“Bryce & Bronny Running Around”: Steph Curry Recalls Visiting LeBron James’ Akron Mansion As A Rookie

“He’s a very, very, very, very, very good basketball player,” a 24-year-old LeBron James, who had been closely following the 2008 NCAA tournament, said of the Davidson pride, Stephen Curry. Spearheading the Cavaliers as the ‘Chosen One,’ LeBron and Co. were in Detroit to face the Pistons. But the shrewd scout in him always kept a close eye on fresh talents each year. And the baby-faced-sophomore certainly ranked at the top of them.

When we talk about James and Curry, our stories are usually filled with Steph’s arrival at the league, the head-to-head battles at Conference and Finals levels, their on-court rivalry, and so on and so forth. But the two have a history that goes way back to Akron.

That time when Stephen Curry was the exclusive guest of LeBron’s Akron mansion

In their latest podcast, the Heat Check on Audible, Stephen Curry and his father, Dell Curry, talk about a lot of things. Some of which are new information to the fans. But one subject they covered was The Other Kid From Akron. While Steph might not have the same claim on Akron as James does, baby Curry stayed in town until nearly 2 years old.

But since then, the 36-year-old had been to Akron only twice since 1988! The most recent was during a golf tournament at the Firestone Country Club. And the other was in his rookie year. It was only the year before that the pair had started a friendship. Both of them had nothing but admiration for each other. Therefore, when LeBron invited him over when the Warriors were in town for a matchup against the Cavs, a young Steph was beside himself with joy!

“I am in the hotel the night before the game and he hit me like and he was like ‘You wanna come over to the house?’ … He got like a bowling alley in his basement. Did that. Bryce and Bronny were running around the house, little kids. That was the first time that I’ve been back to Akron. It was cool because the connection between me and him, we didn’t know what was in store. That was in ’09,” Steph recounted the story like it happened yesterday.

But things were about to change. “Six years later, we start a crazy rivalry in the Finals and all that. There still wasn’t any connection or realization, [of] that Akron connection at the time.  … And then we get to the finals in 2015, and that’s when the dots start to connect,” Curry admitted.

Over the years, LeBron James and Stephen Curry have gone head-to-head for 52 games. Between the pair, Curry holds a 29-23 record over the Lakers superstar, 17 of the wins coming in the playoffs. But when did the relationship between the NBA great and the face of the league really stem?

Young Curry lives huge moment in front of LeBron

In 2008, Curry and Co. at Davidson reached the height their NCAA tournament by grabbing the spot in the Elite Eight. A proud keen eye in the crowd? King James, who was there for just one kid – Stephen Curry. Years later, LeBron would go on to reason his interest in watching young Curry play. “I saw a kid who didn’t care how big someone was, how fast someone else was, how strong someone else was,” he said during 2015 NBA Finals.

We are well-acquainted with Steph’s struggles in his ascension to the superstar status he holds now. Slighted, overlooked, and underrated, the pale, skinny kid fought against all the narratives that painted him as a failure to become one of the greatest the basketball world ever saw! While not in the exact same situation, LeBron had his own mountains to climb. So, it wasn’t hard for the ‘kid from Akron’ to relate to this young hooper fighting against all the odds stacked against him. As for Curry, it was a dream come true!

Recounting the sheer excitement was former Davidson forward Andrew Lovedale. “Steph got excited. We all got excited. We were kids. We were in college at this small school. And here was this great NBA player. For us, it was like, ‘Wow, LeBron is coming to watch us play basketball.’” (credit: Yahoo Sports).

Suffice it to say, they have come a long way from the Most Valuable Basketball Maternity Ward at Summa Akron City Hospital. Wouldn’t you say?

Before you go, be sure to check this video of Leonardo Armato’s take on Caitlin Clark vs Angel Reese.

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