The King vs. The King-In-Waiting

We almost missed out on the NBA this year. Luckily, a deal was made just in time for the season to tip-off on Christmas Day (a great way to start, Christmas should be the first day of the season every year). Now we're down to just two teams left. Both Conference Finals were wildly entertaining, San Antonio and Miami looked poised to sweep past their foes after the first two games. Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder had other ideas, winning the next four against the suddenly ancient Spurs. Boston tried to flip their series as well, but ran into a determined LeBron James. Coming into the two series' I was hoping for one of two outcomes: the old men of the Celtics and Spurs to show the young guys they aren't quite ready to turn the league over to the young guns, or the Heat and Thunder to claim their spots as the leagues elite for the next decade. Luckily, I got one of the two. Both Miami and Oklahoma City are set up to dominate the league for the next few years, maybe if we're lucky we'll get a Celtics-Lakers type rivalry out of it.

LeBron and Durant are two players that seem able to score at will when they decide to do so. One will walk away with a ring(and probably a Finals MVP), one will get sent home wanting. Who wins this year? And who will have more trophies next to their name in the Hall of Fame?

For me, this is not even a debate. The player that will walk away with the Ring this year is the same player that is clearly the more dominant player. The same player who was the MVP 3 of the last 4 years; the same player who only averaged .7 PPG less but shot an incredible 53% from the field; the same player who averages almost 3 more assists a night; the same player who in his first year with "reasonable" talent, took his team to the NBA Finals. LeBron James is the best player in the world and will add an NBA championship to his credentials this year when the Miami Heat beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in 6 games. 


Further solidifying his rightful throne as King of the NBA, LeBron James should, and will, add "not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4...." but i believe 5 NBA championships to his name. Which in the end, will be exactly 4 more championships than Mr Kevin Durant, who will probably pick up 1 in the ending stages of his career, narrowly avoiding the ranks of Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton as great NBA players who have never raised the Banner. My only hope that when Lebron does win the title this year, that the talks of 3 quarters and choke artist will cease. But for some reason I believe he will never rid himself of these comments, even if he does win "...not 5, not 6, not 7......".


Clearly more dominant? I beg to differ. Sure LeBron is more physically dominating; his game is reckless and fear inspiring. KD dominates in a different way though, his is a more smooth game which may not receive as much notice for dominance, but he takes over at the end of the game like few others. He's also the 3 time scoring champ....seems pretty dominant to me. He drains games winners seemingly daily, and acts like he does it daily to. Whether stealing the Spurs surgical precision to dismantle them in Game 3 or dropping 34 points and grabbing 14 boards in Game 6, taking four straight from maybe the hottest team ever seemed like just another day at the office.


For me, while Kevin Durant and LeBron James are set to be the spectacles of this NBA Finals, it's Durant's supporting cast that will give him just enough support to get through the Heat in 7. The Heat may have LeBron, DWade, and Chris Bosh; but Durant along with Westbrook, Harden (an absolute assassin), Ibaka,  and the rest of the cast will do just enough to keep the King at number 2 for at least another year. If they keep that core together, it'll be the Thunder walking away with "....not 5, not 6, not 7...." and the King will have to go elsewhere to find a ring.