The issue with Paxton has never been his talent. That's been evident every time he's been able to stay on the mound of any length of time.
The issue with Paxton is his reliability. Can you rely on him to anchor a rotation? Is he a pitcher that you can build around? Can you rely on him to be on the mound in October, helping to propel you into the post-season? I know that y'all don't want to hear it but to date, that answer has been a resounding no. And that's where the comparisons to Randy Johnson fall down. At 27, the Big Unit was on his way to his second consecutive season of 200+ innings. He could be relied on to take the ball every five days for the duration of the season. At 27, Paxton is trying to log 100 major league innings for the first time in his career.
I like James just fine but he's no Randy Johnson.