Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
LeBron James and Stephen Curry exchanging words during the first game of the 2018 NBA Finals.
- After LeBron James blocked a layup attempt by Stephen Curry toward the end of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Curry tried cracking a joke with James.
- James, however, was having none if it, and angrily told Curry to get out of his face.
- This moment illustrated not only the intensity of the matchup and of James and Curry's relationship, but of James' sour mood as the Cavs blew an opportunity to steal Game 1.
LeBron James was apparently in no mood to joke around in the waning moments of the Cleveland Cavaliers' Game 1 loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Late in the game, Stephen Curry drove the lane for a layup, which James smacked off the glass, an essentially meaningless block as the Warriors had already sealed the game.
Afterward, Curry and James exchanged words, with James eventually shoving Curry out of the way, angering Klay Thompson, who also had some words for James.
ESPN's Brian Windhorst told Zach Lowe on "The Lowe Post" podcast that while Curry tried to joke with James about the play, James had an explicit reply.
"And Steph turns to him - and I think this is sort of an indication of the mindset of the two teams - Steph turns to him ... I think what he said was, 'Boy, you couldn't let me have that one.'
"And LeBron basically told him to get the f--- out of his face."
To Windhorst, the moment perfectly captures the contrast between the "happy-go-lucky" Warriors and LeBron as he fights uphill against the Golden State juggernaut.
Here was the block and the resulting trash-talk afterward.
The play neatly captured how tense the relationship between LeBron and Steph has become over the years.
And LeBron had plenty to be upset about by the end of the game, having had one of his best games ever and nearly pulling off a shocking upset of the heavily favored Warriors, only for the Cavaliers to end up losing the game in heart-breaking fashion.