Kevin Durant is a better overall basketball player than Kobe Bryant.

“He’s 7 feet tall and he’s running around like a two-guard. He can handle the ball, he can take you off the dribble, he can post you up, he shoots over you. You can’t trap him because he sees right over you. I don’t think in the years that I’ve coached and played . . . there’s ever been a more difficult guy to prepare for. You really feel like you’re wasting your time doing it. He’s going to probably score anyway.” --Doc Rivers I'd like to thank Viper for accepting this debate. Before I begin, I would like to clarify a few things. 1) Kevin Durant is in his 5th year in the NBA. Kobe Bryant is in his 16th. It would be asinine to list their accomplishments and declare Kobe a better player upon those grounds alone. When reviewing my opponent's arguments, it must be kept in mind that Bryant has been in the NBA for 11 more years. 2) Second, the debate resolution clearly says "is," not "was." However, I will allow Con to give career arguments if placed on par with Durant (keeping in mind that Kobe has had over 3 times as long to build up those accomplishments). Arguments based on this season and post-season should be weighted MUCH more heavily than career arguments as per the resolution. I. On Balance Comparison of 2012 Regular Season. “I don’t think there’s been a Kevin Durant. Ever. I don’t think there’s ever been a comparison." --Celtic's coach, Doc Rivers Kevin Durant has had a spectacular 2011-12 regular season. Kobe, by comparison, is lacking. A) Scoring Ability. Durant has not only averaged a League-high 28 points per game, he has done so with an incredibly high 50% Field Goal percentage and a 39% three-point percentage. Kobe Bryant, while he averaged a comparable 27.9 PPG, had to do so while relying on inaccurate, volume shooting. His FG % was a meager 43%. His three-point percentage was 30%! That is 24% lower than Durant's 39%. During the season, Kobe Bryant took 36 shots a game. Durant only took 32 shots a game yet he STILL averaged more points. Kobe only scored as much as he did because he selfishly shot the ball so many times. Which brings us to a crucial difference between the two. Durant has oft been called the "Patient shooter." He looks for opportunities to score, and he finds them. Not only does he find more scoring opportunities than Kobe, he scores at a higher percentage in EVERY area, some by huge margins. PPG. Kobe:27.9 Durant: 30 FG %. Kobe: 43% Durant: 50% 3-pt %. Kobe: 30% Durant 39%FT%. Kobe: 85% Durant: 88% B) Defensive Ability. Often, when a player is good offensively, they lack the defensive ability on the other end of the court. This is the case with Kobe Bryant, but not with Durant. Durant has averaged 1.2 blocks per game and 1.3 steals per game (even though he is neither a guard nor PG). Kobe on the other hand averaged a pathetic 0.3 blocks per game. He also averaged fewer steals with 1.2 per game, even with the benefit of being a guard. Durant is also better in defensive rebounding. He averaged 7.4 defensive rebounds per game compared to Kobe's 4.3. BPG. Kobe:0.3 Durant: 1.2 SPG Kobe: 1.2 Durant: 1.3 RPG. Kobe: 5 Durant 8 In both areas, Durant is much better. II. On Balance Comparison of 2012 Post-Season. First, I would like to point out that OKC has lost only 1 of its 9 playoff games, the second best record in the League, led by Kevin Durant. The Lakers by comparison have lost 7 of their 12 games. In fact, it was Kevin Durant and OKC that knocked Kobe out of the playoffs in a 5-game series (winning 4/5). Kobe again resorted to volume-shooting, shooting at 43% compared to Durant's 49%. His 3-point percentage was 28% compared to Durant's 37%. Points per game. Kobe: 30 Durant: 27 Rebounds. Kobe: 4.8 Durant: 8.1 FG%. Kobe: 43% Durant: 49% 3-Pt %. Kobe: 28% Durant: 37% FT %. Kobe: 83% Durant 84% III. Clutch Performances. All season, Durant has been clutch. In games against the Mavs (three times), Houston, Minnesota, Portland, etc. http://www.youtube.com... http://www.youtube.com... In the playoffs, he made clutch shots in Game 1 (game winner), Game two, and Game 4, as well as Game 4 of the OKC/Lakers series. 2008 Rookie of the years. 2010 Scoring Champion. 2011 Scoring Champion. 2012 Scoring Champion. Kid Clutch. Kevin Durant is quite obviously the better player. Vote Pro. ________________________________1. http://www.nba.com... 2. http://www.nba.com... 3. http://espn.go.com...