Stephen Curry doesn’t need anyone raving about his abilities on the floor at this point in his career. He’s a two-time NBA MVP and league champion with the Golden State Warriors, holds the record for most threes in a season, and seems to be a lock for the Hall of Fame at age 29.
But that doesn’t mean his head coach won’t answer questions when asked. That’s why Steve Kerr had some high praise for Curry ahead of the NBA season’s start when he spoke with the media on Friday. Kerr called Curry the “most impactful offensive player” in the league, though that was just the start of it.
The line of questioning starts at about the 10 minute mark of the video, which was taken on Friday. Kerr starts by saying Curry is poised for his best season yet.
“I think Steph is at his absolute peak right now,” Kerr said. “Physically, emotionally. This is probably as good as he’s ever going to be. I think he’s better now than he was last year or the year before, and that’s saying something.”
Kerr took that a step further an suggested that he may be the most powerful offensive talent the game has ever seen, though he deferred to Jordan and the like in the process.
“He is the most impactful offensive player in terms of what he does to the defense maybe ever. There’s guys, obviously, Michael Jordan impacted things. But the way he puts the fear of god into defenses like nobody I’ve ever seen.”
He also said his unique ability to score from distance fundamentally changed the way the Warriors can play the game.
“Nobody’s been able to shoot off the dribble from 35 feet in a normal setting,” Kerr said. “But he does that, which changes the entire game.”
Kerr admitted that “everything we do revolves around Steph,” which is pretty obvious. But it’s interesting to see a coach speak honestly about the assets he has on his team, and just how important Curry is to what the Warriors do. They could probably win a title without him, the talent on the roster is just good, but what makes the Dubs so transformative a franchise is what they’ve done collectively by maximizing the output of its individual parts.
It’s probably also why few want to leave Golden State for greener pastures when they have the chance.
