Originally Posted by KC_Connection:
KD already bickering with Draymond on Twitter today over whether or not Curry was doubled more than him on those teams. You just know them winning a title without him will bother him.
KD should just bring up Draymond's Triple Singles. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Eureka:
You mean he stayed with the team that drafted him made the team better (Champions)? Just like MJ did for his Bulls.
It's funny how Curry is the star of his team yet is 3>1 versus Lebron in the Finals and is looked at as not as good as Lebron.
Originally Posted by KC_Connection:
There's a reason Durant won Finals MVP both years (and why Curry has never won one in his entire career). KD was the best player on those Warriors teams.
Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy:
I can't stand Lebron, but he was a much better overall player than Curry is. Lebron is top 5 for sure..Curry isn't and I don't think ever really should considered that high.
Originally Posted by BWillie:
I heard them debating on some dumb Stephen A Smith show that Curry needs to win a 5th ti surpass KD. If you ask me, outside of Lebron, Curry is #2 as far as legacy. He doesn't need to do shit to surpass KD.
Originally Posted by :
Since KD arrived at the start of the 2016-17 season, Curry, Thompson, Durant and Green have played 1,921 minutes as a group on the floor, according to the powerful pbpstats.com database. During that span, the Warriors are plus-16.9 per 100 possessions with that foursome on the court. When people complain that the Warriors are unfair, this is what they’re talking about -- a plus-16.9 point differential is the stuff of legend. (For reference, only three teams in the past decade have crossed the double-digit zone for a full season: the 2015-16 Warriors (who won 73 games), the '15-16 Spurs (who won 67 games) and the '14-15 Warriors that won (67 games).)
Actually, without KD, the Warriors are still super dominant. Golden State is plus-14.8 in 672 minutes with Curry, Thompson and Green playing without Durant.
Same result: The Warriors are still juggernauts, registering a plus-13.9 in 526 minutes with Curry and Green on the floor without the help of Durant or Thompson.
With Curry rolling solo, the Warriors are still plus-14.3 in 216 minutes of action. That’s without the help of an MVP, a former Defensive Player of the Year and perhaps the second-greatest shooter ever not named Stephen Wardell Curry. The offense scores 116.6 points per 100 possessions in these lineups, which would be the league-leading offensive rating this season.
Originally Posted by :
So the Steph-could-be-better-than-LeBron conversation isn't insane. Steph is the greatest shooter in the history of the sport -- so great, in fact, he changed the NBA and shifted the course of its history as much as Wilt, or Bird-Magic, or Jordan. The game's focus on 3-point shooting and positionless play is rooted first and foremost in Curry.
He defined, and changed, an era.
And as the best shooter ever, and the guy who didn't bounce from team to team, his narrative game is on point. This is the guy Durant had to join, rather than the other way around. And yet Curry, the then-reigning MVP, welcomed Durant to the team by subjugating his own shine -- and the shots, accolades and credit that accompanied it. Everyone says the team and winning come first. Curry practiced that by diminishing himself to do so.
No all-time great has ever done that in his prime. That, too, is easy to look past but worthy of consideration in any GOAT debate.
That is a big part of the reason Curry is the superior player, historically speaking, to Durant. Durant needed Curry to win titles. Curry is about to prove, he, most decidedly, did not need Durant. That -- plus the statistical reality of Steph's import over Durant when on the floor in Golden State, as often outlined excellently by NBA writer Tom Haberstroh -- elevates Curry over Durant.
There is no Golden State Warriors as we know them without Steph. And without Steph, Durant might have as many rings as James Harden or Russell Westbrook.
The argument over Steph vs. Durant is a warmup for the one about Steph vs. LeBron. Steph, by NBA standards, is not an imposing athlete. He's not a freak of nature physically -- not like M.J., or LeBron, or Kareem, or Wilt, or Shaq, or Magic, or virtually any of the other all-time greats who look more like Avengers superheroes than athletes.
