NBA Coach: Curry, Warriors 'Significantly Better' Than LeBron, Lakers Ahead of Series

Ahead of the latest playoff showdown between LeBron James and Stephen Curry, at least one NBA coach thinks the Golden State Warriors have a distinct talent advantage going into the series.

Speaking to Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix, a Western Conference assistant coach said the Warriors are "significantly better" than the Los Angeles Lakers right now:

"Probably the biggest obstacle for them is overcoming the likely free throw disparity. The Lakers just kill teams going to the line a million times. Golden State's rim protection isn't great. The Lakers are going to take a ton of shots at the rim and when they shoot it well, they usually win. The Warriors are going to have to find a way to limit that. LeBron, every time he's had success against the Warriors has found a way to really, really muck up the game just by controlling the pace and things of that nature against them. He's going to have to do that again."

The Lakers enter the Western Conference Semifinals with a rest advantage over the defending NBA champions. They closed out the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. The Warriors beat the Sacramento Kings in Game 7 on Sunday.

This will be Los Angeles' first time having three full days off between games since beating the Minnesota Timberwolves in the play-in tournament to earn the No. 7 seed on April 11. Game 1 against the Grizzlies was on April 16.

Anthony Davis bullied the Grizzlies on defense in the series, but Memphis' style of attacking the paint was asking for trouble against the Lakers big man. The Warriors can get to the basket, but Curry and Klay Thompson can live at the perimeter if they have to.

Stamina could also be a huge determining factor. There is only one day off between every game, regardless of how long it goes.

James is coming off a solid showing against the Grizzlies with 22.2 points, 11.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game.

The Ringer's Michael Pina pointed out he only shot 29.2 percent from the field in the fourth quarter and his 9.5 drives per 100 possessions ranks in the 20th percentile of all players with at least 25 drives in the postseason.

It's strange to be in a spot where James is an underdog and possibly not the best player on his own team, but the combination of his age (38) and his foot injury have almost certainly changed how he's playing.

If the Lakers want to close the gap on a Warriors team that is basically at full strength right now, James will likely have to play at an elite level.

We will see what James looks like when the Lakers and Warriors face off for Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals at Chase Center on Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET.