LeBron James and Kevin Durant faced many times in the NBA Finals. This is the comparison between two of the greatest players ever in the NBA Finals.
Credit: Fadeaway World
For years, the comparison between LeBron James and Kevin Durant was a topic that started every television show and flooded every roundtable of sports talk. James helped his spot atop the NBA hierarchy as a 4-time champion and 4-time Finals MVP with 10 total career appearances in the Finals as a player. Durant began to insert his name into the conversation with James once he became a 2-time NBA champion and 2-time Finals MVP with the Golden State Warriors. Was it ever a serious conversation, though?
The short answer is yes. Both James and Durant were at the top of their game in the 2010s as MVP winners, scoring champions, and the 2 best players in basketball. Durant and James met 3 times in the NBA Finals during their careers, with Durant holding a 2-1 advantage over James. What we will do today is compare these 2 superstars by their performances on the game’s biggest stage, just as we did for James and Stephen Curry in the past. We will weigh their greatest accomplishments against each other while adding the necessary context.
This is the comparison of LeBron James and Kevin Durant using their NBA Finals stats.
Points
LeBron James - 28.4 PPG (1,562 Total Points)
Kevin Durant - 30.3 PPG (455 Total Points)
For each of these players, scoring at an elite level has never been an issue, especially when it comes to the NBA Finals. LeBron James has been to 10 NBA Finals in his career and has averaged over 30.0 PPG 3 times in those series. He has eclipsed 25.0 PPG in every Finals series of his career, aside from the first one in 2007 against the Spurs. His best series in scoring came in 2015 against the Warriors pre-Durant when he went for 35.8 PPG on 39.8% shooting.
Kevin Durant has been to 4 NBA Finals series in his career, 3 of which came against a team that had LeBron James. Durant averages over 30.0 PPG for his Finals career on all-time great efficiency. His best effort came in the 2017 Finals against James’ Cavaliers, in which the Warriors won in 5 games. Durant averaged 35.2 PPG that series and shot the ball at 55.6% overall and 47.4% from three. When it comes to scoring, not many have done it like Durant can, no matter how big the stage.
Advantage: Kevin Durant
Rebounds
LeBron James - 10.2 RPG (561 Total Rebounds)
Kevin Durant - 7.7 RPG (116 Total Rebounds)
Rebounds for each of these players are something that comes naturally with their large stature and frames. For James, he has a purpose to his rebounds as he likes to push the pace himself or look for wide-open passes up the court to beat the defense. James averages over 10.0 RPG in his Finals career and has done so in a series 6 times out of 10 appearances. The most rebounds he has grabbed in a series also came in the 2015 Finals against the Warriors with 13.3 RPG. In his historic 3-1 comeback in 2016, James grabbed 11.3 RPG and has grabbed over 10.0 RPG in each of his 4 Finals victories.
For Durant, rebounds have always been a secondary skill for him on the court, mostly because he is usually streaking up the court on the fast break or the recipient of an outlet pass from the rebounder. As much as he likes to push the pace, the play does not often start with him as much as it does with others in the paint. That being said, Durant has done his fair share of rebounding in the Finals. He averaged a Finals-best 10.8 RPG in the 2017 win over James and the Cavaliers and 8.0 RPG the year before in a win over the same Cavaliers team.
Advantage: LeBron James
Assists
LeBron James - 7.8 APG (430 Total Assists)
Kevin Durant - 4.5 APG (68 Total Assists)
Each of these superstars has displayed the innate ability to set up their teammates on the court during their careers. For James, his ability to find an open teammate or drop an incredible dime is second nature to him on the court. His best series as a passer came in back-to-back losses to Durant’s Warriors in 2017 and 2018. He averaged 10.0 APG in each of those series, doing everything he could to will his team to victory. However, over the course of those 2 Finals, James and the Cavaliers won just 1 game out of 9 games played.
Durant has been an underrated passer and playmaker his entire career. This probably happens because of how talented of a scorer he is, but nonetheless, Durant is an avid passer of the ball. He only reached 10 assists in a Finals game once, in Game 4 of the 2018 Finals, in which he dished out 10 assists to close out the Cavaliers for the NBA title. That series ended up being his best Finals as a paneer, dishing out 7.5 APG in the 4-game series.
Advantage: LeBron James
Steals
LeBron James - 1.7 SPG (93 Total Steals)
Kevin Durant - 1.0 SPG (15 Total Steals)
LeBron James has received plenty of attention for his defensive efforts, especially during his prime with the Miami Heat when he was almost named Defensive Player of the Year. It is his instincts that proved to be his most valuable asset on that end of the floor and the way he could bait playmakers into errant and ill-advised passes. In his historic 2016 series in which he led the Cavaliers back from a 3-1 deficit over the Warriors, James had his best defensive series in the Finals with 2.6 SPG. It was his effort on both ends that led and sparked the historic meltdown by the Warriors.
