“Those Are Jordan’s Numbers”: JJ Redick Reveals Why Warriors Star Stephen Curry is Disrespected in the NBA

Some players achieve so much, only to be nitpicked and criticized by the fans. James Harden and Russell Westbrook, both are former MVPs, but they’re also two of the most hated players in the league. Another player belonging in this category is Stephen Curry. The first-ever unanimous MVP in NBA history is often disrespected, and has also been called a one-trick pony.

On the JJ Redick podcast, Redick and ESPN’s Bomani Jones talked about this matter. Redick said, “You’re talking about a guy who’s okay defensively; he led the league in steals (in 2016). He averaged for his career, around five or six rebounds a game. He’s getting you six to seven assists a game. His MVP year: those are Jordan’s numbers. 30, 6, and 5 in like 32 minutes. Not playing in the fourth quarter sometimes. I think it’s the way he gets his numbers is what people have a problem with.”

Warriors’ dominance restricted Stephen Curry from being unleashed in playoffs?

During the 2015 playoffs, the Warriors lost just five times. They were never in a pressure situation. In the 2017 playoffs, they were even more dominant, as they lost only once throughout the whole postseason. So this never gave Curry an under-pressure game to shine extra.

“Playoff Steph just never quite felt like the Steph that we had prior to that. In all these runs, we don’t have a game like LeBron game 6 in Boston for example. That has a lot to do with the fact that the Warriors are out here beating everybody by like 10-15 points. When you go through a whole postseason with only one loss, you don’t have a game to point to. There is no back to the wall situation.”

Curry has been one of the most selfless superstars and has always been a big team player. His mindset has never been on acquiring any individual accolades, he just wants his team to win. With him and Klay Thompson returning from injury next season, they will be coming off a season of rest and all fresh. His focus will just be on the title and proving he can win without Kevin Durant once more.

Sources:

Stephen Curry on Basketball Reference

Bomani Jones on the Importance of Using One’s Platform Correctly | The JJ Redick Podcast