LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers and Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors played each other in the NBA Finals for four straight seasons (2015-2018), with the Dubs winning three series.

On Wednesday, Curry admitted that he had a “healthy resentment” of James when the two were battling for NBA championships while also noting his “utmost respect” for his rival.

“It was like a healthy resentment of somebody that’s standing in your way,” Curry said, per Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “But through it all, like there’s obviously the utmost respect for who he is as a person and a player and like how good he is and the challenge of trying to beat him and trying to solve that problem every year.”

Vardon also noted that James agreed when “a reporter suggested an apparent rivalry existed between him and Curry years ago.” However, James also pushed back against a media narrative suggesting the two “should hate each other.”

“The game of basketball don’t last forever,” James said. “You don’t want to waste the opportunity to be able to have a relationship with someone.”

James and Curry certainly have that chance now. They had never been on the same team until suiting up for James’ All-Star team in 2021. Now they’re both representing the United States in their quest for the country’s fifth straight men’s basketball gold medal. This is Curry’s first Olympic Games and James’ fourth (2004, 2008, 2012).

The team has gone undefeated in exhibition games with those two running the show thus far. Two more remain before the team gets going in earnest on July 28 against Serbia.