NBA News 2012: LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant matchup stirs memories of great superstar battles in NBA Finals

English: Los Angeles Lakers Magic Johnson and Boston Celtics Larry Bird in Game two of the 1985 NBA Finals at Boston Garden (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Oklahoma City Thunder coach Scott Brooks loved the Magic Johnson versus Larry Bird rivalry in the NBA Finals. Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra smiled while reminiscing about his beloved Clyde Drexler facing Michael Jordan while growing up a Trail Blazers fan in Portland. And Bill Russell versus Wilt Chamberlain first came to mind for Hall of Famer Charles Barkley when he pondered elite stars meeting in the Finals.

Another rare NBA superstar showdown in the Finals is upon us with LeBron James and the Heat versus Kevin Durant and the Thunder starting Tuesday night. James is averaging 30.8 points per game in the playoffs while Durant is at 27.8. The two are now considered the world's best basketball players. Adding to the fascination is neither has won an NBA title.

Let the stargazing begin.

"Our star players drive the business. They put the people in the building," said the Thunder's Derek Fisher, a five-time NBA champion. "They sell the jerseys. They sell the T-shirts. Those are the guys whose stories are followed the most. People will have their opinions about which guy is their favorite for whatever reason."

There isn't a more star driven league in American pro sports than the NBA. So when the biggest collide, which isn't often, the Finals hype is immense. The first megastar battle in Finals history was in 1964 when Russell and Chamberlain jumped center against each other.

Russell and Chamberlain played against each other 142 times over a 10-year span with the former winning 85, but faced each other in the Finals just twice. Russell's Celtics defeated Chamberlain with the San Francisco Warriors in 1964 and with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1969. Russell won 11 championships to Chamberlain's two. But Chamberlain did knock off the Celtics en route to an NBA title in 1967 as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers.

"It was just an awesome thing with Wilt with his scoring, size and presence," said Hall of Famer Bob McAdoo, now a Heat assistant coach. "Russell with his defense, always making the right play, always blocking a shot at the right time or making the right passes for a streaking Celtic on a fast break. It was just fantastic basketball."

Former Celtic Tom "Satch" Sanders said Russell-Chamberlain should be considered the greatest Finals matchup between stars of all time since it is revered without the help of big-time television or Internet.

"None of the other rivalries were game-changing," Sanders said. "Those were just important rivalries of skilled players."

Most would beg to differ, lobbying for Johnson-Bird, whose rivalry dated back to 1979 when Magic's Michigan State Spartans defeated Bird's Indiana State Sycamores in the NCAA championship game. Johnson had two titles and Bird one when they first battled in the Finals in 1984. They met each other three times with the Lakers winning twice.

"The greatest Finals rivalry was Magic-Bird because they played so many times and in college," said the Heat's Chris Bosh. "They had a history. To play the same team over and over again in the Finals, that's amazing."

The intense Johnson-Bird rivalry sparked a Converse shoe commercial, a video game, documentaries, books, a recent Broadway play and even racism.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--lebron-james-vs--kevin-durant-matchup-stirs-memories-of-nba-s-great-superstar-battles-in-finals.html;_ylt=AmeBxwNYlxZG1XGpI1KlTsW8vLYF

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NBA News 2010: What will LeBron's game look like in Miami?

