Steph Curry and LeBron James have gone up against each other so many times in the NBA. They’ve met 23 times in the regular season and 28 times in the postseason, which includes a stretch where they faced each other in the NBA Finals in four-straight seasons. Although Curry has the edge in those matchups, it’s safe to say that James is the most consistently formidable opponent that he’s faced over the years and that the two have brought out the best in each other.

A historic rA historic rivalry such as theirs certainly creates an intense sense of competitiveness against each other. However, when it came to representing their country, they proved that they are more than capable of banding together when things get rough. However, when it came to representing their country, they proved that they are more than capable of banding together when things get rough.

Rough is certainly how one would describe Team USA’s semifinal matchup against Serbia in the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Americans were behind by as much as 17 points in the first half before finding themselves trailing by 11 after two quarters. They then trailed by 15 points with 11 seconds left in the third quarter before Kevin Durant made a jumper to cut the deficit down to 13 points heading into the final act.

It took a superhuman effort for Team USA to get the win in the first real test they’ve faced in the Olympic tournament. Sure, they had their challenges in the warmup games, but in the tournament they’d been on fire. Plus, Serbia had lost two-straight games to the US between the warmups and the group stage – both of which were 26-point drubbings. 

This was not the same Serbian side in the semifinals. Nikola Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic were both on a mission to carry their country to the gold round and were dominant for so much of the game. They led for 35 minutes and 12 seconds of the game compared to the Americans’ three minutes and 25 seconds.

In the end, though, the talent difference came up big. Curry scored 36 points, eight rebounds, two assists and a steal on a blistering 12 of 19 performance from the field that included making 9 of 14 of his three points. 

James added his own triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists on just nine field goal attempts, but he was effusive in his praise of his nemesis.

Curry and James combined for more than half of Team USA’s points, with Joel Embiid being the only other player on the team to score in double figures with 19 points of his own. It’s not hyperbole to say that Curry and James saved the team, especially considering the final sequences that saw Team USA win the game.

Here’s what the path to the US victory looked liked:

• Down 86-84, James found Curry for a go-ahead three with 2:24 left.
• James then drove for a layup with 2:02 left to put them up 89-86.
• Steph Curry stole the ball then made a layup with 1:41 left to make it 91-86.
• Bogdan Bogdanovic made an and-one play to cut Team USA’s lead to 91-89 with 0:56 left
• Curry, James and Durant set some screen action that prevented any double teams, which left Durant one on one with his defender before he sank a long midrange jumper to make it 93-89
• Nikola Jokic cut it down to 93-91 with a layup with 24 seconds left on the clock
• Curry iced the game with a pair of free throws to make it 95-91 with eight seconds left

Curry and James were directly involved in every play that ended up in points for Team USA in that fateful final three minutes of the game. It was a thing of beauty and a memory that will live in the annals of basketball lore for future generations.

We’ve been so used to Curry and James battling each other that it’s almost strange to see them dominate as teammates. Considering that this is Curry’s first and likely only Olympic campaign, and probably also James’ final run in the Olympics, we deserved to see something like this from them. I give Serbia a lot of credit for their strong showing but man, this is the stuff that legends are made of. With the stakes at their highest, and their country on the verge of a humiliating defeat, the legendary rivals put a signature stamp on a classic Team USA moment.

At the twilight of their careers, both Curry and James finally had a chance to show what they could do if they were teammates, and it paid off for all of us. Sure, there will be those that will disparage Team USA for needing such a performance from their elder statesmen to win, but this is just proof that the rest of the world has started to catch up. It’s a beautiful thing for Team USA to go through serious adversity to make the gold medal round, it just means that the game of basketball is in a better overall place.