Warriors Steph Curry shares why LeBron joked around and followed him all the way to the bench in Game 1 vs. Lakers

Fortunately for us fans, the Western Conference semifinals have given us yet another chapter of the classic rivalry between NBA legends Stephen Curry and LeBron James. Ever since the Lakers star played for Cleveland, both players have clashed in postseason. 

As both players arguably still hold a strong case for being the league’s best players and the most influential in the past decade, it is a delight to watch them share the same court, and this past Game 1 between Golden State and Los Angeles was no exception.

Even though their competitive nature sometimes gets the better of them, their relationship has grown into a strange affinity based on mutual respect and the occasional laugh.

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This Tuesday’s opening match saw a new episode of this particular friendship, as LeBron joked around with 7:23 remaining in the first half and followed Curry all the way to the Warriors’ bench as coach Steve Kerr took him out of the game for a break.

“He was just joking around about having to guard me until I got all the way to the bench,” Curry explained. Most of the Golden State bench showed little reaction to LeBron’s antics, even though Kenny Atkinson, Jonathan Kuminga, and Gary Payton II seemed to smile.

Whoever opponent gets the task to defend Curry knows what a tremendous challenge this entails, even so if who is supposed to guard you is superstar LeBron James.

At one point in the game, they were both laughing as they stood next to the scoring table. At another, Curry was seen shaking his head in disagreement as James talked away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0Ad-TgvToI

The Lakers took Game 1 at the Chase Center in spite of Warriors’ late push

Winning this match really took the best efforts from this Los Angeles squad, who finished 117-112 at the final buzzer even though Golden State made a strong 14-0 run late in the game.

“We just locked in for 48 minutes from the start to the finish,” Lakers player D’Angelo Russell said, as he knows they need to bring this same intensity for Game 2 on Thursday evening.

“That team’s dangerous,” the guard admitted. “They shoot a lot of 3s, a lot of 3s can get you back in the game when you’re down by a few possessions. Knowing that they can explode at any time and get themselves back within one point or a one-possession game, whatever it may be, knowing that, every possession matters.”

A player who is contending to be the most impactful athlete during this postseason stretch is Lakers big man Anthony Davis, who understands the Warriors’ urgency for Game 2, and expects a very different contest.

“It’s going to be a different game,” Davis guaranteed. “They’re going to make adjustments, we’re going to make adjustments, the building’s probably going to be a little bit louder, obviously they don’t want to go down 0-2. The crowd will be more into it.”