This blog post describes a design choice that would make the USB-C port far more likely to fail than the lightning port:

https://www.appledystopia.com/reviews/usb-c-vs-lightning-pag...

"With Lightning, the connecting tabs are on the cable itself. USB-C has connecting tabs on the port."

This reddit comment thread describes a flaw where the USB-C device-end becomes clogged with dust, sometimes possible to clean out with a toothpick:

https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/9wdylm/usb_c_p...

This is a reddit post where people are complaining about lightning cables failing:

https://www.reddit.com/r/iphone/comments/5cjvlf/durability_o...

If you were buying a device, would you rather the port on your device wear out, or the cable that connects to it?

And AirPods, mice, trackpads, keyboards, and Apple TV remotes. I don't want to defend lightning but this reply was missing a few products that also use it.