As we always do, then, the talk on Steph Curry both celebrates him and misses the larger, current point. Curry coming up on LeBron's legacy, true and interesting though it is, still probably ends with LeBron ahead when both retire.
But that's not the actual point, at least not today.
This is: The fact we're having this conversation means that if Steph does lead Golden State to a fourth title starting Thursday, he'll narrow the gap between himself and LeBron so much that it is other all-time greats who he will have surpassed.
Names like Kobe. Duncan. Durant. Bird. Magic.
Another title, and Steph and the Warriors show that everything that's preceded this was about Steph Curry. Not Durant and the two titles he piggy-backed on board for, despite his obvious contributions. Not Kyrie Irving leaving Cleveland. Just an all-time great shaping the game's history, and his team's destiny, utilizing his own rare, astounding gifts.
Another title, and the all-time great debate looks something like this:
1. Jordan
2. LeBron
3. Kareem
4. Shaq
5. Steph
Can Steph eventually pass LeBron? Maybe, but unlikely.
But beat the Celtics, and he will have launched himself further than any one of his patented deep shots.
Originally Posted by JudasRising20:
If someone has Shaq and Curry in their top 5 all-time, I have to question their basketball knowledge.
Ahead of both players on my list:
Jordan
Kareem
Wilt
Lebron
Russell
Magic
Bird
Bryant
Duncan
Hakeem
Oscar
I would totally agree with that. If you didn't have to play D, Curry would be a stronger contender. Wilt wasn't a great FT shooter, but that didn't hurt as much in the days before hack-a-Shaq. And even if he could hit FTs I'm not sure who on that list I would drop for Shaq.
Shaq is also a bit of a hard case because his effectiveness so often did come down to how the refs were calling fouls on his spin move at the basket. [Reply]
Originally Posted by RealSNR:
True, but Shaq is still alive, soooo….
So what? 5 rings to 4 and two back to back without him. With a finesse center in gasol. No other player out there that was part of a tandem went on to win championships without the other.......
Media can kiss my ass. No fucking way Curry is over Kobe, Bron either. 5-2 finals record trumps 4-6 with one bubblicious mickey mouse, summer league ring......
Other than pandemic, his time in LA has been a bust. No playoffs, bubble, first round exit, no playoffs (with a fucking PLAY IN). Take this fraud out of the conversation. [Reply]
Originally Posted by ARROW2:
So what? 5 rings to 4 and two back to back without him. With a finesse center in gasol. No other player out there that was part of a tandem went on to win championships without the other.......
Media can kiss my ass. No ****ing way Curry is over Kobe, Bron either. 5-2 finals record trumps 4-6 with one bubblicious mickey mouse, summer league ring......
Other than pandemic, his time in LA has been a bust. No playoffs, bubble, first round exit, no playoffs (with a ****ing PLAY IN). Take this fraud out of the conversation.
Curry can't guard a lawn chair. Kobe's defense was overrated but it was much better than Curry's. I agree Kobe is higher. He's top 10.
Lebron is ahead of Kobe. Sorry but Finals record is a team stat. Kobe had the most dominant player in the league (Shaq) on his team in 4 of those Finals appearances. Lebron jumped ship many times but to me he's more impactful. Better passer and rebounder. Kobe is the better scorer and slightly better defensive player. Lebron dwarfs Kobe in longevity though. He's played 20 years and is still one of the league's top players. Kobe wasn't the same player in his 20th season. [Reply]
Originally Posted by ARROW2:
couldn't even get us to the PLAY IN!!!! He only cares about milestones and stats.....Get his ass outta LA
Lebron won a title in LA. Yeah it was in the bubble, but it counts toward their tally. What more did you expect? They weren't winning multiple titles in the West, especially with him now getting injured more and Anthony Davis perpetually being a brokedick. The Warriors/Suns were going to eventually pass them as were other teams with young superstars. The media overreacted over the Lakers.
Lebron's time in LA was a success to me. One title. Several other dud seasons but that championship seems fortunate in hindsight. Enjoy it. [Reply]