LeBron James walked away from the only franchise most fans had ever seen him play for in Los Angeles. He signed with the Philadelphia 76ers after a lengthy free-agency process that dominated the NBA offseason news cycle. Asked whether that same path held any appeal to him, Stephen Curry didn’t leave any room for interpretation.

Speaking with CNBC, Curry was asked whether James’ free-agency decision made him think differently about his own situation heading into the final year of his Warriors contract.

“Not at all,” Curry said. “I’ve always stated that I want to be a lifer with Golden State, what we’ve built there, the fact that I get to run it back this year with Draymond and Coach Kerr.”

“So all the contract stuff, this NBA thing from year to year is so crazy,” he continued. “Things change really fast, but I do know my interest and mission to stay in Golden State and be competitive is there, and the contract stuff will take care of itself.”

Curry became eligible for a two-year, $136.7 million extension on Aug. 29. A number Golden State GM Mike Dunleavy has confirmed the front office intends to put on the table the moment he’s ready to sign.

Dunleavy framed the decision as entirely Curry’s to make. “I’m pretty confident Steph will finish his career here. But ultimately, it’s his call, his decision,” Dunleavy said. “We wouldn’t love it, but he’s earned the right to go where he wants.”

Stephen Curry was reportedly the Warriors’ single biggest asset in their pursuit of James this summer. Given their shared history on the 2024 gold-medal Olympic team, Curry has since confirmed he personally tried to recruit James to join Golden State.

When that pursuit ultimately fell through, LeBron James chose Philadelphia instead. Curry’s first public reaction was notably measured rather than bitter. “That’s why you don’t envision anything until it happens,” he told The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson II at the time. “There’s a lot of moving parts.”

Golden State finished last season needing a play-in run just to make the postseason. The roster took further hits with Jimmy Butler tearing his ACL and Moses Moody suffering a season-ending injury.

Curry was honest about the difficulty of that situation separately from his loyalty stance, telling reporters, “The through line, which is hard on anybody in this situation, especially with us keeping this thing together, is knowing that when Jimmy got hurt and Moses got hurt, the whole calculus of everything changes… I’m a realist on that.”

With his current contract running through the 2026-27 season and the extension window now open, Curry’s decision on paper is straightforward. Sign the two-year deal Golden State has said it’s ready to offer, a contract that would reportedly put his career earnings ahead of even James’ own projected total.

Barring a dramatic shift in the Warriors’ fortunes this season, Curry’s comments to CNBC leave little about where he intends his career to end.