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When it comes to the NBA Finals, LeBron James still has a much better individual performance than Stephen Curry.
Image credit: Fadeaway World
For the better part of a decade, NBA fans have gotten used to seeing Steph Curry, LeBron James or both in the NBA Finals every year. Since 2011, Curry or LeBron James have appeared in every NBA Finals series except 2021. For 4 consecutive seasons from 2015 to 2018, we have been able to witness the duel between these two superstars in the finals. James has made it to the NBA Finals 10 times in his career, while Curry has made it to six, and each player has won four NBA Championships.
Today, we take a look at these two superstars and compare them based on their performances in the Finals. James has a clear lead over Curry, who he most recently won in 2022, in four NBA Finals MVP awards. James also won 4 titles with 3 different teams, while Curry won all 4 of his titles with the Golden State Warriors. As two of the greatest stars and icons of an entire generation, it’s only right that we dig into their performances on gaming’s biggest stage.
Here’s how Stephen Curry compares to LeBron James’ Finals stats.
integral
Stephen Curry: 27.3 PPG (928 overall)
LeBron James: 28.4 points per game (1,562 total)
Both LeBron James and Stephen Curry put on some epic scoring performances in the NBA Finals. Curry’s best scoring performance in the NBA Finals came during his most recent title run (2021-22). Stephen Curry and the Warriors took on the Boston Celtics in the Finals and beat them in six games for their fourth NBA title in eight seasons. Curry is averaging 31.2 points per game, shooting 43.7 percent from three and 48.2 percent overall. He scored 30 or more points in all 6 games, including 2 of 40 or more.
For LeBron James, scoring in the Finals is something he’s done his entire career outside of his 2011 disaster against the Dallas Mavericks. His highest score in a Finals series came in a 2015 loss to the Warriors. James is averaging 35.8 points while shooting 39.8 percent from the field and 31.0 percent from three. His highest-scoring series in the Finals came in 2020, when he won his fourth NBA title with the Lakers. James averaged 29.8 points and shot 59.1 percent in the six-game series with the Heat.
rebound
Stephen Curry: 5.8 rebounds (196 total)
LeBron James: 10.2 rebounds (561 total)
For this category, we expected LeBron James to have a significant advantage over Stephen Curry, and that’s exactly what we got. For his position, Curry is by no means a bad rebounder, especially in the NBA Finals. Against James’ Cavaliers in the 2017 NBA Finals, Curry averaged 8.0 rebounds per game, including two games with 10 rebounds or more. He has 4 other series where he averaged over 5.0 RPG and 2 over 6.0 RPG.
For the better part of 20 years, we’ve seen LeBron James literally do it all in the NBA Finals. James averaged 10.2 rebounds per game in his career Finals and had six different series with 10.0 rebounds per game or better. Once again, his career high in the Finals came in a loss to the Warriors in 2015, when James averaged 13.3 rebounds per game. In that series, James had games with 14, 16 and 18 rebounds, and only once had fewer than 10 rebounds.
assist
Stephen Curry: 6.0 APG (204 total assists)
LeBron James: 7.8 APG (430 total assists)
Both players were great passers in the NBA Finals and in their careers. Stephen Curry played in 34 games in the NBA Finals and dished out 204 assists in those games. His best Finals series as host came again in the 2017 Finals, where he contributed 9.4 APG in the series. In the 2016 and 2019 series, he averaged just under 6.0 assists per game in the Finals, his only two Finals losses on record.
LeBron James has a long and clear track record as a playmaker, and he recently passed Magic Johnson on the all-time assist list. There were 2 times James averaged 10.0 APG in the NBA Finals, but lost the series in overwhelming fashion. In back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018, James averaged 10.0 assists per game in losses to the Golden State Warriors. James was a force on the court, and he did everything he could to win another title. Unfortunately for him, his team fell short of that goal.
steal
Stephen Curry: 1.6 SPG (55 total steals)
LeBron James: 1.7 SPG (93 total steals)
For as long as I can remember, the NBA community has labeled Stephen Curry a passive defender with responsibilities on that side of the ball. However, Curry has found ways to be disruptive in this regard during his career in the NBA Finals and beyond. With his quick hands and sharp off-ball instincts, Curry racked up 55 steals in 34 Finals games. During the Finals, Curry had two career efforts of 2.0 SPG or better. During his 2017 performance, Curry recorded a 2.2 SPG, and in 2022 against the Celtics, he will average 2.0 SPG.
