LeBron James vs Kobe Bryant: A Complete Comparison

Basketball Skillset

Kobe works out in his pyjamas with a broken right hand

This is a simple comparison, which player was actually a more skilled basketball player? Forget about what they have achieved and what they have done wrong in their career, and think no further than the things they can do with a basketball.

LeBron is an incredible scorer, but Kobe clearly holds the scoring crown between these two. Kobe registered 40-plus points on 134 occasions during his 20-year career, a number which is only topped by Michael Jordan (211) and Wilt Chamberlain (284). His 81-point game against Toronto in 2006 tops the list, but he had six other games with 60-plus points, and another 20 with at least 50 points. LeBron's career-high 61 points is his only game eclipsing 60; he has scored 50-plus on 12 occasions including once in the finals, and 40-plus another 78 times. LeBron has added a more consistent three-point shot than Kobe had, but Kobe didn't need the three-point shot in the mid-2000's the same way LeBron needs it now. Kobe copied the MJ fadeaway perfectly, but LeBron has invented his own fadeaway which has become one of his best weapons, he sometimes gets in a zone with it and starts throwing up deep fadeaway heat-checks.

The passing game is where LeBron gets a jump on Kobe, but not by much. Kobe had the ball-hog reputation for a few years when he had terrible teammates - a fact which he admitted himself - but there was never a question of how good he actually was at passing. He could thread the needle and find shooters, cutters or dunkers at any moment, but why would he when he was Kobe Bryant and his fellow starters were Smush Parker and Kwame Brown? Kobe showed his unselfishness and incredible passing skillset next to good teammates such as Shaq, Eddie Jones, Rick Fox, Pau Gasol, Ron Artest, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum. Still, LeBron clearly outdoes Kobe here; LeBron not only makes flashier passes, he does it more often and consistently whips incredible passes to his wide-open teammates while never doubting them to make their shots; his assist numbers aren't routintely high for no reason.

Before we finish with this section, Kobe's legendary work ethic must be mentioned. LeBron works as hard as anyone to improve and keep his body in shape, but he also preserves himself on defence and in the regular season to some degree. Kobe never preserved himself at either end of the floot, he gave 110% every single time he stepped on the court and had the best work ethic maybe of any player to ever play the game; nobody besides Michael Jordan can match his desire to do whatever it takes to win. Everyone has heard the stories; Kobe waking up trainers at 3am to workout with him, rocking up to the gym in his pyjamas and with a hand on his cast (pictured above), the list goes on endlessly.

So who is the more complete and better overall player based on nothing more than their talents? LeBron gets my vote thanks to his Magic Johnson-like passing skills which have helped him to a career average of 7.4 assists per game. Kobe could pass as well as the best when he needed to, and LeBron could score polarizing totals each night if he took his focus away from being unselfish, but overall LeBron is a more efficient player thanks to his phenomenal decision-making.