Warriors Head Coach Reflects On Past Rivalry With Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers rivalry with the Golden State Warriors is one of the best in NBA history.

Jun 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) handles the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the second quarter in game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

When NBA fans look back on the late 2010s, they will immediately think of the four straight Finals matchups between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors.

They also had some incredible Christmas Day games in that stretch as well.

The rivalry between the two teams was renewed on Monday night, with the Wine and Gold traveling to the Bay to take on the Warriors.

Golden State head coach Steve Kerr reflected on this past rivalry between the Warriors and Cavaliers. He compared it to the legendary matchups between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics in the 1980s (via Tim Botemps of ESPN.)

Steve Kerr compared Warriors-Cavs from 2014-18 to Lakers-Celtics in the 1980s.

“When you consider the star power, the multiple meetings, epic performances, signature games, signature plays … 10-15 years from now, people will be doing documentaries on it.”

— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) December 31, 2024

"When you consider the star power, the multiple meetings, epic performances, signature games, signature plays … 10-15 years from now, people will be doing documentaries on it," said Kerr.

It's hard to argue with what Kerr says here. These matchups had some of the top talent in the league then, including LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love on Cleveland's side and Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson on the Warriors' teams.

Then Kevin Durant eventually joined Golden State for the last two Finals matchups, adding another layer to the legendary feud.

Cavaliers-Warriors is easily one of the top rivalries in NBA history. Is it on the same level as the Celtics-Lakers, though? Probably not at this point.

Jun 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) and forward Kevin Love (0) celebrate on the court during the second quarter in game six of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Boston and Los Angeles have a history of spreading across multiple eras and decades. For now, Cleveland and Golden State only have those five years between one another.

What Kerr says still stands, though. The stretch between the Cavaliers and Warriors will be one that will be talked about for years to come.