Passing through JJ Redick’s “The Old Man and the Three” podcast, Stephen Curry returned to Game 4 of the last Finals, the match that tipped the series in favor of the Warriors, crowned NBA champions in stride.
The leader of the Warriors had to work, at the end of the match in particular, to reverse the course of the match and allow his team to leave with victory. He had even let go several times vis-à-vis the Boston public, especially in relation to the pressure that rested on his shoulders that evening.
“It was intentional, the way I approached this game. Because it’s kind of been the tipping point of the last three years, between injuries, for my teammates, then myself, doubts, to know if and when we would return to this level, after fighting for make the “play-in” the previous year, until last season. We thought we could go there, but we didn’t really know, because it was a new group, and the executives were older. There were a lot of questions. But we stayed in the present moment and we made it to the Finals », did he remember.
A new context
This is the first time that Golden State has found itself in this context. Unlike previous finals lost by the Warriors, it was not the absence (Draymond Green in 2016) or the injury of a player (Klay Thompson in 2019) that sent Steve Kerr’s training down a slippery slope.
“It was different because it was Boston, a hostile environment, and it was also different in a way, because it was a new test for us. When we lose Game 3 in this environment, we said to ourselves: ‘It’s going to be a dogfight’. We knew it when we arrived, but it was different emotionally.he added. “We enter this first quarter where we quickly find ourselves trailing 12-4. We’re gradually picking up the momentum, but I think we’re still behind when I put that shot in and start yelling at the crowd, saying it was gonna be a fucking different game now. My mom got mad at me for choosing those words. It’s true, but I was bringing out something new, as if to say: ‘I’m here, we’re here’. The parade is not yet for now, contrary to what the 19,000 people said in unison at each possession. It was a way of saying: ‘We are here, and we will answer, and we will see what happens’. »
His performance was exceptional and changed the outcome of the series. For having delivered one of his most successful matches while his team was back to the wall, this Game 4 remains (for the moment) the favorite of his career.
“A lot of people talk about the way we play, the fact that it’s all over the place, that it’s poetic, with a lot of movement. It requires a lot of talent but also the most competitive guys. And we have the most competitive guys. Klay is the most competitive guy I’ve played with. He is so determined. Draymond is the same, Andre too, and me too. This game just required another level of response from us. And I wanted to guide that a bit, even though we were trailing in the first quarter and I wasn’t sure what I was talking about, but I was like, ‘We go for it'”he continued. “Game 4 is clearly the favorite match of my career because of the stakes it contained, the fact that if we lost this match, who knows if we would then have had the chance to win the title again”.
| Stephen Curry | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2009-10 | GOS | 80 | 36 | 46.2 | 43.7 | 88.5 | 0.6 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 5.9 | 3.2 | 1.9 | 3.0 | 0.2 | 17.5 |
| 2010-11 | GOS | 74 | 34 | 48.0 | 44.2 | 93.4 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 5.8 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 0.3 | 18.6 |
| 2011-12 | GOS | 26 | 28 | 49.0 | 45.5 | 80.9 | 0.6 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 5.3 | 2.4 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 0.3 | 14.7 |
| 2012-13 | GOS | 78 | 38 | 45.1 | 45.3 | 90.0 | 0.8 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 6.9 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 3.1 | 0.2 | 22.9 |
| 2013-14 | GOS | 78 | 37 | 47.1 | 42.4 | 88.5 | 0.6 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 8.5 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 3.8 | 0.2 | 24.0 |
| 2014-15 ★ | GOS | 80 | 33 | 48.7 | 44.3 | 91.4 | 0.7 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 7.7 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.1 | 0.2 | 23.8 |
| 2015-16 ★ | GOS | 79 | 34 | 50.4 | 45.4 | 90.8 | 0.9 | 4.6 | 5.4 | 6.7 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 3.3 | 0.2 | 30.1 |
| 2016-17 | GOS | 79 | 33 | 46.8 | 41.1 | 89.8 | 0.8 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 6.6 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 3.0 | 0.2 | 25.3 |
| 2017-18 | GOS | 51 | 32 | 49.5 | 42.3 | 92.1 | 0.7 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 6.1 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 3.0 | 0.2 | 26.4 |
| 2018-19 | GOS | 69 | 34 | 47.2 | 43.7 | 91.6 | 0.7 | 4.7 | 5.4 | 5.2 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 27.3 |
| 2019-20 | GOS | 5 | 28 | 40.2 | 24.5 | 100.0 | 0.8 | 4.4 | 5.2 | 6.6 | 2.2 | 1.0 | 3.2 | 0.4 | 20.8 |
| 2020-21 | GOS | 63 | 34 | 48.2 | 42.1 | 91.6 | 0.5 | 5.0 | 5.5 | 5.8 | 1.9 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 0.1 | 32.0 |
| 2021-22 | GOS | 64 | 35 | 43.7 | 38.0 | 92.3 | 0.5 | 4.7 | 5.2 | 6.3 | 2.0 | 1.3 | 3.2 | 0.4 | 25.5 |
| 2022-23 | GOS | 16 | 35 | 52.9 | 44.7 | 90.3 | 0.6 | 6.1 | 6.7 | 7.1 | 2.1 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 32.3 |
| Total | 842 | 34 | 47.5 | 42.8 | 90.8 | 0.7 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 6.5 | 2.4 | 1.7 | 3.1 | 0.2 | 24.4 | |
