For the first time in five years, LeBron James and Stephen Curry will face off in the NBA postseason and this time, the circumstances are drastically different. LeBron is almost 40, Steph is on the tail end of his prime, and both teams are coming in as lower-seeded teams.
Still, the series between them is undoubtedly the most highly anticipated of the playoffs so far. After years of showdowns in the late 2010s, LeBron and Steph are set to face off again, and it could have some major implications for their legacy. In fact, according to Darvin Ham, their rivalry is the best in the modern-day NBA.
“LeBron, what he was able to do, going to eight straight Finals, and obviously Steph and those guys, what they were able to do with those four championships,” Ham said Monday, via Sports Central LA. “That’s the rivalry. Rivalry of the generations, particularly those two players. It’s going to be another fun battle.”
Every basketball fan knows the history between these players and how much their careers have meant to the game of basketball and the NBA itself. For them to clash now, in the final stretch of their storied careers, is the stuff that fans have been praying for, and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.
Will This Series Determine The Best Player Of This Generation?
When you think about the best player over the past 10 years, there’s nobody else to consider but LeBron and Curry. They’ve pretty much-taken turns winning championships over the years, and even now, they continue to run the league as the face of success and branding for the sport.
The truth is, whoever advances in this series, could be the one to finally take the title of the greatest player of the generation. At the very least, they will be considered among the NBA’s greatest ever.
With the stakes so high, it’s only natural to expect an exciting and very intense series, but make no mistake: LeBron and Steph are not playing for validation. In their eyes, they’ve got nothing left to prove, and this run is nothing more than taking advantage of a Western Conference that clearly has some growing up to do.
