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“Forget LeBron James, would you take Stephen Curry or Michael Jordan?”: When Stephen A Smith was bit a little too hard with the Baby Faced Assassin’s bug

Raahib Singh
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"Forget LeBron James, would you take Stephen Curry or Michael Jordan?": When Stephen A Smith was bit a little too hard with the Baby Faced Assassin's bug

When ESPN Analyst Stephen A Smith picked Stephen Curry over LeBron James and compared him to Michael Jordan

Back in 2015, Stephen Curry was having the time of his life. The 6’2 guard had just won his first MVP trophy and a championship for his team. They met LeBron James and his Cavs in the Finals, taking them down 4-2, winning the first ring for the Warriors in 40 years.

Stephen Curry led that campaign and did the exact same to kick off the 2015-16 season. The Warriors, in Steve Kerr’s absence, went 24-0 to start the season. Their first loss of the year came to the Milwaukee Bucks, midway through December.

Also Read: “Sit your a** down mom!”: LeBron James yelled at his own mother to not get involved between him and Paul Pierce during Cavaliers-Celtics ECSF in 2008

During the first 2 months of the season, Stephen Curry was on a world of his own. The reigning MVP was seemingly unstoppable. His dominance in the league was so apparent, analysts stopped comparing him with LeBron James for the best player in the NBA. Instead, they started comparing him to the GOAT himself.

Stephen Curry was constantly getting compared to Michael Jordan

To kick off the 2015-16 season, Stephen Curry already was proving to us why he deserved his unanimous MVP that season. In October 2015, he averaged 39.3 points, 7.3 assists, and 5.7 rebounds. In November, he averaged 30.1 points, 5.8 assists, and 5.1 rebounds. He did all that while shooting 59% from the field, and 48.6% from the deep.

Curry’s hype had grown so much, that ESPN analyst Stephen A Smith went on-air on First Take, and made a bold claim. Earlier, Steph was getting compared to LeBron James as the best player in the league. However, his start to the 2015-16 season had people comparing him to the best player ever. Stephen A Smith and his co-host Brad Daugherty tried comparing the Warriors’ star to Michael Jordan.

The Warriors eventually went on to beat Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls’ NBA record of 72 wins. They went on to win 73 games and set an NBA record. Steph ended the season with 30.1 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.4 rebounds.

Also Read: “I was fined $156,000 for missing Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals against LeBron James!”: Warriors’ Draymond Green shares the absurdity of technical fouls he received against San Antonio

Even though Steph can’t match MJ’s GOAT status, he sure is the GOAT shooter, and would go down as the greatest ever to do the same.

About the author

Raahib Singh

Raahib Singh

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Raahib Singh is an NBA Journalist and Content Strategist at The SportsRush. A Computer Science Engineer by qualification, Raahib's passion for sports drew him towards TSR. He started playing basketball at 14 and has been following the NBA since 2013. His entry into the basketball world perfectly coincided with Stephen Curry putting the league on notice. Having followed the league for a long time, he decided to use his knowledge to become a sportswriter with The SportsRush in 2020. Raahib loves to put up some shots in his spare time, watch Cricket, Formula 1, and/or read a nice thriller.

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