Kobe vs. LeBron: Who's the best closer in the game?

Kobe vs. Lebron. Too bad only their puppets are playing in The Finals.

According to Jeff VanGundy and ABC and ESPN and Fox Sports Net and Co.: Kobe Bryant is the “best closer in the game.”

Well, Tuesday night he wasn’t. Two huge turnovers and missing 12 of your final 16 shots (not to mention 5 of 10 free throws) would suggest otherwise.

But does this make Kobe any less of a “great closer?” Probably not. He is one of the best players of all-time, and certainly one of the most clutch players of our generation.

As J.A. Adande points out, even M.J., “The Greatest Closer, Starter and Everything in Between,” had some tough times in the fourth quarter.

But I have to raise the question, is Kobe Bryant really the best closer in the league?

With LeBron James around, at least there’s an argument there.

In fact, the numbers tend to suggest LeBron James was a better closer this season.

According to 82games.com, sortable stats from the regular season showed James shot for a better percentage (47.2% to 43.6%), had more points (7.7 to 7.3), rebounds (2.0 to 1.3) and assists (1.7 to 0.9) than Kobe in the fourth quarters of games.

And James’ “clutch” stats, meaning stats during the final five minutes of a five-point game, are through the roof – shooting 55.6% from the floor (to Kobe’s 45.7%) and 42.1% from 3-point land (to Kobe’s 40%).

In fact, if you average out their clutch stats over 48 minutes, they’re lines look something like this:

James: 55.9 points, 14.3 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 1.7 blocks, 3.5 steals

Bryant: 56.7 points, 8.4 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 0.0 blocks, 1.0 steals

But it looks like Bryant will have the last laugh, and the ring, when this season is said and done.

So I guess in those terms, Bryant (with the help of his teammates) would be the better finisher in 2008-09. 

Again, too bad only their puppets are playing in The Finals.