During the 2009 NBA playoffs, we’ve heard a lot about The Great Debate. Who is better — Kobe Bryant or LeBron James? While that debate definitely is great, we’ll look at this debate based solely on fantasy basketball stats.

Scoring: LeBron - The King is averaging 35.3 points in the playoffs
Assists: LeBron - The great Cavalier dishes an average of 6.9 assists.
Rebounds: LeBron - Mr. James is grabbing 8.6 boards per outing.
Blocked Shots: Kobe - The Black Mamba is just barely ahead.
Steals: Kobe - The former #8 is averaging 1.93 steals in the playoffs.
FG%: LeBron - The crab dribbler is shooting 53.1%.
3P%: Kobe - Vanessa’s husband is hitting 37.7% of his threes.
FT%: Kobe - Jellybean’s son is nailing more than 88% of his freebies.

After these eight fantasy basketball categories, Kobe and LeBron are tied at four. I guess The Great Debate will have to continue.

The 2009 NBA Conference Finals are set. In the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Denver Nuggets. In the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers will host the Orlando Magic.

If you are playing playoff fantasy basketball, which players should shine in the NBA’s version of the Final Four? Here’s a look at the best players at each position:

C Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
It seems like Howard and Stan Van Gundy are now on the same page. Superman will concentrate on rebounds and blocked shots while allowing his teammates to handle the scoring. Even though he probably won’t have any huge offensive outbursts, Howard is still a fantasy stud at this point.

PF Pau Gasol, Los Angeles Lakers
This is the weakest spot in the remaining NBA teams. Gasol is very talented but sometimes struggled against the Rockets. He has the highest ceiling of any remaining power forward but he could find it tough to produce against the physical Nuggets defenders.

SF LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
This is a no-brainer. LeBron is not only the best small forward in fantasy basketball right now, he’s by far the best fantasy basketball player. If he’s on your team, thank your lucky stars.

SG Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
Now that Kobe won’t have to go against Shane Battier and Ron Artest, he could find some more room to breathe. That said, the Nuggets have been playing good defense as of late.

PG Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets
Speaking of the Nuggets, whether or not they advance will likely depend on the play of Big Shot Billups. If he can continue is outstanding play, Billups could topple the Lakers … again, just like in 2004.

On Sunday, two NBA Game 7s will take place. First, the Los Angeles Lakers will play the Houston Rockets in the decided game of their Western Conference battle. After that game, the Boston Celtics will host the Orlando Magic in a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference.

If you are playing playoff fantasy basketball, these two games could hold a lot of meaning for you. Which players could shine in their Game 7 contest?

Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
After the Magic lost Game 5, Dwight Howard had a meltdown. He basically blamed the loss on not getting the ball enough. Howard got the ball a lot in Game 6 and expect him to get the ball a lot in Game 7.

Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
When it comes to big times and big moments, Paul Pierce is usually the Celtics player who steps up. He has had some bad moments in this series but expect him to go off in Game 7.

Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
Is there any doubt who the Lakers will go to in Game 7? Kobe Bryant could very likely end up with 40 or more points as the Lakers battle for their playoff lives against the Rockets.

Luis Scola, Houston Rockets
Without both Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, Luis Scola is now arguably the best player on the Rockets. In Game 6, he dominated the action early on in the ballgame and helped the Rockets force a Game 7.

For those playing playoff fantasy basketball, you now have eight teams to choose from instead of 16. Here is the fantasy All-Star team comprised of those players still alive in the 2009 NBA Playoffs:

Lebron James, Cleveland Cavaliers (Image: Newscom)

C Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
After plenty of rest following his Game 6 suspension in the first round, look for Dwight Howard to try to beat up on the depleted Boston Celtics. With Kevin Garnett out, Howard could go off.

PF Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
The Nuggets are a difficult matchup but Dirk Nowitzki should be able to have a solid series. He started off slow against the San Antonio Spurs but is starting to heat up.

SF LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
Nobody is playing as well or as determined as LeBron James. He’s a fantasy basketball beast at this point.

SG Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are going to get a tough test from the Houston Rockets. That said, expect Kobe Bryant to get loose for a few big games.

PG Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets
In the first round, Chauncey Billups was amazing. Against the Mavs, he’ll try to continue that magic.

With the 2009 NBA playoffs underway, some fantasy basketball owners who can’t get enough are playing playoff fantasy basketball. If you are one of those obsessed with NBA fantasy, here are the top players to grab for the playoff fantasy basketball:

1) LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
Far and away, LeBron is the best fantasy player on the planet right now. Especially in the playoffs since his road to the NBA Finals looks like it’s clear sailing due to Kevin Garnett’s injury.

2) Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
Kobe is basically the LeBron of the Western Conference bracket. He has a great chance to make it back to the Finals and should post great numbers along the way.

3) Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
In the first round of the playoffs, the Heat are forced on the road to take on the Hawks. Wade is undoubtedly leave it all on the line and could help Miami pull the upset.

4) Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
With Garnett out, expect Pierce to show the heart of a champion. He’s going to come out blazing and his all-around game will be on full display.

5) Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
The Hornets might be a seventh seed on paper but CP3 is going to put up great stats for however long the Hornets remain in the playoffs.