Image via WikipediaLet's play a game. Forget that LeBron James' decision to join the Miami Heat via an hour-long ESPN special was one of the biggest PR disasters in recent memory.
Forget about whether he's a man, the man, THE MAN, or whatever else on the Heat. I'm not saying those aren't legitimate concerns, because they are, and have been and will continue to be addressed on this website and many others.
All I'm asking is this: for however long it takes you to read this post, put aside your feelings about LeBron James, the man, and think of LeBron James as a basketball player.
For just a second, think of LeBron James as he is on the court. He's walked away with the past two NBA MVP awards, and he may be the most dynamic talent to ever play NBA basketball. And after seven years in Cleveland, he's going from a supporting cast made up of role players and fringe all-stars who only existed to support his gifts to playing with one MVP-caliber player, one All-NBA(maybe 2nd or 3rd team, but still) caliber player, and a series of highly capable role players surrounding the three of them.
Difference #1: More Lebron off the ball
Most people think that LeBron James will score less next season, but might average 10 assists per game/a triple-double because he'll have better teammates to pass to. But consider the following: In the 2007 FIBA Qualifiers and 2008 Olympics combined, LeBron averaged .183 assists per minute while surrounded by the best players in basketball while playing against non-NBA competition. During the 2009-10 NBA season, LeBron averaged .221 assists per moment while playing with his teammates on the Cavaliers against other NBA teams. What did shoot up when LeBron was surrounded by elite talent was LeBron's scoring efficiency: LeBron shot 65.4% from the field during his last two international stints, as compared to 50.3% over the course of the 09-10 season.
Why do I mention this? Because when LeBron gets the ball on the weak side against a defense that isn't loaded up against him, he's as close to unstoppable as it gets. He's 6-8, 260 pounds, his top speed is as fast as any other player's, he can change directions at full speed, he's completely ambidextrous around the basket, and he can change directions while going full steam. If he catches the ball in stride and the defense is looking somewhere else, they have no chance of stopping him.
Difference #2: More playmaking from LeBron?
This will be interesting to see. There's no doubt that LeBron has the ability to put up huge assist numbers if he's trusted to be the primary playmaker -- he averaged 10.5 assists per game in February, when Mo Willams was injured and LeBron was the de facto point guard for the Cavaliers. With Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and Mike Miller (the latter went 50-99 on "spot-up" threes last season) surrounding him, LeBron certainly has teammates more than capable of converting his assists.
And with Mario Chalmers, Carlos Arroyo, and Eddie House being the Heat's point guards, LeBron will be relied as the primary playmaker for much of the time. I just wonder how things will shake out with LeBron and Wade as the playmakers; Wade may be as good or better than LeBron as a playmaker, and there's no doubt that LeBron is Wade's superior on the weak side. In short, LeBron could average a 10 APG with his new teammates, but it may not be in the Heat's best interest to have him do so. And I'm not sure if LeBron is quite as stat-obsessed as Wilt Chamberlain was when Wilt passed up scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity because he decided he wanted to lead the league in assists.
Difference #3: More LeBron in the post?
This is another scenario that could go either way. On the one hand, Chris Bosh is a better post-up threat than LeBron has ever played with, and Wade initiating plays could mean less of James in the post. Additionally, Lebron needs to put in serious work on his footwork in the post to become as effective on the blocks as he is on the drive.
On the other hand, there are two reasons why LeBron may go to his post game in Miami more than he did in Cleveland. First of all, Pat Riley and Mr. Wade likely have LeBron's ear like no player, executive, or coach in Cleveland ever did. If they tell LeBron he needs to go to the post more, he's more likely to listen to them than Mike Brown or Mo Williams. After all, Riley did coach Magic Johnson, who utilized the post game beautifully. That fact won't be lost on LeBron. With LeBron's size, strength, explosiveness, and ability to use either hand around the basket, he's a dynamo in the post waiting to happen -- he's just never seen a compelling reason to make post-up scoring a primary element of his game.
Second of all, LeBron did post up a fair bit in Cleveland, but he preferred to wait for the double-team and pass instead of try to go all the way and score. His Cleveland teammates usually didn't convert when LeBron kicked it out, but that could well change in Miami. If James forces a double-team in the post, it'll be awfully tough to stop Bosh or Wade if James kicks it out to them. LeBron's always had the ability to be one of the best post-up players in the NBA if he wanted to be, and that will be just as true in Miami as it was in Cleveland.
Difference #4: More LeBron on the break
The glacial Zydrunas Ilgauskas or Shaquille O'Neal were the starting centers during LeBron's seven years in Cleveland, and Mike Brown's defensive system didn't encourage the kind of gambling that leads to fast-break opportunities. Because of that, LeBron got to show of his almost unprecedented ability in the full-court rarely, although he was highly successful when the Cavaliers did get a fast-break opportunity. With Wade and Chalmers being two of the most successful defensive gamblers in the league, Bosh being a great athlete for a power forward, and the small but fast Joel Anthony likely to start at center for the Heat, Miami should be a smaller, more athletic, and faster team than any of LeBron's Cleveland squads were.
http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/08/what-will-lebrons-game-look-like-in-miami.php

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