In an appearance on the NBA OGs podcast, LeBron James opened up on his rivalry against Stephen Curry and the Warriors and how they pushed him to the limit of his abilities. According to James, he could be a six-time champion by now if it weren’t for the Curry, Durant, and Draymond Green dynasty in Golden State.
“Draymond, Steph, and KD… ’cause I might have six rings right now,” said James. “But we’re all in a position where we felt like we lost an opportunity to have more rings because of each other. Those four straight years of Cleveland vs. Golden State, it was literally like East Coast vs West Coast.”
In an earlier era of the NBA, the rivalry between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird defined the league, and their competitive hatred for each other was played up at any and every turn. But as they clashed over the years, Bird and Magic developed a deep respect and appreciation for each other that they admitted helped bring out the absolute best in their game.
LeBron James (4x champion) and Stephen Curry had a similar dynamic during the peak of their rivalry in the late 2010s. As the two superstars of the game and the two defining players of the generation, LeBron and Steph were already seen as adversaries but it turned into a full-on rivalry when they clashed in four straight NBA Finals from 2015 to 2018.
Kevin Durant was LeBron’s biggest competitor for years before he joined Steph and the Warriors to finally beat the King. The Warriors were unstoppable with Durant and they easily shut down LeBron’s Cavs when they met in the Finals in 2017 and 2018.
And while we will never know what would have happened without the Warriors dynasty, there’s a good chance that LeBron would win at least one or two more championships. He lost twice to the trio of Durant, Curry, and Green, including in 2018 when he took the Cavaliers to the Finals without Kyrie Irving.
The Cavaliers were far from the best team in the East during that stretch, but LeBron James was unstoppable in the playoffs, especially against the East. LeBron shut down teams like the Hawks, Celtics, and Bulls and he famously dominated the Toronto Raptors to the point where he singlehandedly led to their collapse.
James made eight consecutive Finals appearances, stretching from 2011 to 2018. He won the title with the Heat in 2012 and 2013 and he won with the Cavaliers in 2016. But LeBron lost to Curry’s Warriors three times in his career and it’s fair to say that they kept him from at least two championships he would have otherwise won.
But when it comes to Steph, Durant, and other elite NBA superstars, LeBron James has never held a grudge over keeping him from additional success. LeBron not only invites the challenge, but he thrives when there are stakes on the line and when there is pressure for him to rise to the occasion as one of the best players in the world.
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