Stephen Curry explains Warriors' pivotal advantage over top contenders
Today at 09:49 PM
With four NBA titles, two MVPs, and the all-time three-point record under his belt, championships are still at the forefront of Stephen Curry’s mind. For Curry, the quest for ring number five is what’s pushing him in his 16th season in the league. And with the Golden State Warriors surging to 12 wins in their last 14 games with the addition of Jimmy Butler, that quest is more realistic than it’s ever been since the 2022 Finals.
But in a crowded Western Conference and multiple juggernauts lurking in the East, the Dubs are not the favorites to reach the finals like they have been in years past. On 95.7 The Game this week, Curry explained how he views the Warriors in the context of the contending field. He was asked if he believes the Warriors have a chance to win the title this season.
“Absolutely. That’s why we’re juiced to be in this position,” Curry said. “There’s six to 10 teams every year that think they can win [a championship]. You want to be in that category. It doesn’t mean that’s going to happen, we’ll see. But I like the idea that we can confidently say [from] the night to night we can beat anyone.”
The Warriors and the wild, wild West
As things currently stand in the West, the sixth seeded Warriors are staring at a herculean playoff gauntlet.
In the first round, the Warriors would likely face the Denver Nuggets and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic. If they were to get past Denver, there’s likely to be a reunion with long-time rival LeBron James and the recently acquired superstar Luka Doncic waiting for them. And if they were able to weather that storm, there will probably be a hungry Oklahoma City Thunder team led by MVP front runner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the doorsteps of a Finals appearance.
And that’s if they can hang onto the sixth seed; the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers are right on their tails. But despite the tough road ahead of them, the Warriors understand the caliber of the opponents standing in their way, as Curry elaborated in the same interview with Steiny and Guru.
“There are some really good teams out there. Boston, Cleveland, OKC, Denver, [two] of those teams have won it before, so you think about their experience,” Curry acknowledged. “But for us, we have that experience on our side. We have a good balance of veteran presence and youthful energy. Since the [Butler] trade, our roles have been clearly defined. Our rotation is pretty consistent from a night to night perspective.”
What separates Golden State from the pack
Experience, above all else, is in the Warriors’ favor. But they’ll still need their young core to assist their aging Hall of Famers.
Curry was not the first Warrior to acknowledge how the Butler-trade clarified the team’s roles. Earlier this week on the Willard and Dibs show, Steve Kerr stated that “the roster now makes perfect sense,” acknowledging the “overlapping” elements of Golden State’s roster construction the past couple of seasons.
The “juiced” feeling Curry’s talking about stems from players like Buddy Hield, Moses Moody and Brandin Podziemski understanding their roles. It stems from the supporting cast understanding how they can support the Dubs’ seasoned veteran core. And that veteran core is more than battle-tested, as Curry states in the same Steiny and Guru interview.
“At the end of the day, me, Draymond, and Jimmy, we’ve all been around. We know what it’s like to be in a playoff series. To have to figure out an opponent and how to beat them four times,” Curry explained. Between the three of them, they have 423 playoff games to their names.
“If you get us in that scenario, we like our chances.”
The post Stephen Curry explains Warriors’ pivotal advantage over top contenders appeared first on ClutchPoints.
