Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry is a three-time NBA champion, two-time MVP and seven-time All-Star. Such a lofty resume guarantees he will be elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Yet at 33-years-old and in his 12th season in the league, Curry is still reaching new heights.
On Monday, playing against the Philadelphia 76ers on the road, and facing his 30-year-old brother Seth Curry, a 6-2 guard for the Sixers, Stephen dropped 49 points, 30 by making 10 three-pointers, and scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Warriors to a 107-96 win.
It was Curry’s 11th straight game scoring 30 or more points and his fifth 40-point game in April, breaking the record for the most 40-point games in a month by a player 33 or older, passing Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. When the NBA schedule began on Tuesday, his average of 31.4 topped the league. Over his previous 10 games before facing the Wizards in Washington last night (Wednesday), Curry had made 72 three-pointers, the most ever on a 10-game stretch.
“There’s something beautiful about it. It really is an art,” said Warriors head coach Steve Kerr after Monday’s victory of Curry’s exploits. “What he’s doing is amazing to watch. Nobody in the history of this game has ever done what he’s doing right now. And I’m talking the full gamut of shooting off the dribble, off the screen, running around like a madman when he’s off the ball.”
“You don’t put too much pressure on yourself, you just play basketball,” said Curry. “Being aggressive, obviously, but kind of letting the game come to you. For me, that looks a certain type of way, but I’m having a blast out there just playing basketball and it’s obviously working.”
Curry’s remarkable play is even more impressive considering he is the focus of opposing defenses. With Klay Thompson out all season recovering from a torn Achilles and Kevin Durant now with the Brooklyn Nets, the trio that formed the Warriors title teams in 2017 and 2018 is now a solo act.
They are no longer a championship contender, at least not this season, but Curry has lifted the Warriors to a 29-29 record before playing the Wizards. That placed them in 9th place in the Western Conference and in the playoff hunt as the top 10 teams from each conference will make it to the postseason.