LeBron James lauds Kevin Durant

— -- MIAMI -- LeBron James says no one can guard Kevin Durant without help.

"Individually, he can't be stopped by any one-on-one player," James said. "There's nobody that can guard him one-on-one."

James, in a reversal from his pleas in previous seasons, also says he'd like to play more minutes as the Heat enter the meat of their schedule.

"I'm not playing as many minutes as I would like, but Spo is in control of that," James said Tuesday of coach Erik Spoelstra as the  Miami Heat prepared to face the West-leading  Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday (7 p.m., ESPN). "I don't like playing less, I don't feel like I need to play less."

While Durant has soared recently with 11 straight 30-point games, James has seen his numbers dip. 

ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst and The Associated Press contributed to this report.