LeBron James didn't hesitate when asked who he'd pick to play 2v2 against Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen

LeBron James didn't have to deliberate for long when choosing which players he'd want to team up with for a hypothetical two-v-two game against Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.

Now in his 22nd NBA season, the 40-year-old LA Lakers superstar has played with some of the most decorated and skilled players in the game's recent history.

Just last month, another NBA star was added to James' illustrious list of colleagues when the Lakers acquired Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks in a shock trade.

James will be hoping Doncic can help drive the Lakers to a first title since 2020, which would give the veteran forward a fifth career championship ring.

The debate over who should be considered the greatest NBA player of all time almost always centres around James and Jordan. The Chicago Bulls icon won six titles during his 1990s peak, as well as five Most Valuable Player awards, one Defensive Player of the Year award, six Finals MVPs and 10 scoring titles.

James has been named MVP four times and Finals MVP on another four occasions. He is also the highest scorer in NBA history.

Fans often speculate over who would have won a one-on-one contest between the GOAT contenders in their respective peaks. But when James initiated a Q&A session with his fans on Twitter in 2022, one user of the social media app came up with an interesting twist on the thought exercise, asking who the former Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers icon would choose as a teammate to take on Jordan and Pippen in a two-against-two showdown.

The question came long before James and Doncic were colleagues, so the Slovenian point guard was not under consideration. But, interestingly, James didn't select Dywane Wade – with whom he won two titles in Miami – or his old Cavaliers teammate Shaquille O'Neal.

"Kobe, KD or Kyrie," James replied.

He played with both Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant on Team USA, while uber-skilled guard Kyrie Irving was James' running mate on the 2016 title-winning Cavaliers.