As THCJ noted, though, this is likely a bit of nit-picking, as Lebron is the best at what he does, and he’d be a reasonable choice for DPOY in pretty much any year (if you are a “perimeter defense is more valuable than post defense” guy).

to me LeBron is easily in the top two defensive players in the game, and arguably better than Howard because of his versatility. for instance, no one in NBA history has ever been as good at chasing down guys on the break and blocking or changing or intimidating their shots from behind.

Howard can disrupt an offense from the interior via his role as a traditional middle intimidator, but LeBron at his best disrupts an offense by virtue of seemingly being everywhere.

jon abbey: because he can’t play anything but PF on offense, so if you switch him down to guard a smaller guy, then you’re asking the SF (Gallinari?) to guard the opposing PF, which is of course possible, but seems like a negative check in Faried’s column.

I also disagree about LeBron being able to guard the post effectively, at least for stretches. when Artest was at his defensive peak, he did a better job defending Eddy Curry (who led the league in points in the paint that year by a sizable margin) than almost any legit center did one on one, and LeBron is decidedly bigger than Artest, and not really much smaller than Howard.

The Olympic team just finished getting killed on defense every time Chandler sat and Lebron was essentially the biggest player on the floor. Freaking Melo was often being asked to guard the bigger player when both were on the floor. Being a great post defender isn’t about being big or athletic, it’s about having a strong base and a good feel for post defense, which is why Chuck Hayes is an absolute monster at post defense despite being 6’6″. As strong as Lebron is overall, Artest was a freaking monster, it’s no surprise that he could guard bigger, stronger players. Lebron is built a bit more like Howard in that he’s more top heavy, which helps make him faster but it wouldn’t make it easier to body up Bynum.

Again, this is just nitpicking since Lebron is a fabulous defensive player who can very easily guard anyone from positions 1-4. I just think he’s a clear tier below the top 2 or 3 defenders in the game, mainly because of his role on the court

The Honorable Cock Jowles:
If Faried’s key strength is quickness and anticipation, why wouldn’t he be more effective against shorter, faster opponents?

because he can’t play anything but PF on offense, so if you switch him down to guard a smaller guy, then you’re asking the SF (Gallinari?) to guard the opposing PF, which is of course possible, but seems like a negative check in Faried’s column.

I also disagree about LeBron being able to guard the post effectively, at least for stretches. when Artest was at his defensive peak, he did a better job defending Eddy Curry (who led the league in points in the paint that year by a sizable margin) than almost any legit center did one on one, and LeBron is decidedly bigger than Artest, and not really much smaller than Howard.

Juany8: Lebron is amazing defensively, but this whole idea that he guards all 5 positions is a little absurd. Sure, he’s guarder Marcus Camby and other very limited offensive centers for brief moments in games, but any Center with a good offensive game would destroy him. He’s never going to guard freaking Dwight Howard lol, or even Marc Gasol. A rim defender is also always going to be more valuable than a perimeter defender, so as good as Lebron is out on the perimeter and at switching on pick and rolls, he just doesn’t have the impact of a Chandler or Howard

I disagree with pretty much this entire post. Case in point, the Jordan Bulls never had an elite rim protecter.

Every position has a huge range of length. PGs typically range from 5’10″ to 6’5″. LeBron is 6’8″ and Howard is 6’11″ (if that), and they weigh within 10-15 pounds of each other. If LeBron had to, and wanted to, play center, he’d figure out how to be great at it, as he would at any other position. And I agree that Magic is the only other guy that this would be true about.

I wonder if Synergy has stats on what happens when LeBron gets isolated vs. guys like Howard, Marc Gasol, Bynum, etc. on switches.

Defense is not just about size and strength, it’s about timing, positioning, anticipation, footwork, agility. LeBron is roughly the size of an in-his-prime Charles Oakley, probably just as strong, and vastly superior in every other athletic and skill department. My recollection is that Oakley was a very solid PT defender vs. centers like Mourning and Smits (7″ taller!)

Juany8: Lebron is amazing defensively, but this whole idea that he guards all 5 positions is a little absurd. Sure, he’s guarder Marcus Camby and other very limited offensive centers for brief moments in games, but any Center with a good offensive game would destroy him. He’s never going to guard freaking Dwight Howard lol, or even Marc Gasol. A rim defender is also always going to be more valuable than a perimeter defender, so as good as Lebron is out on the perimeter and at switching on pick and rolls, he just doesn’t have the impact of a Chandler or Howard

I’ll grant that centers are more valuable than perimeter defenders, but being a lock-down defender 1 through 4 is no joke.

The Honorable Cock Jowles:
See, I think LeBron is the best defender in the league because he can guard all five positions, if need be. He’s the closest to Magic Johnson the league has ever seen. The idea that a 6’9? SF can dominate 6’2? PGs is amazing to me.

And that brings me to the thought: with all of the long-range PFs in the league, why can’t undersized players like Faried play (at least on defense) the 3? Why does he HAVE to be matched up against guys who are 3?+ taller than he is when LeBron is often put on guys much shorter? If Faried’s key strength is quickness and anticipation, why wouldn’t he be more effective against shorter, faster opponents?

Lebron is amazing defensively, but this whole idea that he guards all 5 positions is a little absurd. Sure, he’s guarder Marcus Camby and other very limited offensive centers for brief moments in games, but any Center with a good offensive game would destroy him. He’s never going to guard freaking Dwight Howard lol, or even Marc Gasol. A rim defender is also always going to be more valuable than a perimeter defender, so as good as Lebron is out on the perimeter and at switching on pick and rolls, he just doesn’t have the impact of a Chandler or Howard

And that brings me to the thought: with all of the long-range PFs in the league, why can’t undersized players like Faried play (at least on defense) the 3? Why does he HAVE to be matched up against guys who are 3″+ taller than he is when LeBron is often put on guys much shorter? If Faried’s key strength is quickness and anticipation, why wouldn’t he be more effective against shorter, faster opponents?