Skip Bayless: “LeBron James Is Not Even In The Same Stratosphere As Kevin Durant.”

Lakers Daily

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At 36-years-old, LeBron James is still, somehow, among the best players in basketball. A 17x All-Star, 17x All-NBA player, and 4x Scoring Champion, James has made it clear that he's not yet ready to add to his resume.

And while James may no longer be in his physical prime, he has adapted his game in other ways, and it has reflected to his play with the Lakers on the court.

Still, not everyone still believes that LeBron is still King.

For some, like FOX Sport's Skip Bayless, Kevin Durant has taken the throne as the best in the world.

"That’s what I’ve been saying for several days: Kevin Durant is quite simply the best player on the planet! This is what I have been saying for three years. It’s not LeBron, it’s obvious once again! Durant dominated the calculations for the MVP predictions. 45 to 7 among the voters? This means LeBron isn’t even in the same stratosphere as Durant.

That’s what I’ve been saying for three years: Kevin Durant is the best player in the world. It dominates the prognosis of the MVP. And if Kawhi Leonard was in good health, he would be ahead of LeBron."

Durant is certainly closer to that title than he's ever been before. The season following a brutal Achilles injury, he returned to average 26.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game on 53.7% shooting.

He was literally inches away from leading Brooklyn to the Eastern Conference Finals.

In light of it all, it's no surprise he has won over a few people. 

"Kevin Durant is the best player in the world," Said Kendrick Perkins. "And it's about damn time somebody dethroned King James from being the best player in the world. We're talking about a guy who's going on year 19? I don't really know if LeBron James even cares about being the best player in the world no more, going on the age of 37. So it's about time somebody stepped up to the plate and dethroned him, because he's been carrying the torch for so long."

This upcoming campaign will be huge for both LeBron and Durant, as they will have to prove they belong at the top. Either way, it will be interesting to see what they're able to do.