For Durant, defense has always been another underrated part of his game. Using his length and basketball IQ, Durant has played his fair share of impactful defense, including on the NBA Finals stage. His best series came when he led the Thunder to the 2012 Finals against James and the Miami Heat. He averaged 1.4 SPG during that series but ultimately lost in 5 games. His best game with steals came in Game 2 of the 2017 Finals when he snatched 3 passes from the offense in a 5-game gentleman’s sweep of the Cavaliers.
Advantage: LeBron James
Blocks
LeBron James - 0.8 BPG (46 Total Blocks)
Kevin Durant - 1.5 BPG (23 Total Blocks)
Another stat used to measure one’s defensive impact is in the blocks department. LeBron James’ most famous play, maybe of his entire career, is a chase-down block of Andre Iguodala during Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. That series was the best block output of his Finals career as well. In total, defensively, James averaged 2.6 SPG and 2.3 BPG in those 7 games. Once again, his defensive efforts set the tone for the greatest comeback in NBA Finals/Playoffs history.
As for Durant, his shot-blocking has always been overlooked by his offensive output. The truth of the matter is Durant is a sneaky weak-side defender and helper who has gotten his fingertips on plenty of shits in his Finals career. In Game 2 of the 2017 Finals, Durant registered a career-high 5 blocks in the victory over the Cavaliers. That series would end up being the best BPG output of his Finals career with 2.3 BPG. He has averaged at least 1.0 BPG in all 4 NBA Finals series he has participated in.
Advantage: Kevin Durant
Shooting Percentage
LeBron James - 48.4 FG%, 35.2 3P%, 73.1 FT%
Kevin Durant - 54.6 FG%, 44.8 3P%, 91.1 FT%
As you can see from the efficiency and shooting numbers, one man was far above the other in this category. That isn’t to say that Lebron James has been inefficient his entire Finals career though. His best overall shooting series came in the 2020 Finals victory with the Lakers over the Miami Heat. He shot 59.1% from the floor in that series marking the 4th time he had eclipsed 50.0% shooting. His best 3-point shooting came in the 2014 loss to the Spurs when he was with the Heat. James shot an incredible 51.9% from three on 5.4 attempts per game.
The way that Kevin Durant scores with elite efficiency is unlike anything we had ever seen before. Durant has shot above 50.0% in all 4 of his NBA Finals appearances which include 2019, in which he only played for 12 minutes total. In the 2017 Finals, Durant shot 55.6% from the field overall, his best shooting series in which he played more than 1 game. Also, in 2017, Durant shot 47.4% from three-point land on 7.6 attempts which is unheard of unless your name is Stephen Curry, who was, ironically, Durant’s teammate at the time.
Advantage: Kevin Durant
Finals Record
LeBron James: 4-6
Kevin Durant: 2-2
In all seriousness, just getting to 10 NBA Finals series in one's career is an incredible accomplishment. Bill Russell won 11 titles in 13 years, and that is the best example of winning in NBA history. For Lebron, his 10 Finals appearances came with sacrifice and hard work as he took rosters that belonged nowhere bear the Finals to glory. James has been the best player on the court in all 4 of his wins and even a few of the 6 losses that he suffered in his career. He has won 4 Finals MVP awards for his efforts and is one of the Top 10 Finals performers of all time.
For Durant, his Finals record needs to come with a bit of context. The 2019 Finals are a tough one to count against his record overall. Durant appeared in just 12 minutes of the series before rupturing his Achilles tendon after nursing it for most of the playoffs. In 2012, he led a young Thunder team to the Finals on his first trip where he was defeated by James for his first NBA title. The 2 would meet again in 2017 and 2018, where Durant would be the best player on the court in both series and win both Finals MVP awards handed out.
Advantage: LeBron James
Final Result
LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant 4-3
LeBron James Edges Out Kevin Durant In The NBA Finals
Listen, say what you will about either of these men and how they got to the NBA Finals. If you want to say their teams were superteams who should have been there, fine. If you want to say the path to the Finals was easy, go ahead. You are wrong on both accounts, but an opinion cannot be changed when it comes to these 2 men. Durant has been a fine player in the Finals and had some of the best series we have ever seen from a 7-footer who can handle the ball and score at will on opponents. He earned his championships, whether you like it or not.
LeBron James has faced scrutiny forever for his poor Finals record, which still saw him win 4 NBA championships and cement himself among the all-time great players in NBA history. Somehow, both of these players’ Finals careers have become overshadowed by flaky narratives driven by emotion and hate. Instead of knocking what they have done, we have to learn to appreciate the greatness we have seen from both Durant and James when it comes to the NBA Finals and beyond. While Durant has been the more efficient and better overall scorer, James has done almost everything else better and at more volume than Durant. Let’s start looking at it that way instead.
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