LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant: Who is a best small forward in the league? NBA Feature (Part-1)
Miami Heat’s LeBron James and Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant are two of the most talented and dynamic basketball players in NBA right now. Both the players have incredible set of skills which make their offensive game a formidable
threat for any opposition. Each player has a unique style of playing and in their own way, they have pivotal in leading their franchises to glories.
LeBron James was drafted with the first overall pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2003 NBA Draft. Coming into the professional league with the nickname ‘King’, James lived up to the expectation of his fans right from the
first NBA game against Sacramento Kings, in which he scored 25 points, dished out 9 assists and gathered 6 rebounds.
As a result of his outstanding performance in the first season with the Cavaliers, James received the honour of ‘Rookie of the Year’ in 2004. There was no turning back for James from there as his presence transformed a lowly team
of the Eastern Conference - Cleveland Cavaliers - into the best team of the league in the years to come.
During his seven dominating years with the Cavaliers, James accomplished almost everything what a newcomer can dream of. However, LeBron’s dream of furnishing his resume with an NBA title remained unfulfilled, which eventually
forced him to take his talents to Miami Heat last off season.
On the other hand, the 23-year-old Kevin Durant was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder, formerly known as Seattle Supersonics, as the second overall pick during the 2007 NBA Draft. Similar to James, Durant also impressed with
the range of his abilities in his NBA debut and his consistent performance in the first year earned him the Rookie of the Year award in 2008.
The young Durant kept soaring as the years went by and took his game to the next level in no time. In the last two seasons, Durant led the league in points and he was named as the NBA scoring Champion on both the occasions. He
was instrumental in Oklahoma City’s maverick post season run last season. Leading from the front, Durant marshalled Thunder into the Western Conference Finals. However, at that stage OKC came across the Dallas Mavericks, a team of veterans which was on a resurgent
run towards the NBA title. The result is that the championship ring also is one thing that is not on Durant’s finger.
Kevin Durant made two play-off appearances so far in his four-season long NBA career. In contrast, LeBron James played double the seasons than Kevin and appeared in the play-offs six times.
The performance of both the superstars on the big platform has been even better compared to their regular season average which shows their capability to shine under pressure.
Tags: