Austin Rivers bluntly ranked the best scorers he’s ever seen, drawing a sharp contrast between LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
Rivers said on the Off Guard podcast, “LeBron James doesn’t have half the offensive bag that Kevin [Durant] has…I would say Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, James Harden, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Allen Iverson are the best scorers I’ve ever seen.”
Durant is widely admired for his combination of length, shooting, and footwork that make him effective from anywhere on the floor. Rivers’ point highlights Durant’s repertoire — pull-up threes, isolation step-backs, midrange finishes and post-up touch — as a benchmark for offensive variety.
Career regular-season scoring is nearly identical: James averages 27.0 points per game across 1,562 career games, while Durant averages 27.2 points across 1,123 games.
Durant’s career three-point percentage (.390) and free-throw clip (.882) edge LeBron’s .349 3P% and .737 FT%, pointing to Durant’s elite pure scoring efficiency.
LeBron’s all-around box makes the picture more complex: he averages 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game for his career, reflecting long-term playmaking and rebounding value. Durant averages 7.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists, underlining his primary role as a scorer rather than a primary creator.
In playoff play — often the true test — Durant’s scoring sits at 29.3 PPG over 170 postseason games, versus LeBron’s 28.4 PPG across 292 playoff games. Durant’s postseason scoring peaks are notable, but LeBron’s broader playoff impact includes higher assist and usage responsibilities in many deep runs.
The list Rivers offered also includes Anthony and Harden, both celebrated for scoring craft, and legends like Bryant, Jordan and Iverson, who combined creativity with killer instincts.