Chris Paul 2009 mix:

5. Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
Although Bosh had a stretch of the season in which he struggled, he’s back to playing great basketball. The acquisition of Shawn Marion has opened up his game a little bit and he’s able to concentrate more on scoring the basketball.

4. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron has been shooting the ball extremely well from the outside, shooting better than 41% on three-pointers in the month of March. If he can add good outside shooting to his repertoire, he’ll become even more impossible to defend.

3. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
His three-pointers aren’t dropping at their normal rate (30% in March) but Nowitzki is still a scoring machine. He’s had a few recent games in which he’s looked as good as ever. If he can remain hot, he could be the best fantasy bigman down the stretch.

2. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
As the Lakers make their push for homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs, Bryant is starting to pick up more of the load. Scoring more than 30 points per game in the month, he’s peaking at the perfect time for Kobe fantasy owners.

1. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
There’s simply no player as hot as Wade is right now. His numbers since the All-Star break have been ridiculous. For the month of March, he’s averaging more than 37 points per game.

After Andrew Bynum injured his knee against the Memphis Grizzlies, many Los Angeles Lakers fans feared the worst. While Bynum apparently avoided serious injury, he has been diagnosed with a torn MCL. The recovery time for such an injury is typically 8-to-12 weeks.

For fantasy basketball owners who own Bynum, this isn’t very good news. If he misses the full 12 weeks, that means he’ll miss the rest of the regular season. Even if he misses only eight weeks, he’ll be back only for the last two weeks of the regular season. The only hope for Bynum owners is that he is able to recover quicker expected.

For the Lakers, Bynum out means that Lamar Odom will likely move back to the starting lineup. Odom will play power forward while Pau Gasol will shift to center. Backing up Odom and Gasol will likely be Josh Powell and Chris Mihm.

To pick up the slack, expect Gasol and Bryant to get more shots and more points. Odom should also see a sizable increase in production.

Last season, Bynum was injured at around the same point of the season and the Lakers announced that he’d be sidelined for a minimum of eight weeks. Although the Lakers made the Finals, Bynum never was able to return to the court.

1. Boston Celtics
With their Big Three returning and a championship ring under their belt, the Boston Celtics will be the team to beat until they prove they are no longer worthy.

2. Los Angeles Lakers
Kobe Bryant and company will once again try to win the Western Conference. Adding Andrew Bynum to a team that almost won it all without him is a scary thought.

3. San Antonio Spurs
It’s easy to forget about the San Antonio Spurs but when it is all said and done, the Spurs are seemingly always there in the end giving it their best shot.

4. New Orleans Hornets
The addition of James Posey makes the New Orleans Hornets a team that is very capable of winning the West and going on and taking home a title.

5. Houston Rockets
On paper, the Rockets might be the best team of them all. Ron Artest could be a force if he stays sane and the Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming duo should be better than ever.

Although training camp hasn’t started yet, it is never too early to take a look at the MVP favorites. For the 2008-2009 season, five players have a really great shot at winning the MVP award. Here are the top five 2009 NBA MVP candidates:

5. Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets
If the Rockets can live up to their lofty expectation and Tracy McGrady can stay healthy all year, T-Mac has a chance to be in the MVP running. He’s an immensely talented player who could impress a lot of voters this season. Staying healthy will be a challenge, however.

4. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
In the Olympics, no player looked as surprisingly good as Dwyane Wade. Wade looked like it was the 2006 NBA Finals all over again. If he can remain healthy and lead the Miami Heat back into the playoffs, he should get a few MVP votes.

3. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers should once again be very good. Kobe Bryant should once again be very good. The only thing that is a negative for Bryant in the MVP chase is the fact that he won the award last year. The MVP voters could be wanting to give it to someone new.

2. Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
Many NBA experts thought that Chris Paul deserved the MVP last season. If he can have another great season and help the Hornets achieve their lofty goals, there is no reason to not expect CP3 to be near the top of the voting again.

1. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
The time has come for LeBron James to win the MVP award. He’s arguably the best player in the league who hasn’t won the MVP and after a strong Olympics showing, he should be primed and ready to take home that trophy this year.

How good can LeBron James be in the 2008-09 season? MVP good?

Photo: Newscom

Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers hurt his pinkie finger during the regular season last year. It was expected that he’d have offseason surgery on his pinkie to correct the problem. However, recently Kobe Bryant announced that he isn’t going to have the surgery.

The reason Kobe gave to skipping on the surgery is that he didn’t want to miss any training camp action. According to various reports, if Kobe went through with the surgery, he would have missed anywhere from six week to twelve weeks. The latter figure would have had him returning to the Lakers in some point in December.

While Kobe not missing time is good news in terms of fantasy basketball, it also presents a risk. Without surgery, sources claim that Kobe is susceptible to further injuring his pinkie. If he hurts it more, he may be forced to have the surgery in the middle of the season.

If you pick Kobe Bryant for the 2008-09 fantasy basketball team, know that there is a chance (most likely a small chance) that he may have to undergo surgery at some point on his pinkie.

Kobe Bryant will look to once again carry his Lakers to the promised land in 2009.

Photo: Newscom