LeBron James is the greatest basketball player of the last two decades.

But Steph Curry might be the most impactful.

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LeBron and Curry are have had a rivalry for the agesCredit: Getty
James said as much on his new podcast ‘Mind the Game Pod’, where he and fellow basketball savant JJ Redick discuss all things hoops related.

On the first episode of the pod, James admitted that Curry revolutionised the sport of basketball and completely changed the way games are played in the NBA.

“I believe in’ 08/09, whenever that little light-skinned f***er came in the league that’s in Golden State, he changed that whole narrative,” LeBron said of Curry.

‘The King’ then explained that Curry “changed the ‘no lead is safe'” narrative in the NBA – much like Patrick Mahomes has done in the NFL.

“He single-handedly changed the ‘no lead is safe.’

“It’s like Pat Mahomes right now,” said James.

The discussion started when Redick said that when was a youngster in the league he would only get minutes when his team were up by 19 points in the fourth quarter.

That’s because at that stage in the game the contest was considered over and the other team had no chance of coming back.

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LeBron told Redick that Steph changed baketball – like Mahomes has done in the NFLCredit: X@WheelerJaylen

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Curry is famous for making impossible shotsCredit: AP

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Mahomes is the NFL’s comeback king with his late-game heroicsCredit: Getty
However, with the emergence of players like Curry, that’s no longer the case, as a 19-point lead can quickly evaporate because of his elite three-point shooting.

Curry’s deadly marksmanship and ability to pull up from virtually anywhere on the court and knock-down shots has forced teams to go full-strength even with a healthy lead in what was traditionally considered ‘garbage time’.

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The Warriors staged numerous late-game comebacks during their four championship runs and many of those were down to Curry getting red hot in the clutch.

Similarly, Chiefs quarterback Mahomes has earned the reputation of a ‘comeback king’ thanks to his late-game heroics.

The three-time Super Bowl winner has orchestrated several improbable come-from-behind wins for KC by pulling out huge plays when it mattered most.

The Chiefs trailed by ten points in each of the last two Super Bowls against the Eagles and 49ers, only for Mahomes to pull it out of the bag and lead his team to glory.

In Super Bowl LVIII in February, Mahomes threw a walk-off touchdown to Mecole Hardman in overtime as the Chiefs triumphed over the 49ers, 25-22.

He was also at the centre of the largest comeback in Kansas City history in 2020 as they came back from down 24-0 in a playoff game against the Texans to win 51-31.

The Curry-Mahomes comparisons are impossible to ignore and the Chiefs signal caller appears to agree.

He appeared on teammate Travis Kelce’s ‘New Heights’ podcast in 2022 and said he wants to have the same legacy in the NFL as Curry has in the NBA.

“I hate talking about myself, but my favurite one is the Steph one because I feel like Steph brought a different style of basketball to the game, and I want to try to bring it to where it’s not quarterback, that’s what I’ve tried to do is make it where everybody can play it in different ways,” Mahomes said.

Mahomes and Curry have certainly left an indelible mark on their respective sports and will undoubtedly go down as greats of their game.