary thing? LeBron James has gotten better every single year. And he doesn't seem to slow down. Here are some highlights:

The freak of nature that Lebron James is, he has constantly added to his game in terms of skill. LeBron is one of the best passers in the league. Combine that with his supreme court-vision and basketball IQ and you have a beast that can tear down defenses in more ways than one. LeBron also happens to be a decent 1-on-1 defender and a spectacular team defender. His jumper has consistently improved since he entered the league and so has his reliability in the clutch. The 3-time champion has been to 7 straight NBA Finals. Seven. Period.

You could say Scottie was the original LeBron. Pippen certainly thinks so. A lot of people overlook the greatness of Scottie Pippen mainly because he happened to win his 6 championship rings playing #2 to Michael Jordan. And yet, Scottie was as important a piece as Michael for the then Chicago Bulls. Micheal took a special liking to Pippen, and you can imagine what playing 1-on-1 at length with the "G.O.A.T" could do for your game. Pippen was a lockdown defender, who could shut down players at will. Scottie's main role alongside Jordan? Make the right play and defend the other team's best player. And sometimes dunk all over people. Well, he excelled at that.

One could argue that Scottie Pippen was heavily underrated. While some say he "hitched a ride" to being honored as one of the "50 Greatest NBA Players". The bottom line is, Scottie Pippen has six NBA championships, and he was one of the most versatile players ever. Here's a quote from Phil Jackson's (the coach of the Chicago Bulls that won 6 titles) book "Eleven Rings" that describes Scottie's talent during his stint in the 1982 Dream Team:

"Michael (Jordan) had regarded Pippen (Scottie) as the most talented member of his supporting cast. But after watching him outplay Magic Johnson, John Stockton, Clyde Drexler, and other future Hall of Famers in Barcelona (venue of 1982 Olympics), Michael realised that Scottie was the best all-around player on what many consider the best basketball team ever assembled. Scottie, Michael had to admit, had even outshone him in several of the games."

Truth.

So, the best all-around player of arguably the most talented team ever assembled vs the player who many consider THE best all-around player to ever play the game? Who takes this? Although LeBron can guard all 5 positions in today's game, Scottie Pippen is arguably the better 1-on-1 defender. But then, Prime Lebron isn't a Lebron who would fail to show up in the 4th quarter of an NBA finals. Prime Lebron would win an NBA Championship being down 3-1. Scottie might have a lot of offensive weapons and defensive wizardry but LeBron is just a force of nature who would get to the hoop every single time. Even if he doesn't, he is a better shooter than Scottie. All hail the King.

Verdict: LeBron takes the series 4 games to 2, much to his dismay.