Who wins in a 1-on-1 matchup of Tracy McGrady vs. Kevin Durant?

After a simple Twitter spark burst into flames, the debate of Kevin Durant or Tracy McGrady in a one-on-one duel must now be answered.

As most online arguments do, it started with a simple post.

Whether trying to actually start a conversation or just posing an interesting hypothetical scenario, SLAM Magazine asked the question via Twitter: In a game that ends at 11, who would win in a one-on-one matchup: Kevin Durant or Tracy McGrady?

For the younger generation, this question may seem like it doesn’t even need to be answered. KD is a four-time scoring champion, the youngest scoring champion ever at just 21 years of age and the reigning two-time Finals MVP. T-Mac is just some guy who appears on ESPN’s The Jump every so often.

Ok, so that’s probably not what most youngsters think of the Hall-of-Famer. But at the same time, McGrady last played in 2012 and probably experienced the last of his peak during the 2007-08 season, so forgive those who don’t know or remember just how good this man was at putting the ball in the basket.

In a matchup like this, there are only two aspects of one’s game that matter: One’s ability to score the ball, and one’s ability to stop someone else from doing such.

Let’s start with McGrady, since plenty are unfamiliar with his style of play.

His best scoring output came during the 2002-03 season when he averaged 32.1 points per game on 45.7 percent shooting from the field and 38.6 percent shooting from 3-point land for the Orlando Magic.

Similar to Durant, McGrady was long, athletic and could handle the ball like a point guard. He could shake defenders easily with deadly crossovers and get to the rim, possessing incredible athleticism that allowed him to maneuver around or go through opponents.

Normally in his element around the elbow, the seven-time All-Star was virtually unguardable due to his total offensive package. He could post and rise up over smaller defenders, or explode past bigger ones.

Not normally known for his outside shooting ability, McGrady really only had a couple good shooting seasons, including his 2002-03 campaign. In a game where the two are at their best, you’d certainly have to respect him from the outside.

Durant, on the other hand, was blessed with ridiculous physical traits, even more so than his matchup. Listed at 6’9”, he’s really closer to seven feet with a 7’6” wingspan that makes his jumper untouchable.

KD’s gotten his handles to the point where he can break down even the best defenders and either take it to the bucket or pull up from literally anywhere on the court, including well beyond the 3-point line.

Since joining the Golden State Warriors, Durant has become a more willing defender, likely due to the extra energy he saves on the offensive end next to Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. In this battle, though, there are no breaks, so it’d be interesting to see how much effort he gives. With those long arms, he can disrupt plenty of T-Macs shots and deter a few more as well.

His best scoring season came with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012-13 where, despite averaging 3.9 fewer points per game than in his future MVP campaign, Durant was still dropping 28.1 a night while becoming a member of the 50-40-90 club.

In reality, it’s probably a toss-up between these two scoring legends. McGrady has the edge on the block — something Durant never really fully developed — but KD can just pull up from anywhere on the court at a moment’s notice and there wouldn’t be anything T-Mac could do to stop it.

Ultimately, this writer would put his money on Durant just based on his length. T-Mac was a great defender when he wanted to be, but we’ve seen KD just rise up with a hand in his face and bury jumpers. It wouldn’t matter what type of contest McGrady could put on him. The man was just blessed with long arms, the likes of which we’ve never seen attached to someone with his shooting ability.

It’d be a very close and entertaining game, but there simply doesn’t appear to be a way to stop the guy with the 7’6” wingspan from getting whatever he wants, guarded or not.