Klay Thompson’s blunt LeBron James ranking catches everyone by surprise

Klay Thompson’s blunt LeBron James ranking catches everyone by surprise originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson spent nearly a decade guarding some of basketball's most dangerous scorers during his championship years in Golden State. This week, he settled a question fans have debated for years about who gave him the hardest time on the floor.

Thompson made the comments during a casual livestream appearance, naming one opponent above everyone else he faced across four consecutive NBA Finals matchups against a familiar rival.

The comments first spread through a recent clip pulled from Thompson's appearance on streamer PlaqueBoyMax's Twitch broadcast this week, drawing rapid reaction online across NBA social media accounts and fan pages.

Thompson and the Warriors faced LeBron James and the Cavaliers in four straight NBA Finals between 2015 and 2018, a stretch that produced some of the most physical and memorable matchups of his entire NBA career.

Asked who was the hardest player he ever had to guard, Thompson didn't hesitate at all before answering the question directly on stream. "LeBron. I mean we saw him for four straight Finals and I haven't seen anyone control the game as well as he does," Thompson said. "He can do everything on the court. He has no weaknesses. His jumper on the left wing was automatic by the time we played those Finals. He was the toughest opponent I ever faced. No question."

Thompson made those Finals appearances as part of Golden State's dynasty core alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, winning four championships between 2015 and 2022 together as teammates. He now plays alongside a completely different core entirely in this later chapter of his career with Dallas.

On the same stream, Thompson named his personal Mount Rushmore of players he grew up watching closely, listing Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Stephen Curry as the four who shaped how he sees the sport today and its evolution.

klay put steph in his nba mount rushmore :,) pic.twitter.com/Ia7tgLsXJm

Thompson has previously credited his own longevity to lessons learned from those same rivalries throughout his career.

Thompson had also named Kyrie Irving as the toughest player he has ever guarded one-on-one in earlier interviews, a separate distinction from this week's comments about overall opponent difficulty. Both players remain teammates in Dallas as the 2026 season approaches this fall.

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