LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant, and Tim Duncan. These 4 players have quite a few things in common.
All 4 players were able to have incredibly successful stints in the NBA, where they won multiple NBA championships and individual accolades. On top of that, all 4 are considered some of the greatest players of all time and have created a legacy that will not soon be forgotten.
And the extent of their success can be seen through one stat pointed out by an NBA fan on Reddit. Reddit user u/Dovakhiin- pointed out that of the last 24 NBA seasons, 22 of the NBA Finals included 1 of the following 4 players; LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant, and Tim Duncan.
The only 2 NBA Finals in the last 24 years that didn’t include these 4 players were the 2006 NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat and the 2021 NBA Finals between the Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks.
On top of that, 7 of those 22 NBA Finals featured at least 2 of these players facing each other, with LeBron James being featured in each of these 7 NBA Finals series:
In the last 24 seasons (including this one), there were only 2 seasons where we didn’t have either Duncan, Kobe, LeBron or Curry in the Finals. And there were 7 seasons where 2 of these players fought each other in the Finals.
In the last 24 seasons (including this one), there were only 2 seasons where we didn’t have either Duncan, Kobe, LeBron or Curry in the Finals. And there were 7 seasons where 2 of these players fought each other in the Finals.
The only seasons without any of these players were:
2006 (DAL v. MIA)
2021 (PHX V. MIL)
Curry is set to take part in his 6th NBA Finals this year, which will tie him with Andre Iguodala, the second-most of any player currently in the NBA, behind LeBron James. If Iguodala were to somehow return in the Finals, he would move ahead of Stephen Curry with 7 appearances, as he also played for the Miami Heat in the 2020 NBA Finals
This stat highlights the dominance these 4 players have had in the NBA since the turn of the century. What makes this stat even more impressive is the fact that Kobe and Duncan have not played in the league since 2016, and LeBron and Curry have been the two pivotal figures in the league over those years.
