Stephen Curry Loved Playing With LeBron James, Hopes to Do So Again
Watching Stephen Curry and LeBron James play off of one another during the Summer Olympics on Team USA’s march to a gold medal was a truly unique and special viewing experience, one that Curry recently said he hopes can continue in the future.
Speaking to “People” in an interview that published on Wednesday, September 4, Curry expressed a desire to continue a basketball relationship with James and even mentioned the notion of playing together as teammates.
“All the battles we’ve had on the court and the back and forth, the fact that we actually got to be teammates, not just in any game like an All-Star game or whatever, but in high stakes basketball with a lot on the line. … I think there’s a deepened respect and friendship there,” Curry said. “Hopefully, there will be more experiences in the future, even if we’re teammates or not.”
United States shooting guard Stephen Curry (4) and guard LeBron James (6) celebrate after defeating France in the men’s basketball gold medal game during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games.
Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Curry was presumably referencing a potential partnership in the NBA, as the next Olympic Games are four years away, at which time he will be 40 years old and James will be 43.
The Golden State Warriors actually explored the possibility of a deal for James ahead of last season’s trade deadline, though James’ team of personal advisers had issues with the optics of him switching franchises for a fourth time.
“Sources say [James’ agent Rich] Paul implored both teams to scrap the concept — despite some owner-to-owner dialogue between the Warriors’ Joe Lacob and the [Los Angeles] Lakers’ Jeanie Buss, and [Draymond] Green’s determination to lobby James to push for relocation to the Bay Area — largely because he wanted to insulate James from potential backlash over switching teams for the fourth time in his career,” NBA insider Marc Stein wrote in August.
That splashes some cold water on the notion of Curry and James ever teaming up, as Curry is under contract in Golden State for the next three seasons after recently inking a one-year, $62.6 million extension.
Zach Lowe of ESPN noted on Thursday’s edition of “NBA Today” that the only way a pairing could feasibly happen is if James was willing to opt out of his contract in L.A., either after the 2024-25 campaign or the one following, and join Curry on a league-minimum contract.
That reads as an unlikely outcome based on Paul’s actions last winter, which he presumably undertook on behalf of James and with James’ knowledge, as well as the fact that the Lakers just selected the superstar’s son Bronny James in the second round of the most recent NBA draft. The elder James clearly wants to play with the younger on a professional basketball court, and time to do so is ostensibly running out as he enters his age-40 season.
Still, the idea of James and Curry making one last run toward a ring together is a fun concept to consider. And one lesson has become clear in the modern NBA when it comes to player movement and stars teaming up — never say never.
