Pierce: LeBron’s NBA status could change if Steph wins another title originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
As the NBA playoffs begin Sunday, both Steph Curry and LeBron James seek their fifth NBA championship with their respective teams.
But if Curry and his Warriors get the edge over James and the Los Angeles Lakers, Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame forward Paul Pierce anticipates that could lead to some “uncomfortable” discussions around the basketball world.
“If Steph Curry wins the championship or one more championship, gets the Finals MVP, we are going to have some very, very, very uncomfortable conversations,” Pierce said Thursday on FS1’s “Speak.” “You know why? That’s going to mean in the LeBron era, he would’ve won his fifth title with pretty much three different squads. The pre-[Kevin Durant], the KD and the after KD. Three of those championships he would’ve won without a top 75 player. In my eyes, he would’ve won this era with LeBron. So then that tells me, is he greater than LeBron?
“He won the era. In the LeBron era, five chips. In the LeBron era, a unanimous MVP. That got to hold some type of weight. It’s never been done. If we’re talking about LeBron as the greatest player, and a player in your era in any year you were in your prime won unanimously without you getting a vote. It’s going to shake something up. We going to start putting Steph up there with Michael Jordan. Seriously. If he wins one more. Think about that. He wins the era.
“Whose era is it? LeBron, KD and Curry. This is that era, right? He gets five championships, and Bron stays with four, and a unanimous MVP, it’s going to get real uncomfortable, I promise you.”
Curry has made six NBA Finals appearances and won four championships, all with the Warriors, but has his eye on a fifth. He won his first title in 2015 and then back-to-back chips in 2017 and 2018 once Durant joined the organization. He then defied all odds and won a fourth title in 2022 without Durant.
James has made 10 Finals appearances and also won four, two with the Miami Heat, one with the Cleveland Cavaliers and one with the Lakers.
Curry is an 11-time NBA All-Star, 10-time All-NBA member, two-time scoring champ, two-time league MVP, and two-time All-Star MVP. Meanwhile, James is a 21-time All-Star, 20-time All-NBA member, four-time Finals MVP, three-time All-Star MVP, one-time scoring champ and four-time league MVP.
In his 16th season, Curry is averaging 24.5 points on 44.8-percent shooting from the field and 39.7 percent from 3-point range, with 4.4 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 70 games.
James, in Year 22, is averaging 24.4 points on 51.3-percent shooting from the field and 37.6 percent from distance, with 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists in 70 games.
Both players shine even more under bright lights, but who will, if anyone at all, get ring No. 5 first?
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Pierce: LeBron’s NBA status could change if Steph wins another title
As the NBA playoffs begin Sunday, both Steph Curry and LeBron James seek their fifth NBA championship with their respective teams.
But if Curry and his Warriors get the edge over James and the Los Angeles Lakers, Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame forward Paul Pierce anticipates that could lead to some “uncomfortable” discussions around the basketball world.
“If Steph Curry wins the championship or one more championship, gets the Finals MVP, we are going to have some very, very, very uncomfortable conversations,” Pierce said Thursday on FS1’s “Speak.” “You know why? That’s going to mean in the LeBron era, he would’ve won his fifth title with pretty much three different squads. The pre-[Kevin Durant], the KD and the after KD. Three of those championships he would’ve won without a top 75 player. In my eyes, he would’ve won this era with LeBron. So then that tells me, is he greater than LeBron?
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“He won the era. In the LeBron era, five chips. In the LeBron era, a unanimous MVP. That got to hold some type of weight. It’s never been done. If we’re talking about LeBron as the greatest player, and a player in your era in any year you were in your prime won unanimously without you getting a vote. It’s going to shake something up. We going to start putting Steph up there with Michael Jordan. Seriously. If he wins one more. Think about that. He wins the era.
“Whose era is it? LeBron, KD and Curry. This is that era, right? He gets five championships, and Bron stays with four, and a unanimous MVP, it’s going to get real uncomfortable, I promise you.”
Curry has made six NBA Finals appearances and won four championships, all with the Warriors, but has his eye on a fifth. He won his first title in 2015 and then back-to-back chips in 2017 and 2018 once Durant joined the organization. He then defied all odds and won a fourth title in 2022 without Durant.
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James has made 10 Finals appearances and also won four, two with the Miami Heat, one with the Cleveland Cavaliers and one with the Lakers.
Curry is an 11-time NBA All-Star, 10-time All-NBA member, two-time scoring champ, two-time league MVP, and two-time All-Star MVP. Meanwhile, James is a 21-time All-Star, 20-time All-NBA member, four-time Finals MVP, three-time All-Star MVP, one-time scoring champ and four-time league MVP.
In his 16th season, Curry is averaging 24.5 points on 44.8-percent shooting from the field and 39.7 percent from 3-point range, with 4.4 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 70 games.
James, in Year 22, is averaging 24.4 points on 51.3-percent shooting from the field and 37.6 percent from distance, with 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists in 70 games.
Both players shine even more under bright lights, but who will, if anyone at all, get ring No. 5 first?
Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast
