"They said, 'Now, you got KD and Steph" - Stephen A. Smith recalls LeBron James getting temperamental despite beating Boston Celtics in conference finals

LeBron James has had many legendary postseason battles throughout his illustrious NBA career. As a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat, James often found himself going toe-to-toe in the playoffs with the Boston Celtics.

James earned his stripes whenever it came to potentially playing in the NBA Finals. Although James often had to go through a gauntlet of competition, one year specifically stands out to ESPN and sports analyst Stephen A. Smith.

On a recent episode of the "I Am Athlete" podcast, Smith shared plenty of stories involving his career and the NBA. In one story, Smith talked about how James defeated the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals before realizing what challenge was ahead. His next opponents would include Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant of the Golden State Warriors.

"I often bring this up," Smith said. "LeBron beats Boston in the conference finals. Doris Burke is interviewing him. ... LeBron is smiling, 'We going back to the finals, and then they said, 'Now, you got KD and Steph.' LeBron goes, 'Oh, lord, I don't even think about that right now. I'm in a good mood I don't want to stress myself.'

"It was the first time that I saw a concession speech given on the court of an NBA conference finals."

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LeBron James looks to get the LA Lakers back to the NBA playoffs

LA Lakers forward LeBron James

Time will tell if fans will get the opportunity to see LeBron James create any additional legendary playoff memories. For now, LeBron will be focused on the goal of getting the LA Lakers back in the playoffs.

It was a disappointing 2021-22 season for the Lakers, who went 33-49 and finished 11th in the Western Conference. The hope is that a healthy roster can be the key to getting the Lakers back on track.

James has had challenges before, with the star forward overcoming some remarkable obstacles. Given how the Western Conference features a challenging plethora of opponents, this could be LeBron's most daunting task yet.

As James prepares for his 20th season, he's still playing at an elite level, as he averaged 30.3 points per game last year.

James has been in 10 NBA Finals and won four. He was the NBA Finals MVP in each of those. He led the Cleveland Cavaliers over the Lakers in 2016 as the only team to win a finals after trailing 3-1 in the series.