SAN FRANCISCO – The NBA will go the entire 2025-26 regular season without seeing Steph Curry and LeBron James add another chapter to their storied rivalry.

Curry was ruled out for right knee injury management at noon before Thursday’s game against the visiting Los Angeles Lakers (7 p.m., ESPN).

James, who is in the final year of his contract and could retire in the offseason, is still expected to play against the Warriors.

Golden State is starting a back-to-back set, with a Friday game in Sacramento as the second leg.

On Sunday, Curry returned from a two-month absence caused by runner’s knee. Coach Steve Kerr had already said that Curry would not play both games of back-to-back sets as he manages the injury.

The Warriors will also be without Kristaps Porzingis (illness) and Will Richard (lower back). The Lakers will be lacking star guard tandem Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique). Doncic leads the NBA in scoring, and both players suffered injuries last week in a loss to Oklahoma City, dampening Los Angeles’ playoff hopes.

Curry and the Warriors faced James’ Cavaliers in four consecutive NBA Finals between 2015 and 2018, faced his Lakers in a play-in game during the 2021 postseason and again in the second round in 2023.

Though there are no real stakes for the No. 10 seed Warriors, the news Thursday is sure to disappoint fans who hoped to watch the two living legends play against one another one more time.

Curry missed two games against the Lakers in February with his knee injury, and James missed the teams’ season-opening showdown with sciatica. Curry is 30-26 against James all-time, but James leads the regular-season race at 14-13.

Even given the back-to-back rule keeping Curry out, the next week-plus will be a grind for the two-time MVP and his knee: Golden State ends its regular season Sunday in LA against the Clippers, then will play at the Clippers or Trail Blazers on Wednesday night. If the Warriors win that game, they’ll play another play-in road game Friday night, with the potential reward of a Sunday playoff opener in Oklahoma City against the top-seeded Thunder