Why Steph vs. LeBron Christmas Day special more than a game

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Why Steph vs. LeBron Christmas Day special more than a game originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

They meet yet again, a holiday treat, a feast for basketball eyes, Stephen Curry and LeBron James each stepping onto the court to hang an L on the other.

We should enjoy this Christmas Day matchup between Curry’s Warriors and James’ Lakers mostly because of the two marquee players. Savor every second as we watch them go after each other, because their superstar moments are getting harder to deliver.

Curry and James are two of the three OG kings of the NBA – Kevin Durant is the other – and all three acknowledge that the body takes longer to recover and that the sun is slowly setting on their careers. They’re not done, but they can feel the end creeping closer.

Durant turned 36 in September, Curry turns 37 in March and James turns 40 next week. The proof of their senior status is not in their ages, or even their regular-season mortality, but in their diminishing playoff impact.

Over the 11 seasons from 2011-12 through 2021-22, the three kings painted themselves all over the postseason, appearing in a combined 555 playoff games, 23 conference finals, 20 NBA Finals and participating in 10 championship celebrations.

None of the three got anywhere near The Finals last spring, as none even won a playoff series. Curry and the Warriors were routed in the Play-In Tournament opener, Durant and the Suns were swept in the first round and James and the Lakers managed but one victory in their first-round series.

Yes, they combined to win one playoff game in the year 2024.

A cursory look at the Western Conference indicates it will be difficult for all three to barge into the 2025 playoffs. The standings fluctuate nightly, sometimes wildly, because the conference is a jungle of quality teams wrestling for one of the six automatic playoff spots or, at worst, one of the four Play-In Tournament berths.

When Curry and James step onto the Chase Center floor for tipoff shortly after 5 o’clock, the Warriors will be in eighth place, one spot below the seventh-place Lakers. The Thunder are in first place and likely will stay at or…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/why-steph-vs-lebron-christmas-174804940.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-12-25 17:48:00

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