LeBron James has always been the antithesis of Curry on the defensive end. In his prime, he was a very versatile defender who could take any position and stop in time at any time. When it comes to the NBA Finals, this dominant defense doesn’t end there. James’ best defensive series to date came in a historic comeback victory over the Warriors in 2016. He averaged 2.6 SPG in the series, many of which helped seal the most historic series in NBA history. James averaged 2.3 points per game in the 2013 Finals and 2.0 in the 2014 Finals.
Building Blocks
Stephen Curry: 0.3 BPG (11 blocks)
LeBron James: 0.8 BPG (46 total blocks)
In the past 10 seasons, I can’t think of a single time when Curry was called a shot blocker. Regardless, even though Curry averaged only 0.3 blocks per game in 34 games, he had some moments in the NBA Finals. In the 2016 NBA Finals against James and the Cavaliers, Curry recorded 3 blocks. He also had three blocks in another game against James and the Cavs in 2018. Curry and the Warriors are 1-1 in those games and 1-1 in the series.
James’ shot-blocking ability peaked in his youth with the Cavaliers and Heat. In terms of the Finals, however, James’ best series was again a 2016 win over the Warriors. The most famous game of the series was James’ chase block on Andre Iguodala, which is only fitting considering his 2.6 SPG and 2.3 BPG efforts for the series. In terms of blocks, James’ best series other than 2016 was when he averaged 1.0 blocks per game in 2017 and 2018.
hit rate
Stephen Curry: 43.2 percent from the field, 39.5 percent from the 3-point range, 91.7 percent from the free-throw line
LeBron James: 48.4 percent from the field, 35.2 percent from three, 73.1 percent from the free throw line
If there was any category we talked about today where Stephen Curry would have an advantage over LeBron James, shooting efficiency would be one of them. Stephen Curry, the greatest all-around shooter the game has ever seen with unlimited range, has been a hit in the NBA Finals on more than one occasion. Curry’s overall shooting percentage is only lower than James’, but that’s what happens when one player gets to the rim a lot more than another player. Curry is shooting better than 91.0 percent from the free-throw line in big games, while James is shooting just 73.1 percent from the line.
The three-point shooting percentage is far more than 4.3%. Curry is shooting an incredible 39.5 percent from beyond the arc just because of the sheer amount of shots he makes from beyond the arc. Curry’s best 3-point percentage in a Finals series came in the 2022 win over the Celtics, where he averaged 43.7 percent on 11.8 attempts per game. As for James, in a loss to the Spurs in 2014, he shot 51.9 percent from deep on just 5.4 attempts. In the 2020 Lakers Finals, he made 41.7 percent of his three-pointers on 6.0 attempts. The difference in volume and accuracy really tells the great story of Curry’s shot.
NBA Finals Record
Stephen Curry: 2-4
LeBron James: 4-10
Stephen Curry and LeBron James are forever linked as two of the greatest stars of a generation. From 2015 to 2018, their battles in the NBA Finals for 4 consecutive years also happened to be linked together. Curry and the Warriors are NBA champions in 3 of 4 games, while James completes an incredible 3-1 comeback. A win over the Golden State Warriors. Curry won the Finals MVP in a six-game series against the Boston Celtics in 2022 for a fourth title.
LeBron James has reached the NBA Finals 10 times in his career, including eight straight seasons from 2011-2018. On his first trip to Cleveland, James made it to the Finals in 2007, only to be swept by the San Antonio Spurs. He then made four NBA Finals appearances with the Miami Heat from 2011-2014. James and the Heat lost to the Mavericks in 2011 and the Spurs in 2014, but beat the Thunder in 2012 and the Spurs in 2013. His 3rd championship ring came with the 2016 Warriors, but lost to Golden State in 2015, 2017 and 2018. His fourth and final championship came with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020, when they beat the Miami Heat in the Finals. James has been named Finals MVP in all 4 of his NBA Finals victories.
LeBron James is a better Finals performer than Stephen Curry
As we’ve seen, when it comes to individual performance, LeBron James outperforms Stephen Curry in nearly every fundamental stat and metric. Defensively, I don’t really think it’s an issue when LeBron is on the floor destroying most possessions and defending every position on the floor. Let’s be clear, though, Steph Curry is seriously underrated on the defensive end. He might not defend the best player on the floor, but he can create chaos off the ball.
As for what the offense needs, though James has lost 3 of 4 games against Curry’s Warriors, he’s been far better. Do I really need to compare people in each series? That doesn’t in any way detract from what Stephen Curry means to four NBA championship teams. For all 4 titles, he was the best or second best player on the floor on the championship team. James was the best player on the floor in 90.0 percent of his NBA Finals appearances, whether he won or lost. You can argue whose style of play is more conducive to winning, but you can’t deny the greatness of these two champions on the game’s greatest stage.
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