2015, 2017, 2018, 2022. Sound familiar? If you’re a Steph Curry fan, those numbers should hit you like a buzzer-beater. Those are the years when Steph changed the game and walked away with championship rings to prove it. In an era where LeBron James and Kevin Durant dominated headlines, Steph quietly built his own empire, shot by shot, ring by ring. And the wild part is he’s still getting better. More dangerous. More confident. More lethal. And when Shaquille O’Neal hinted that Steph might belong in that rare air, many weren’t ready for this. But now even Paul Pierce is starting to change his tune. And definitely not in the quietest manner.

Steph Curry’s got the kind of resume that most players dream about and he’s not even done yet. Two FIBA World Cups. Olympic gold. Four NBA rings. Back-to-back MVPs. Eleven-time All-Star. And yet, people still hesitate to put him in the GOAT talk? Come on. Even Shaq had enough. During a TNT broadcast, he basically said, “Put Steph in the MJ, Kobe, LeBron convo.” And just when you think, maybe that’s just Shaq being Shaq, guess who steps in? Paul Pierce. Yeah. That Paul Pierce. The guy who used to go toe-to-toe with LeBron. Now he’s backing Steph too.

In a recent episode of Speak on FS1, Paul Pierce, The Truth himself, finally spoke up about a question fans keep dodging. What if Steph Curry grabs one more championship? What if he finally gets that elusive Finals MVP? According to Paul, that could change everything. He said, “If Steph Curry wins the championship or one more championship, let’s just say this year gets the Finals MVP… we are gonna have some very, very, very uncomfortable conversations.” And honestly? He might not be wrong. Because yeah, it’s still LeBron’s era. But if Steph grabs a fifth title in that same era? 

That’s some serious weight. Just like Shaq, Paul doubled down on it, saying, “In the LeBron era, five chips… a unanimous MVP… that gotta hold some kind of weight. It’s never been done.” And he didn’t stop at just LeBron. If a player can outshine LeBron in his prime era, you can’t ignore him for much longer. And even he is willing to put him with Michael Jordan. As he said, “We are gonna [be] putting Steph up there with Michael Jordan.”

Paul Pierce just doubled down on the same tune Shaquille O’Neal was humming a few months ago. And guess what? Everything Shaq said back then about Steph Curry is starting to look really accurate. But do you know why Shaq told fans to start putting Steph in that GOAT conversation? If not, maybe it’s time to rewind the tape and watch that Paris 24 showdown.

Shaquille O’Neal hails Stephen Curry’s ascendancy, and Paris became his silent sermon

Steph Curry is already a star in the regular season. But he has a real tendency to put his best game when it matters the most. Remember the 2024 Olympics? Yeah, that one. It has rewritten his legacy. That’s why Shaq stood tall and said, “I demand you fans to start putting Steph Curry in that greatest of all time conversation.” And honestly? That’s not blasphemy. That’s just facts wrapped in respect.

Steph’s performance against Serbia? It might be the best Olympic showing we’ve ever seen. He dropped 36 points, hit nine threes, and dragged Team USA back from a 17-point hole. Seventeen! Thirteen of those came in the fourth quarter. He turned pressure into fuel and took over when the team needed a savior. And Steph didn’t flinch. He showed up. He delivered. And he carried that team on his back. So now the question is simple: If that guy doesn’t belong in the GOAT convo, who really does?

But just like Shaquille O’Neal, there is another one who believes the same thing. It’s Steve Kerr, Steph’s coach with both Team USA and the Warriors. A guy who’s seen greatness from the front row. When told about Shaq’s bold “GOAT” claim, Kerr didn’t flinch either. “I think he’s dead on,” Kerr said. “Steph is the most unique superstar of all time,” Kerr continued. That’s not a casual endorsement. That’s a head coach who’s been around the biggest names in the sport, MJ, Tim Duncan, LeBron, and still puts Steph in that rare air.

First, it was Shaq. Then Coach Steve Kerr chimed in. Now, even Paul Pierce is singing the same tune. Yes, the narrative is shifting and fast. So here’s the real question… Will Steph Curry ever reach that Michael Jordan level of greatness? Or will he always be an underdog, stuck in the shadow of LeBron James, no matter how many rings he gets?