Stephen Curry downplays his rivalry with LeBron James

Stephen Curry and LeBron James have faced off in the NBA Finals over the last three years. They have a real rivalry, despite their efforts to downplay it.

Stephen Curry and LeBron James are the NBA’s two biggest stars. While Kevin Durant is in the same tier as those guys, there’s something about their superstardom that supersedes Durant’s. Curry and James also have an incredibly high-profile rivalry.

It’s clear that each Akron, Ohio native give a little extra when they do anything related to the other one. Whether it’s coming face to face with one or talking about him, there’s something different there. They are real rivals.

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The Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers have met in the NBA Finals three years in a row. They, likely, will face off for the fourth time next summer. They’ve been, by far, the two most dominant teams in basketball lately.

For the Warriors, it starts and ends with Curry. For the Cavaliers, it starts and ends with James. With such high stakes, their rivalry matches that of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird of decades ago.

The two have exchanged shots with each other over the last few seasons, but Curry tried to downplay the nature of the rivalry on ESPN’s Sunday Conversation.

Curry reduced it to, simply, being one of just competition. He said that it only stems from the fact that they stood in each other’s way for the Larry O’Brien trophy. That’s only part of the story.

Curry and James are at the top of the league’s totem pole. Their rivalry is definitely built on the fact that they are playing for championships, but overall there seems to be a level of disrespect between the two of them. They’ve shown that.

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James, famously, had tombstone cookies and a dummy with Curry’s likeness at his Halloween party. A year later, Curry mocked James’ Instagram dancing. On the court, these guys find joy in outdoing the other.

Curry and James can try to downplay the rivalry with their words. Their actions tell another story.