Jared Dudley has played in the NBA for a decade, having matched up defensively against many of the league's best scorers over that span.

During a recent interview with Chris Broussard of Fox Sports on his “In the Zone” podcast, Dudley chose Kobe Bryant over Kevin Durant and LeBron James as the most difficult player to guard.

During the prime of his career, Bryant was the complete package as an offensive threat with his ability to score in a variety of ways. He was arguably the best one-on-one player in the league, and he did the majority of his offensive work out of the triple-threat position that made it hard to guard him on any given play.

This, combined with his impeccable footwork, made it a difficult task for any opponent to get the better of him in his prime. Keep in mind, Bryant scored at least 40 points against every team in the league in his career aside from the Lakers.

That said, Dudley's choice isn't a slight against either James or Durant as each can rack up points in a hurry in their own respective fashions. Durant has proven to be one of the best pure scorers in league history averaging 27.2 points per game for his entire career thus far. His scoring has one become more effective through the years, shooting above 50 percent from the field in each of the last five seasons while averaging at least 25 points in each campaign. His unique shooting ability at his size, standing at nearly seven feet tall, is daunting in its own right.

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Meanwhile, James has become a more efficient scorer by using his size and strength to his advantage by bullying his way to the paint, opening up more avenues to get his shot going in the mid-range. He may not be a knockdown shooter, but when he gets going, it's hard for anyone to deter him from getting to the rim.

The fact of the matter is that Bryant, during his heyday, was the most dominant scorer among the three that made many defenders beyond frustrated on a nightly basis.

Besides, how can one argue with 81 points?