BOSTON – There were a few seconds left in Stephen Curry’s NBA season when he spotted his father Dell sitting on one of the baselines. He went to hug him, then fell into the court in tears.
“Surreal,” Curry said. I just wanted to take the moment because it was so special.
For six games in the NBA Finals, Curry gave Golden State a narrow spectrum of feats that ranged from extraordinary to sublime. He walked along the defenders’ walls to stand up and down, and back for the fading jumpers. He charmed some fans while demoralizing others. He looked for the spotlight, then filled it.
He effectively turned the court into his personal theater and the Celtics into his helpless foils, presenting performance after performance in a two-week series whose only drawback was that almost anyone could start waiting for the end – with Curry leaving the stage again as champion.
After Golden State beat Boston 103-90 on Thursday to win their fourth title in eight seasons, the 34-year-old Curry is pondering the long road back to the top: injuries and one-sided losses, doubt and uncertainty. He also recalled the exact moment when he started preparing for the beginning of this season – 371 days ago.
“These last two months of the playoffs, these last three years, these last 48 hours – every part of it was an emotional roller coaster ride on and off the floor,” Curry said, “and you wear it all every day to try. to realize a dream and a goal, as we did tonight. “
The numbers tell a story and are worth highlighting. For the series, Curry averaged 31.2 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, while shooting 48.2 percent of the field and 43.7 percent of 3 points. He was unanimously chosen as the most useful player in the finals.
“He took us,” said Drayman Green of Golden State, “and we’re here as champions.”
But there was also artistry in Curry’s work, and it was a profound reminder of everything he did to change the way fans – and even fellow players – think about the game. The way he stretches the court with his interplanetary shooting. The way he uses post players to create a pick-and-roll space. The way he boosted the confidence of younger players everywhere.
“When I go home to Milwaukee and watch my AAU team play and train, everyone wants to be Steph,” said Kevan Looney of Golden State. “Everyone wants to shoot 3, and I say to myself, ‘Man, you have to work a little harder to shoot like him.’ I see him every day. ”
For two seasons, of course, after the disastrous trip of Golden State to the finals in 2019, part of this joy was missing. The warriors fought through a slow recovery.
The team reassembled the pieces this season, but there were no guarantees. Curry missed the last 12 games of the regular season with a sprained left leg, then exacerbated the injury in match 3 of the finals. All he did in Game 4 was score 43 points to help Golden State tie the game in two games.
He showed that he was dead in Game 5, missing all nine attempts for 3 points, but his supporting role filled the gap. Among them: Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole, who developed their games during the playoffs at the Golden State and were indispensable this postseason.
“Our young boys had the faith that we could go back to that stage and win,” Curry said. “And even if it didn’t make sense to anyone when we said it, all these things matter.”
For game 6 on Thursday, Curry burst out full buffet. He used a fake pump to send Al Horford from the Celtics to an expensive row of seats. He lures defenders into traps and zipper passes of teammates. And after great excitement in the third quarter, he glared at the crowd and pointed his ring finger. (Translation: He was ready for more jewelry.)
Curry became emotional when Boston coach Name Udoka collected his reserves from the bench with just over a minute left, releasing the series and the championship. Standing alone in the middle of the field, Curry seemed to be laughing and crying at the same time, a euphoric mixture of feelings.
“You can imagine the emotions, but it’s different,” he said.
In a sports world engulfed in debates, uninformed opinions and hot social media views, two stars – unfair – seemed to follow Curry like fumes. The first was that he neither helped his team win the title without Kevin Durant, nor defeated an opponent in the final, which is in full force. The second was that he was not named MVP of the finals
Whether he cared or not, Curry effectively canceled both stories against the Celtics, a team that had all its young stars in uniform and even had Marcus Smart, the league’s defending champion of the year, spending good parts of the series with his hands tucked in. Curry’s T-shirt.
For his part, Golden State coach Steve Kerr said Curry’s autobiography lacked only one achievement: an Olympic gold medal. (It should be noted that Kerr is the coach of the men’s national team of the United States.)
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist,” Kerr said dead. “Honestly, all the work for the MVP in the finals?” I guess his career has been so flawless and that’s the only thing we can actually find. So it’s great to check this box for it. But it’s really hard for me to think that this is actually directed against him.
After the match, when the players and coaches of Golden State began to gather on the stage for the presentation of the trophy, Curry hugged each of them, one by one.
“Top again, 30!” Looney said, referring to Curry’s uniform number.
Then, as Curry made her way to a tunnel by the court, the detained fans insisted on moving closer to the court, closer to Curry, before he disappeared from view. He ate a winning cigar while holding his MVP trophy in the final, pushing it up once, twice, three times.
No one could miss it.
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