Cross-era · careers 11 years apart

Kevin McHale vs LeBron James

Kevin McHale 1980-1992 · Forward LeBron James 2003-2025 · Forward · active

Kevin McHale (1980-1992) and LeBron James (2003-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 11 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, LeBron James was the higher-volume scorer (26.8 points per game to 17.8); adjusted for era they scored at 1.70× and 2.70× their league average respectively; LeBron James created more for others (7.4 assists per game to 1.7). LeBron James holds the edge on accolades — 4 MVPs, 4 championships, 4 Finals MVPs and the #3 all-time ranking to Kevin McHale's #45.

Career averages

Kevin McHaleStatLeBron James
17.8 Points / game 26.8
7.3 Rebounds / game 7.4
1.7 Assists / game 7.4
0.4 Steals / game 1.5
1.7 Blocks / game 0.7
54.9% Field goal % 50.8%
9.3% 3-point % 34.7%
78.9% Free throw % 73.7%
60.4% True shooting % 60.8%
971 Games played 1,622

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Kevin McHaleStatLeBron James
1.70× Points vs era avg 2.70×
1.76× Rebounds vs era avg 1.80×
0.71× Assists vs era avg 3.36×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Kevin McHale's era.

Kevin McHaleStatLeBron James
— Offensive rating 113.8
— Defensive rating 107.9
— Net rating 5.9
— Usage % 27.2%
— Assist % 34.1%
— Rebound % 10.7%

Playoff averages

Kevin McHaleStatLeBron James
18.8 Points / game 28.4
7.4 Rebounds / game 9.0
1.6 Assists / game 7.2
0.4 Steals / game 1.7
1.7 Blocks / game 1.0
55.7% Field goal % 49.8%
14.6% 3-point % 33.2%
77.0% Free throw % 73.8%
169 Playoff games 292

Accolades

Kevin McHaleStatLeBron James
0 MVP awards 4
0 Finals MVP 4
3 Championships 4
7 All-Star selections 21
1 All-NBA 1st Team 13
#45 All-time GOAT rank #3

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