Creationism vs. Evolution: Spurs get front row look at the Kobe-Lebron debate
Texas is no stranger to intense debates, having long been the national hotbed for our public education system’s creationism vs. evolution discussion. Over the next few days a different sort of debate will play out in the AT&T Center, one that still challenges longstanding values and beliefs.
Kobe Bryant or LeBron James, which one is the best player in the NBA?
Ask Tim Duncan, who at one point in his career could make a pretty convincing argument for himself, and he’d probably answer Kobe on Wednesday and LeBron on Friday. As far as opponents go, the San Antonio Spurs will never face better players in consecutive games.
And Texas may not ever again be privy to as heated a sports debate.
For all the high-flying wings that have been built up as the next air apparent, from Grant Hill and Vince Carter to Tracy McGrady and Dwyane Wade, it’s been Kobe Bryant who has come closest to Michael Jordan.
His career arch mirroring Jordan-transforming from high-flying scorer to coldblooded midrange tactician-Bryant has been mistakenly labeled at times as the greatest player throughout the past decade.
Michael Jordan is the best that ever played. Kobe Bryant is the player that most closely resembles Michael Jordan. Therefore Kobe Bryant is the best player in the NBA.
It’s a logical and somewhat comforting argument. One that certainly works within the framework of what we know and value in today’s NBA, namely that the league’s best player fits into the mold of 6-6 swingman with a 40-inch vertical and acrobatic grace.
But much like creationism sufficed in explaining our origins before being supplanted by the theory of evolution, a new player is laying claim to being the world’s greatest basketball player. But because LeBron James plays nothing like Michael Jordan, it’s called into question NBA fans faith and created quite a stir.
Just read Henry Abbott’s argument on last season’s TrueHoop discussion:
He just doesn’t move like the best basketball player in the world. Put almost any part Kobe Bryant’s game in super slow motion, and you’ll see beauty. Every little part of his game is refined, perfected, tested and honed … Put LeBron James clips in super slow motion, and you’re liable to find things here and there that he could do a little better. That footwork, that release, that way that he walks a little bit like a duck.
This is where the debate gets heated. What, exactly, should the NBA’s greatest player look like?
Ungenerously listed at 6-8 and 250, Lebron’s physique is closer to Karl Malone than Michael Jordan’s. His style, while jaw-dropping, is more violent than creative, more raw than refined. As Abbott said, it lacks the level of artistry of Kobe Bryant, or his template, Jordan. It’s as if someone took a young Shawn Kemp and gave him Magic Johnson’s skills.
Bryant fits our comfort zone as the greatest difficult shot creator/make in the NBA. In this regard, he may even surpass Jordan. He also probably has the most expansive skill set in the history of the league. This is why when it comes to discussing last shots, most people would want Bryant.
But as Bill Walton use to say, never mistake activity for achievement. Or in this case, skill set for dominance.
Whereas Bryant might be able to execute an intricate series of feints and jabs before rising up for a jump shot over two defenders, LeBron James simply blows by the fastest perimeter defenders and overpowers the best front lines.
LeBron James does not have Kobe Bryant’s skill set, quite simply, because he does not need it. The NBA may be defined by creativity, but it’s ruled by dominance. For all his gifts, Kobe Bryant will never physically be able to do what LeBron can.
At heart, basketball is a simple game ruled by efficiency and intelligence. Bill Russell epitomized this, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird put their own unique flairs on it, and Jordan eventually embraced it and become the greatest player of all time.
Even the greatest two players of the post-Jordan era, Shaq and Tim Duncan, understood this. And despite being un-Jordanesque visually, James owns it in a package of skills and physically ability the world has never seen before.
For those fortunate enough to be in the AT&T Center the next two games, bare witness and let the debate continue.
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