Chet Holmgren Dropped Brutally Honest One-Liner About Facing LeBron James in the Playoffs

The 24-year-old never thought he’d be playing against James in the playoffs.

Chet Holmgren never thought he’d be playing against LeBron James in the playoffs. | Joshua Gateley/Getty Images

The Thunder pretty easily took care of business in Game 1 of the conference semifinals playoff series vs. the Lakers on Tuesday night, winning 108–90.

This series marks the first time these two teams have met since 2012, meaning it’s the first playoff matchup against legend LeBron James for a good chunk of the young Oklahoma City roster, including Chet Holmgren. The reigning NBA champions hope to beat the four-time champion to advance to the conference finals.

Playing against James in the postseason is something Holmgren admitted he never really thought of being a possibility solely because of age. The 41-year-old is in his record 23rd NBA season—no one really knew how long James would be competing for. At 24, this is Holmgren’s fourth year in the league, putting a big age gap between the two players.

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After Tuesday night’s victory, NBC’s Maria Taylor asked Holmgren if he ever dreamed as a kid that one day he’d be playing against James in the playoffs. The Thunder center gave a brutally honest response.

“Maybe with him coaching or something, I don’t know. That was a long time ago and he’s still at it,” Holmgren said, sparking laughter from the NBC desk. “It’s fun to go at it with great players and he’s one of them.”

A young Chet Holmgren never imagined he’d play LeBron in the playoffs. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/HjJxUHqP8A

— NBA on NBC and Peacock (@NBAonNBC) May 6, 2026

This is a completely fair point from Holmgren. It’s hard to imagine as a kid that you’d one day be playing on the same court as one of the legends of the game. And, for more context, Holmgren was only one year old when James was drafted to the league. It’s understandable why he thought as a kid that James would probably be retired and coaching by the time he reached the NBA. This just shows how incredible James’s longevity has been.

James actually scored the most points (27) on the court between both teams on Tuesday night despite Los Angeles losing. In 36 minutes played, James also recorded four rebounds and six assists.

Holmgren was the game’s second-leading scorer and led OKC with 24, while also recording 12 rebounds to give him a playoff double-double. It was his second of the postseason so far.

Holmgren will face James for at least three more matchups in this best-of-seven playoff series. Game 2 will tip off on Thursday, May 7, followed by Game 3 on Saturday, May 9.

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