Jordan Clarkson has had the rare privilege of playing with two of the greatest NBA players ever, and he can see at least one key distinction between them.
Appearing Wednesday on the “CavsHQ” radio show, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard contrasted the respective styles of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
“Two different styles of leadership. LeBron is very encouraging, bringing everybody along,” said Clarkson, per Alex Squadron of SLAMOnline. “And Kobe, he’s testing you, seeing what you gonna give him. If he’s gonna get at you, scream at you, cuss, do whatever it is. He had his own way of leading guys as well. Two different sides. I’m just blessed to see both of them.”
Clarkson, who is still only 25, was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2014 and played his first two NBA seasons with Bryant. He was dealt to the Cavs at the 2018 trade deadline, where he is now teammates with James.
The young guard is not the first one who played with both Bryant and James to opine on the distinction between the two. But Clarkson at least offers more evidence here on why it is difficult to accurately compare the two all-time greats when they are so wildly different, both in playstyle and in personality.
