LeBron has been described by the media as a weak defender, but I was very impressed at the quality of his defense in the playoffs against Pierce. It might be that Pierce is a particularly good matchup for LeBron, since he is probably the only guy in the league who is stronger, bigger, and quicker at the position, and Pierce is less inclined than most 3's to use picks and off the ball movement to get open.

I'd still say that Pierce was the more consistent defender over the course of the year.

My thoughts on this:

Lebron has the tools and mindset to be a very good to great defender, but lacks the experiance. Paul has the same tools and already has that experiance.

so to sum it up.

Lebron: good defender who is improving with experiance

Pierce : very good defender who is improving to elite thanks to a combination of his skills and teamates.

as to the poll, as of right this moment, its paul who is the better defender, no question.

Fairly equal defensively, but I expect LeBron to surpass him next season.

Over the whole course of last season I think Pierce did a better job overall but .... I think James' improvement defensively throughout last season was magnificent. By the end of the season I think it was extremely close with each individual superior in different areas defensively, in this moment in time I consider it a toss up between the two (I wouldn't mind choosing either guy).

I think LeBron's defense is still improving and at a great pace, and I believe he'll surpass Paul next season. I expect he'll receive the first of a great many All-Defense selections next season.

The element of LeBron's defensive game I admire the most is his versatility. He can defend any perimeter position (PG, SG, SF) at a very high level. I haven't seen LeBron defend the four spot enough (Cleveland might play some small ball this season), but I think he'll be able to defend many power forwards in the league too. If Cleveland need someone cooled down they can send LeBron onto anyone, whether it's Calderon or a Paul Pierce. He's also an excellent defender in the open court, man-to-man, help defense or as a zone defender.

I'm tempted to pick LeBron ahead of Pierce ... I'll go for/vote for the equal option for now but I think LBJ surpasses Pierce as a defender next season but I should wait for that to happen first, so I'll say roughly equal for now.

I guess I was the one who causeed this poll on the other thread, but I do feel I should clarify a few things.  In that thread I said that the Cs defense would have been better with a swing-man rotation of LeBron, Posey, and Tony Allen than Pierce, Ray Allen and Posey.  And I also said that I think LeBron would have been as good/better than Pierce in the Celtics defensive system (which isn't necessarily the same as a better defender overall), and here is my reasoning (also mentioned in the other thread):

The Celtics defense is predicated on KG patrolling from the top of the key to the rim and anchoring the defense as a rover, with Rondo wreaking havoc as a disruptor out top and Perk helping KG lock down the paint.  Pierce and Allen, I believe, primarily had to get up on their man off the dribble and either force a contested jumper or funnel them to the help (KG and Perk), or to rotate quickly to open shooters on the perimeter.  Pierce and Allen were never on an island on defense, as they always had one of the best defensive interiors and quickest rotating groups swarming behind them to have their backs.  I think both did an excellent job at their assignments, but to me they were the "role players" of the defense, the same way that Perk and Rondo were the role players on offense but got the job done.  Both Pierce and Allen had excellent defensive numbers, but then again so did the other wings on the Cs...I think that was just a function of the way that the team defense was set up.

LeBron, like Pierce before last year, tends to float on defense (presumably) to have more energy on offense.  But, also like Pierce, when LeBron locks in and focuses he is a strong man defender (as we saw up close and personal through the first 6 games of the playoffs).  On the Cs defense, I feel like he could have played the same role that Pierce did at least as well, and that in-fact with his better foot-speed, length, and athletic ability he likely could do it better.  Now, on a poor team, it is possible that Pierce might still be better on D than LeBron due to his fundamentals (though I agree with those that say that LeBron will eventually surpass him).  But on this team, I think LeBron could do a better job on the defensive end.

This poll is biased. Put this on a Cavs website and Lebron would be sweeping Paul right now. You cant post this on Celtics Blog. I still think Paul Pierce is a better defender tho. Atleast this past year he was.

every poll on this site that involves another player and a celtic is inherntly biased. that doesnt mean we shouldn't runt hem and try to debate the person's merit and not the uni.

I voted that they are equals. If you have the 2 players switch teams, is Paul still superior?

Paul's got the benefit of a better defensive system around him. Pierce has the experience. Lebron has the greater athleticism. Lebron is a much better defender than he was a year ago. His growth in the all around game continues to be scary.

Lebron is potentially better but hasn't learned to use his physical gifts yet. PP is alot more cagey and slick thus he maximizes his considerable physical talents and shuts people down. Forget about the one on one matchup with Lebron (who does great against PP) but what about Kobe? I don't think Lebron really can check Kobe.

If we are judging base on playoffs/finals alone,Pierce wins,but if we are judging throughout the regular season+playoffs Lebron i feel,simply because from the games i saw him play in outside Celtics vs Cavs,he carried his team on defense in a lot of their games,whereas Pierce almost always had a full team of help defensively throughout the season.The Cavs went thru some transitional periods during the season,and were without decent defenders for awhile,and Lebron kept them in it on both ends.