LeBron James vs. Kobe Bryant vs. Michael Jordan; How King James Fares Up Against Hall of Famers After Championship Win Against San Antonio Spurs

LeBron James and the Miami Heat are still the Kings of the NBA. After seven pulsating games, the Heat withstood the challenge from the San Antonio Spurs to secure a 95-88 victory and their second consecutive NBA championship crown on Thursday at American Airlines Arena.

James, despite the criticisms surrounding his jump shots, knocked down two crucial mid-range jumpers in the telling seconds of Game 7 to put the Spurs away for good in what had been a classic best-of-seven finals series between the two squads.

The Heat's star continued his super-dominant performance in Game 7 as he racked up 37 points to tie the record of former Boston Celtics star Tom Heinsohn, who scored the same in Game 7 of the 1957 NBA Finals. James is averaging a staggering 33.8 points in every postseason series he played in that reached Game 7.

There's no doubt that James has reached another level of greatness after this latest finals victory against a well-respected Spurs team. Actually, James has joined an elite group of NBA greats with his second championship ring already in the bag.

The former Akron wunderkind is now a multiple champion, right on the same page as other basketball geniuses such as Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, Kareem, Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.

Now with the season all wrapped up, it's time to ponder if James really lived up to the hype as basketball's 'Chosen One' or does he still have a lot of title-chasing campaigns to do before he gets any near the stratosphere of Bryant, if not, the great Michel Jordan.

James' NBA Finals production vs. Bryant vs. Jordan

James averaged 23.3 points, 10.7 rebounds and 7.5 assists throughout the brutal seven-game series with the Spurs, while Bryant averaged 28.6 points per game in his last tour in the finals against the Boston Celtics in 2010. On the other hand, Jordan averaged 33.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in his last finals appearance in 1998, when the Chicago Bulls defeated the Utah Jazz in six games.

Although James shooting efficiency dipped significantly in the postseason, particularly in the final two series, his 49 percent clip is still the best compared to the field goal shooting of Bryant (46 percent) and Jordan (46 percent) in their last championship runs.

James' defense vs. Bryant vs. Jordan

LeBron had some of the biggest blocks in the series against the Spurs, including his emphatic swat on Tiago Splitter in Game 2. However, the perennial All-Defensive team member couldn't hold a talented youngster in Kawhi Leonard, who had his best series in the postseason with at least 15 points and 11 rebounds per game.

Defensively, Bryant was feistier than James in defending the wingman of the opposing teams. His great reflexes and impressive defensive intuition allowed him to lock in any offensive player. On the other hand, Jordan is a master of the shutdown defense in a sense that he would never allow a player to score more than their average output. His tenacity on the defensive end is just incredible to watch, striking fear to the eyes of any opponent.

James' clutch vs. Bryant vs. Jordan

Other than his jump shooting, James is also criticized for not being as a good closer as Bryant and Jordan. Though he made two great jumpers, the Spurs had no one to blame but themselves. They made things miserable in the interior for James, but they also gave James opportunities to take and convert open jumpers throughout the ballgame.

Meanwhile, Bryant's clutch meter is equally in the same level as Jordan. Like a predator, both players know when exactly to strike and kill down the stretch. Of course, there's no better player in the world to take a last-second shot than Jordan during his era in the 80s and 90s. That killer instinct was passed on to Bryant, who shattered many hearts with his last second heroics.

It would be unfair to compare James against these two great champions. After all, he has lots of basketball left at 28-years old. Kobe might probably have one or two seasons left, while Jordan is already sitting pretty in his mansion in Florida.