OAKLAND, CA – JANUARY 16: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers is guarded by Kevin Durant #35 of the Golden State Warriors at ORACLE Arena on January 16, 2017 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

LeBron James made a curious statement Monday night: He said the Warriors and Cavs weren’t rivals.

Per ESPN:

“I don’t think there’s a rivalry,” said James. “It’s two great teams that have aspirations. I don’t believe I’ve ever had a rivalry in the NBA. It’s just that too many guys move and go places and change different locations. It’s totally different from the ’80s, when obviously we saw the Celtics and the Lakers go at it so much, and I don’t look at it as a rivalry.”

Now, maybe LeBron just didn’t want to trump up the importance of a game his team had just lost by 35 or add any fuel to the controversy surrounding Draymond Green’s flagrant foul in the second quarter. Still, it’s pretty hard to deny the Cavs and Warriors have a rivalry. They’ve played in two straight Finals, both thrilling series, and their regular-season games are appointment viewing. LeBron has lacked a real rival for most of his career, but the Warriors appear to be it.

Luckily, Green is around to speak some truth.

“Yeah, I think this is a rivalry,” Green said quickly, not allowing a reporter to finish his question. “It’s definitely fun. A team that you beat, beat you, it’s definitely fun. If you look at the last two years and this year, we’ve been the top two teams in the league each year, and so I look at it as a rivalry, and it’s definitely a fun game to play in.

“But I don’t really care if anyone else sees the game the way I see it. I see how I see it, and they can see it how they see it.”

LeBron can try to minimize the Cavs-Warriors matchup by comparing it to the greatest rivalry in NBA history, but you don’t have to be the Lakers and Celtics to be rivals. As Draymond points out, these are the two best teams in the league every year, and players and fans on both sides circle the games on the schedule. The NBA certainly views Cavs-Warriors as a rivalry, using the matchup to headline both its Christmas Day and Martin Luther King Day schedules.

It may not be Lakers-Celtics, but Cavs-Warriors has everything you want in an NBA rivalry. Star players, villains, numerous exciting games and series and historical implications.

Sorry LeBron, but you’re selling Cavs-Warriors short here.

[ESPN]

 

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.