Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James admitted that he and Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry disliked each other during their time matching up in the NBA Finals earlier in their careers.
“I mean, s—, when you’re in a dogfight and there’s one guy that’s trying to stop you from reaching your goals, you’re going to dislike that person,” James told ESPN. “He disliked me, I disliked him because we were both fighting for what the f— we wanted, and that’s the Larry O’Brien trophy.”
Curry and James matched up in the NBA Finals in four straight seasons from the 2014-15 campaign through the 2017-18 season.
The Warriors ended up getting the best of James and the Cleveland Cavaliers during that era, winning three titles in that four-season stretch. However, Golden State needed to add Kevin Durant to the roster for the 2016-17 season and 2017-18 season in order to take down the Cavs.
“All you think about is just winning,” Curry said. “So, yeah, it was petty. It was competitive. Trash talking. All the above.
“[But] there’s always respect. I didn’t like the player. The person’s always great. You just hate when he has a jersey on wearing No. 23.”
James returned to Cleveland ahead of the 2014-15 season after a stint with the Miami Heat where he captured two titles in four seasons. During his second run in Cleveland, he made the NBA Finals in all four seasons, completing a streak of eight consecutive campaigns where his team reached the NBA Finals.
Curry, on the other hand, reached the NBA Finals for the first time in the 2014-15 season. While Golden State won that title, the Cavs got their revenge the following season, erasing a 3-1 series deficit in the Finals to beat Golden State.
The Warriors added Durant in the ensuing offseason, and they went on to win back-to-back titles over James and the Cavs.
Both Curry and James have four NBA titles in their careers. James’ last title came in the 2019-20 season with the Lakers while Curry last reached the mountaintop in the 2021-22 season with Golden State.
Even though James and Curry may not have liked each other earlier in their careers, they ended up teaming up in the Olympics this past summer and led Team USA to a gold medal.
Both James and Curry will look to add another title to their resumes this season, but the Lakers appear to be in a better position to do so. Los Angeles is the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference at the All-Star break while the Warriors currently hold the No. 10 seed.
