The year is 2021 and the NBA Finals won't be played with either Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James or Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry. Isn't that weird? The Warriors lost in the play-in tournament to the Memphis Grizzlies, and the Lakers lost Thursday night in Game 6 against the Phoenix Suns as LeBron suffered his first career first-round exit.
Oddly enough, this will be the first NBA Finals without either Curry or LeBron since 2010.
For the first time since 2010, the NBA Finals won't feature either Steph Curry or LeBron James 🤯 pic.twitter.com/NJFjo64lOo
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 4, 2021
That's insane, in all honesty. For the past 10 seasons, LeBron and Steph have become staples in the NBA Finals. LeBron had eight straight trips to the NBA Finals over that stretch before joining the Lakers and winning the NBA title last October in the Orlando Bubble.
Steph won three NBA titles in that span and lost two, one to the hands of LeBron in the Cleveland Cavaliers epic 3-1 comeback and another to the Toronto Raptors after a devastating injury to Klay Thompson.
Is this the beginning of a new era? Not likely. The Warriors made a strong playoff push towards the end of the season as Curry went nuclear. Klay Thompson should be ready to roll to start the 2021-2022 season, and the Warriors could add in a top-20 pick to the already talented roster.
The Lakers were dealt a massive blow with the injury to Anthony Davis that forced him from Game 4 early, caused him to miss Game 5 entirely, and prevented him from playing more than six minutes in Game 6. These aren't excuses, just facts.
The fact of the matter is that LeBron and Steph have dominated the league for so long, and it's hard to say that they won't be back next season.
For the time being, watching the playoff run and NBA Finals without either one of those stars is going to be a first for many NBA fans across the globe.
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