ESPN analyst explains why he'd always take Kevin Durant ahead of LeBron James

Whether you’re a fan of LeBron James or not, you can’t argue that he’s done enough merits to be considered one of the greatest players in NBA history. He’s got the individual accolades and the rings to back up his case.

James is considered by some as the best all-around player to ever do it. That’s because of his playmaking skills and ability to fill up the stat sheet night in and night out. Then again, others believe that, while he’s great at a lot of things, he’s not the best at any of them.

That seems to be the case with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, as he recently said that he’d much rather have Kevin Durant over LeBron James because Durant is a far superior offensive player.

Stephen A. Smith: “I Want Kevin Durant Over LeBron James”

“I think that Kevin Durant is one of the greatest talents this game has ever seen. But so is LeBron,” Smith started.”LeBron has more rings, LeBron has shown better leadership. But he can’t shoot like Kevin Durant. He doesn’t have the offensive firepower that Durant has. If you’re asking me who would I want offensively, Durant or LeBron James, it would be Kevin Durant.“

Smith elaborated and doubled down on his take by saying that, even though The King has improved as a shooter throughout his career, he’s still nowhere near Kevin Durant’s offensive level:

“Because LeBron James shooting 73% from the free-throw line ain’t cutting it. LeBron James, even though he’s improved his perimeter shooting vastly, still ain’t the shooter Kevin Durant is. No shame on LeBron, but it’s just that Kevin Durant is one of the greatest offensive players we’ve ever seen in the history of basketball. So as an offensive talent, yes I would prefer Kevin Durant,” Stephen A. concluded.

At the end of the day, I think I speak for all basketball fans in the world when I say that I would love to have either of them on my team. Honestly, it feels like you can’t go wrong with either choice.