LeBron James Named ‘Once in a Lifetime’ NBA Star Who Changed the Sport

LeBron James is one of the greatest basketball players of all time and is credited for changing the sport in a lot of ways over the last 22 years. The King was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003 with the first overall pick and has been operating at an incredible level ever since. His longevity is unlike anything that’s ever been seen in the game and he’s been credited with having a major impact on how it’s played, with his elite playmaking and the player empowerment movement he sparked when he formed a super team in Miami back in 2011.

There’s no doubt that James will go down as one of the most influential players in NBA history, but he isn’t the only one to have a major impact on basketball. In fact, during an appearance on the Mind the Game podcast last year, he named another star who he described as ‘once in a lifetime’ and claimed they changed the game.

LeBron Said One of His Greatest Rivals Changed the Game

While he’s one of the best players ever, James has never shied away from praising his competitors and during an episode of the Mind the Game podcast last year, he spoke about Stephen Curry and claimed the point guard had changed basketball. In a quote shared via talkSPORT, he said:

“I believe in’ 08/09, whenever that little light-skinned f***er [Curry] came in the league that’s in Golden State, he changed that whole narrative. He single-handedly changed the ‘no lead is safe.”

It wasn’t the first time that LeBron had publicly praised Curry, though. In quotes shared via the NBA themselves, he once said: “We’re all witnesses to what Steph Curry has done in his career and the way that he’s changed the game. He’s a once-in-a-lifetime basketball player.”

The two men have engaged in quite the rivalry over the years. During the 2010s, they met in four straight NBA finals, with James on the Cleveland Cavaliers while Curry was with the Golden State Warriors. The point guard was drafted by the Warriors in 2009 and after a few injury issues slowed him down early in his career, he soon figured things out and became a force to be reckoned with. His exploits from behind the three-point line have seen him become the greatest shooter in NBA history and there has never been anyone as lethal from deep.

It was that work from behind the arc that transformed the way basketball was played. More teams and players took note of how much success he had from deep and how it helped the Warriors become a dynasty and they started to focus on shooting from range too. Nowadays, teams are shooting more three-point shots than ever before and Curry is largely responsible for that. So, it’s hard to argue with LeBron’s statement. Curry certainly did change the game forever.

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