Who’s better: Kobe Bryant or LeBron James?

For more than a decade, the question of Kobe or LeBron has kept NBA fans at odds with one another. Lakers fans will say Bryant is the best player of his generation while the King James army will defend LeBron as the best player in the NBA.

So if anyone is still keeping an open mind on the subject of Kobe vs. LeBron, former Lakers star Shaquille O’Neal offered his take Monday on which one he thinks was better in each player’s prime.

While speaking on the “Dan Patrick Show,” O’Neal said he’d pick Bryant over James.


“I played with both of them,” O’Neal said. “You know, Kobe has that killer instinct. And I’d probably have to go with Kobe. That’s not a knock against LeBron. It’s just that I know Kobe and I played with him longer. I’ve seen what he can do.”

Still, O’Neal had only positive things to say about James.

“A lot of people try to compare him to [Michael Jordan], when he’s more like Magic [Johnson]. But, you know, when he needs to take over a game, he will,” O’Neal said. “But he’s really, really smart. He’s very intelligent. He lets the game come to him. And he relies on others. Magic relied on others and it worked out well for him. LeBron has relied on others these past five years, it’s working out for him. Hopefully it works out for him in the Finals.”

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