Stephen A. Smith took a U-turn in the Stephen Curry debate. The veteran NBA analyst has always made sure he stayed on the side of the Golden State Warriors vet. Recently, he even showered the 4x NBA Champion with ‘godly’ praise. However, in the ongoing Tracy McGrady’s brutal Curry judgement, the 56-year-old sided with the former Houston Rockets star. McGrady, reacting to a query, made a viral statement when asked if Curry made it to his Top-5. He laughed and said, “He hasn’t cracked my top 10 yet.” 

Following that, the Hall of Famer didn’t just shun the superstar for his talent but argued that he couldn’t carry the team without support. He added, “If you’re gonna be a top-five and one of your guys are missing and you can’t make the playoffs, I can’t put you in the top-five or top-10,” pointing out the Warriors’ record without Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. On the other hand, Stephen A. Smith, who took a dig at Gilbert Arenas for denying Steph as a “generational talent”, sided with McGrady!

After playing a video clip of the Rockets legend’s opinion, Smith said, “Now that makes sense.” He went on to list the names of legends like LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, and several others stating it’s hard to place the Baby-faced Assassin in the top 5. Moreover, Stephen A. further agreed, saying, “Sure you can make an argument to push Steph Curry out of the top five. Fine, I’m not going to not back T-Mac for that because again when Klay was out, GSW didn’t resemble itself”.

“When Draymond’s been out, GS didn’t resemble itself,” Smith concluded on his YouTube channel. And he agreed that Steph might need an “extraordinaire shooter” by his side to win games. While the veteran analyst went with the statement, many fans on the internet argued against it.

Is Stephen Curry not a top-5 player in the league?

Well, there is no definite answer to the question.

Every individual will have their own opinions. The only possible way a Curry fan can do this is by countering their analogy. Tracy McGrady stated that Stephen Curry couldn’t get a spot in the playoffs without the help of his core teammates, referring to the 2021 season.

But, on the floor, Curry averaged 32 points per game and played 63 games. Out of which, the Dubs had a record of 37-26, which was sufficient enough for the team to reach the top-6 seeds in the West. And, in the superstar’s absence, the team went 2-7, making it difficult to qualify. McGrady’s analogy about a superstar carrying a team to the playoff single-handedly, will not apply to Curry, as he almost achieved it if not for those 7 missed games.

These debates aren’t new for the superstar.

Every off-season, Steph gets entangled in debates with the most unique angles. In the 2023 off-season, the star guard was compared to Magic Johnson. The debate went on for a while and Curry himself shut it down, praising the Lakers legend for having a “ridiculous” resume in his 13-season-long career.

Even MJ joined the debate via text, saying, “Magic Johnson is easily the best PG of all-time. Steph Curry is very close, but not in front of Magic.” It’s easier to ignite a debate than settling it in the NBA world given the complex talents available on the floor.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow in what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.