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Really dare to say it! Rivers Jr. believes: Despite the 11,613-point gap, Durant s offensive means are twice as good as James

12:17am, 15 August 2025Basketball

For former NBA defender Austin Rivers, LeBron James' offensive ability pales in comparison to Kevin Durant. According to Rivers, James is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, but his scoring ability is no better than the Rockets forward.

Durant is more than 11,000 points behind James in the NBA's all-time scoring list, but Rivers said he has stronger offensive abilities. He explained why he gave Durant an edge on strict offense.

"LeBron is the first to score, but his game is not like a typical scorer," Rivers said on "Linger's NBA Show" Wednesday. "It's not sexy either. LeBron's game is built on strength, pure will, dedication, his thoughts, his IQ, the way he can dissect and control the game, and the power. He's determined to get to the basket.

" LeBron scores more than Kevin, but Kevin scores much more than LeBron. ... You can argue with the wall, but that's the truth. LeBron does not have half the offensive ability of Kevin. ”

Both players have unique builds that allow them to dominate the game in different ways. However, Rivers noted that in his twilight years of his career, James has improved his 3-point shooting percentage.

Austin Rivers evaluated the greatest scorer he's ever seen,

When asked who was the greatest offensive player he's ever seen, Austin Rivers mentioned his scoring elite.

In addition to Durant, Rivers also mentioned Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant and others.

"I would say Kevin (Durant), Carmelo (Anthony), James Harden, Kobe (Bryant), Michael (Jordan) and Iverson are the ones I've ever seen. The best scorer,” Rivers said on the Linger NBA Show on Wednesday. Rivers also noted that all the players he mentioned had mid-range games, which he believes is still important in the modern NBA. He explained that mid-range shooting is considered less important than three-pointers. However, in the playoffs, teams often find themselves needing a player who can shoot mid-range shots late in the game. According to a YouTube analysis, 40% of all shots in 1988 came from mid-range. This figure dropped to 13% in 2013, with three-pointers accounting for 39% of all NBA games shooting. Friends who like it can follow me and share more NBA-related with you every day!

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