Best Player during the "Lebron Era"

[FarBeyondDriven]

2003 - 2010 = Kobe

2011 - 2015 = Lebron

2016 = Kawhi

2017 - 2018 = Harden or KD

2019 - 2021 = Giannis

2022 - present = Jokic

does this seem reasonable?

I can hear the arguments already about him being better than Kobe but Kobe was leading the league in scoring, making all-defense and winning championships during those years.

I can hear the argument already about Kawhi but Kawhi was without a doubt the best two-way player in the league and won DPOY while doing it all on offense.

after that there's zero argument for Lebron being the best player as his defense fell off a cliff and other guys rose to prominence.

So would you have any of it different? Which years, if any?

[LockoutSeason]

Lebron

[Ainosterhaspie]

09 to 18: LeBron.
07-08 and 20: also LeBron but closer.

[Grahf]

This dude is ALWAYS left out of these topics and it drives me insane.

[-Luke-]

Michael Jordan.

That's how it works, right? Someone has to mention him.

[MrPainfulTruth]

Wheres Dirk? Giannis?

[FreeBird23]

So no Duncan, no Nowitzki and no Curry ?

[The Master]

2016 = Kawhi

lol

[UcanUwill]

LeBron was clearly best player in the world for like 13 years at the least, I don't know why people trying to be cute with this, Kawhi, KD, Harden just lol, were not better than LeBron in the 10s, give me a break. OP suggests Kobe was best player in the world for longer than LeBron, I don't know what is with this Kobe delusion, was Kobe ever best player in the world, maybe for a year, but I don't know, prime Shaq, Duncan and then Lebron existed you know, wtf?

[7seventynine9]

Hard to take the list seriously without Steph Curry or Tim Duncan at least being mentioned.

[bledredwine]

2003 - 2010 = Kobe

2011 - 2015 = Lebron

2016 = Kawhi

2017 - 2018 = Harden or KD

2019 - 2021 = Giannis

2022 - present = Jokic

does this seem reasonable?

I can hear the arguments already about him being better than Kobe but Kobe was leading the league in scoring, making all-defense and winning championships during those years.

I can hear the argument already about Kawhi but Kawhi was without a doubt the best two-way player in the league and won DPOY while doing it all on offense.

after that there's zero argument for Lebron being the best player as his defense fell off a cliff and other guys rose to prominence.

So would you have any of it different? Which years, if any?

KD over Harden, but otherwise, correct.

[xxSnEaKyPxx]

No Curry?

Dude changed the entire game of basketball.

[Homer38]

2003-2007:Duncan
2008:Kobe or LBJ
2009 to 2020:LeBron in every year outside of 2011,maybe 2015 and 2019 when Dirk,Curry and Kawhi had a better year
2021:Jokic or Giannis
2022 to 2024:Jokic
2025:we will see,likely Jokic or SGA

[bovice]

I don't think Giannis was ever the best player in the league. 2021 id have taken KD over Giannis

2016-2021, not counting lebron, there wasn't a clear cut #1 player. harden kawhi and KD were close

[MrPainfulTruth]

Some of the effects of 20+ years of ESPN brain wash are becoming apparent.

Disrespecting Kobe, Dirk, Steph, Timmy, KD, Kawhi and Giannis like they didnt clearly dominate LeBron in their head to head match ups is just embarrassingly ignorant. If guy creates superteams and stacks the deck in every possible way for 20+ years, gets the favorable whistle because he is the golden boy and "face" of the league for 20 years and come up with only four rings, two of which carry a huge asterisk, its almost comical to hear he was the best player in the league for all those years. But hey the same guys were probably believing in "not one...not two...not three...not four...not five..."

[SpreeChokeJob]

Duncan was one Pop brain fart from being 6-0 and defeating James 3-0. Let that sink in. How the narrative would have changed. And it wasn’t James that saved them in that do or die game.

[MrPainfulTruth]

2003-2007:Duncan
2008:Kobe or LBJ
2009 to 2020(except for 2019 when it was Kawhi):LeBron
2021:Jokic or Giannis
2022 to 2024:Jokic
2025:we will see,likely Jokic or SGA

I dont think LeBron was near the best player from 2019 on because that is when he visibly stopped putting any effort into defense. I also think that there was an entire span of years where Steph was objectively better in terms of impact. But respectable take

[Homer38]

Duncan was one Pop brain fart from being 6-0 and defeating James 3-0. Let that sink in. How the narrative would have changed. And it wasn’t James that saved them in that do or die game.

LeBron had 16 points in the fourth quarter of game 6,the reason why Allen had a chance to tie the game and 37 points in game 7....This is like saying that the 1993 finals Jordan was not why they won this finals because Paxton hit by far the biggest shot of that series

[Homer38]

2003-2007:Duncan
2008:Kobe or LBJ
2009 to 2020(except for 2019 when it was Kawhi):LeBron
2021:Jokic or Giannis
2022 to 2024:Jokic
2025:we will see,likely Jokic or SGA

I dont think LeBron was near the best player from 2019 on because that is when he visibly stopped putting any effort into defense. I also think that there was an entire span of years where Steph was objectively better in terms of impact. But respectable take

2020,LBJ had a great all around year as full time PG and Vogel was saying that he was their QB on defense.Also this is possible he would win the MVP without the covid....

[The4thHorseman]

2003 - 2010 = Kobe

but hey, if that's what you believe, you do you