Skip Bayless makes his stance on LeBron James vs Kevin Durant crystal clear: "I'll take KD over LeBron every time"

Skip Bayless is never one to shy away from his bold opinions and often contentious views on NBA players, most notably LeBron James . Whether it's his playing style, career decisions, or comparisons to other basketball greats — the sports analyst always expresses his thoughts, which are highly controversial more often than not.

Recently, after Kevin Durant impressively led Team USA to victory in their opening Olympic group stage game against Serbia, Bayless delivered a strong personal take.

"In big games, I'll take KD over LeBron every time," he wrote in an X post on Sunday.

This isn't Bayless' first rodeo of controversial opinions on James, as he was quoted some years back saying he'll take Ben Simmons over the four-time MVP.

The Durant show

The key phrase in the controversial post by the analyst is "big games," one of such being Sunday's fireworks against Nikola Jokic's team. Durant led Team USA in scoring, with 23 points on 5-5 shooting from the 3-point line in just 17 minutes of play. It was a worthy performance, considering he wasn't even cleared to play until an hour before tip.

The Phoenix Suns star missed all five of the team's pre-Olympic test games and was questionable for the opener, which explained why he came off the bench. But he didn't fail to steal the show, and he received praise from his coach and teammates, including James, who added 21 points and was the subject of that controversial post by Skip.

"I think we just bring out the best in one another," the Lakers star said post-game. "We are very seasoned at these types of games, we've played a lot of international basketball when it comes to the Olympics or world championships so to have KD on our side and my side is a treat for sure."

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Backing KD since the beginning

For a guy like Bayless, his opinion may be seen as one-sided. However, he won't be the first to have a take on the supposed rivalry between Durant and James. The rivalry was born because of their position in the NBA over the years and the fact that they are two of the greatest stars of the 2010s decade.

Skip's support of No. 35 over the four-time MVP extends back to his days on ESPN's First Take with his debate partner Stephen A. Smith . The two are remembered as an iconic duo with many KD vs. LBJ debates, most notably when they were on the sideline arguing before the two superstar forwards took the court for Game 1 of the 2012 NBA Finals.

Despite "King James" being 27 years old — smack-dab in the middle of his prime — and owning three league MVPs to that point, Bayless contended that the 23-year-old Thunder star was the better player and a far more clutch player than his counterpart. Yes — Skip's contention that LeBron "isn't clutch" goes back that far — well, even further than that, if we're being precise.

When Durant joined the Golden State Warriors and ensuingly won back-to-back championships and NBA Finals MVPs, Bayless took James-slander to the next level, routinely beating his new debate partner Shannon Sharpe over the head with his KD over LeBron takes. That was the peak of Skip's support of the four-time scoring champion, even though Durant once said, "I really don't like you," Bayless seemed pretty hurt about it on TV the next morning.

In many ways, the talking head's history with Durant is as rocky as it has been with James. But he won't ever stop supporting the former Longhorn. And his view on the NBA's all-time leader won't change either, as he's Skip "Phoney G.O.A.T."

Related: "If KD gets a shot for my life, I'm taking that" - Paul Pierce highlights the importance for Team USA to have Kevin Durant back