Kobe Bryant 2008-10 vs. LeBron James 2011-13 vs MJ 1990-1992 Playoff Stats

Article from Double Dribble Blog:

http://doubledribble.wordpress.com/2013/06/24/kobe-bryant-2008-10-vs-lebron-james-2011-13-playoff-stats/



Kobe Bryant 2008-10 vs. LeBron James 2011-13 Playoff Stats




Player G      MP ORB TRB AST STL BLK TOV PTS FG% 3P% FT% TS%

Kobe Bryant   22.3 40.7 0.9 5.7 5.5 1.6 0.7 3.1 29.8 0.466 0.340 0.845 0.570
LeBron James 22.3 42.8 1.8 8.8 6.0 1.8 0.9 3.2 26.6 0.486 0.336 0.758 0.575

M.Jordan*     18.3 41.5 1.4 6.6 7.0 2.4 1.0 3.2 34.1 0.513 0.364 0.849 0.587



It’s fun to compare LeBron James to Michael Jordan, but looking at the playoffs stats of Kobe’s 3 finals runs from 2008-2010 versus LeBron’s 3 finals runs from 2011-13 is a lot closer. In fact if you ignore the metrics and just look at the actual numbers, it’s very tough. Everything is extremely close except LeBron has 3 more rebounds per game and Kobe has three more points per game. Turnovers are even. Assists are nearly even. TS% is nearly even, LeBron is .005 better (or 1/2 a percentage point better).



I didn’t expect that. LeBron is touted as a pillar of efficiency, and Kobe is thought of as something of a conscienceless volume shooter, but the numbers show relatively even efficiency and production in the playoffs.



I tucked MJ’s 1990-1992 playoff numbers into the bottom there. They aren’t pace-adjusted or anything, so they can be quibbled with if you feel it necessary, but his advantages in efficiency and scoring are significant enough that I’d predict a pretty decent lead even if Kobe and Bron gained a possession in the translation (I’ve run pace adjustments for both in the past over these spans of years, and it does amount to approximately 1 extra offensive and 1 extra defense possession per game, not enough to make a major impact).



The figures in this post aren’t intended to prove anything in and of themselves. The numbers just surprised me enough that I felt like I should share them.