More success not long shot for Curry
Guard still eager to learn, work as he gets ready for 13th season
Maybe Steve Kerr put it best when he was asked about the astonishing numbers and arena-shaking moves Stephen Curry is still producing after more than a decade in the NBA.
“Father Time is undefeated, but I think Stephen Curry is going to take him into overtime,” the Warriors’ head coach said of his 33-year-old point guard. “He’s just got this unique combination of work ethic and joy and competitiveness. He’s constantly learning. He’s never satisfied. He’s always looking for ways to improve.
“I really believe that he’s got a lot of great basketball left in him, and that’s what is truly exciting.”
In his 13th season, Curry is rewriting a prevailing narrative that the Warriors’ championship window might be quickly closing as he reimagines the way the game will be played in the future and extends the prime of an NBA point guard.
The seven-time All-Star and three-time champion led the preseason in points per game, just months after becoming the oldest player in history to become the regularseason scoring champ since Michael Jordan did it at 35 in 1998.
For the 2020-21 scoring title, Curry needed 13 games with at least 30 points in April — something no one older than 33 had achieved. Kobe Bryant had 12 such games in December 2012. Curry had 47- and 49-point outings in April to complete a season that statistically measured up with his MVP years of 2015 and ’16.
“My rookie year, he was the unanimous MVP, and I didn’t think anyone could play basketball better than that ever again,” said Warriors starting center Kevon Looney, who has played with Curry since 201516. “Last year, he topped that. To see him find ways to get better, take on new challenges, and put us on his back, it’s been incredible.”
The oldest player ever in an NBA game was Providence Steamrollers guard Nat Hickey, who totaled 2 points in two games in 1949 just days before he turned 46 (and shortly after he became the team’s head coach). Four of the next five on the league’s chart are centers: Kevin Willis, Robert Parish, Dikembe Mutombo and Kareem AbdulJabbar, who combined to average 7.2 points per game during their final seasons.
The only positional outlier is swingman Vince Carter, who averaged at least 8 points only once during his final six seasons.
Curry himself said LeBron James “set the standard” for late-career production, and fellow 37-year-old Chris Paul took Phoenix to the NBA Finals last season. But neither James nor Paul is a spindly, 6-foot-3 guard who runs 3 miles through hip checks and shoulder bumps nearly every game to put up historic numbers.
That’s exactly what Curry did as opponents focused their entire defensive game plan on him last season, and he still scored 32 points per game on a 60.5 effective fieldgoal percentage (a stat that adjusts for the fact that 3pointers are worth more than 2-point shots).
“At this point, there’s not much you can add. It’s just about continuing to do it and doing it well and at a high level,” Curry said. “That’s the part that becomes fun, but also difficult: to maintain that best version of yourself for as long as you can. I’m going on that mission. I’m not going to be too cute or fancy with anything I’m doing. It’s just a matter of continuing to be efficient, and continuing to be confident.”
A workaholic, Curry has kept his fire in the gym while trying to maintain balance with his spiritual and family lives. Within the past year, he has talked to Bill Gates, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Tom Brady and Jordan about the best ways to maintain his prime for as long as possible.
Curry’s not giving up any secrets publicly right now, but he’s listening. He heard the chatter last season when he returned from missing 60 games with a left hand fracture and shot 32.1% from 3point range in his first five games.
His response was a careerbest 62-point barrage against Portland on Jan. 3.
“I definitely took a lot of pride in shutting that up,” Curry told NBA Radio. “It doesn’t matter to me what the narrative is. I definitely did appreciate the fact that I played extremely well and reminded people what I’m capable of. And it’s carrying over into this year.”
The Warriors hope it will carry for many years as they signed him to a four-year, $215 million extension in August that will keep him under contract through 2025-26. Curry is the first NBA player to ever sign multiple $200 million deals.
“I’m very fortunate,” Warriors owner Joe Lacob said. “This team is very different from when we bought it. The business operation is basically all different. The team is different. The coach is different. But I inherited one lucky charm. Stephen Curry was a rookie, and no one knew he would be this. That is luck. That is good fortune. …
“Steph doesn’t have one year left. Tom Brady is 44. Steph Curry is the kind of guy who takes care of himself, who works out tremendously, who is a skill-based guy that should be good for years.”
A handful of years — and maybe an overtime or two.