Kobe Or LeBron? Okay, How About In A Mask?

As I’m sure you’ve heard, Kobe Bryant wore a mask to protect his broken nose during last night’s Laker game.  You may recall that a young LeBron James also rocked one about seven years ago after Dikembe Mutombo’s elbow collided cheek bone.  Upon learning that Kobe would be wearing the mask, I jokingly tweeted that we could now have a debate as to who’s the better mask wearer, Kobe or LeBron.  Well… uh… turns out some NBA fans really are arguing about it.  Why am I not surprised?

While this is all pretty silly, and it’s completely nonsensical to come to any sort of conclusion after just one game from Kobe compared to a month-long stretch from LeBron, I decided to research the matter anyway.  Here are my findings…

It turns out that LeBron was pretty damn good in the mask, recording two triple-doubles, four 30-point games, and a 15-assist night over 16 games played.  He averaged 26.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 8.7 assists on 50.6% from the floor as the Cavaliers posted a 10-6 record.  When you consider that this all happened during what was just his second season in the NBA… it really was an exceptional stretch of basketball.

As for Kobe, his first game as a masked man resulted in a 104-85 victory over the Love-less T-Wolves.  He made 11 of 23 shots, scored a game-high 31 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, and dished 8 assists.  While the home victory over a battered Timberwolves club was to be expected, that’s an above-average line from the Bean, chock-full of goodies.  LeBron and his mask did have a solid debut of their own, though, going for 26/8/6 on 11-19 in a triumph over Primoz Brezec and the Charlotte Bobcats.  Neither player missed any games following their injury.

Make of all that what you will, but my stance is that Kobe’s going to have a pretty hard time out-masking a 21-year-old LeBron James, who essentially came within a couple of boards and an assist of averaging a triple-double over 16 games.  Kobe does have the opportunity to pull something epic, though, in a revenge game against Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and the Heat this Sunday.  Historically, Kobe’s Lakers have struggled against LeBron-led teams, and D-Wade is the dude whose questionable foul rung Bryant’s bell.

Stay tuned!

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