LeBron James didn't hesitate when naming the three opponents he hated playing against more than anyone else

Anybody who comes up against NBA icon LeBron James and leaves in impression must be one hell of a basketball player.

'King James' is a four-time NBA champion, four-time MVP and four-time play-offs MVP, so when he names the three players he hated playing against the most, you know they're serious players.

In his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers and LA Lakers, James has had the opportunity to play alongside his most formidable foes as well as against them, so he knows their games inside-out and can speak with some authority about the centers and guards he's come up against in his illustrious career on the court.

He named two eventual team-mates from the Lakers but the third man goes back all the way to James' Cleveland days.

"Kendrick Perkins," said James to Spectrum SportsNet. "Hated him in Boston, I still hate Boston, don’t get that twisted, we all hate Boston."

Perkins was traded from the Celtics to the Oklahoma City Thunders and later to the Cavaliers in 2015, joining James briefly but departing before Cleveland won their first championship the following year.

"Number two was Lance Stephenson," continued King James, presumably remembering Stephenson blowing in his ear when the former was playing for Miami Heat and his future team-mate was with the Indiana Pacers. Stephenson played with James for the Lakers between 2018 and 2019 and gave up the number 6 when James was acquired from the Cavaliers.

Michael Jordan claims LeBron James could play in any era. Image: Getty

In 2022, the Lakers picked up former Clippers point guard Patrick Beverley from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Previously reviled by Lakers fans, Beverley had some run-ins with James prior to his return to Los Angeles as his team-mate.

"And to be able to have him here, when you talk about every single night, we’re going to compete, that energy is going to come from Pat Bev," James continued.

"Because you can’t look at a guy like that and see the way that he competes on a nightly basis and be half-assing it. It’s impossible."

Beverley departed the Lakers in 2023 and signed for his hometown team, the Chicago Bulls. He represented the Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks before joining Hapoel Tel Aviv, where he played until February of this year.

James is still going strong in LA. The Lakers sit in third place in the NBA's Western Conference and will continue into the post-season after the end of the regular season this month.