There was a point not that long ago that the Golden State Warriors looked as good as dead. Then the team traded for Jimmy Butler and everything changed, including Steph Curry, who has reached another level since pairing with the former Miami Heat star. Steph went nuclear on the Grizzlies last night for 52 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists, and he made a statement by sinking 12 threes in the 134-125 win.
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The win jumped the Dubs over the Grizz for fifth in the West. With seven games to go, there still may be time to catch the Lakers and the Nuggets, who are only 2.0 and 2.5 games ahead, respectively.
Steph had, by his standards, a slow first half of the year. Maybe it was because he was tired from putting Team USA on his back in the Olympics, or maybe he just missed his fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson. Since the trade deadline, though, he’s been a different player, frequently dropping 30+ points and leading his team to one of the best records in the league during that stretch.
Jay Williams spoke about Curry’s renewed brilliance on Get Up this morning, and he said that this isn’t the same player who has been seen as a charming overachiever his whole career.
“He’s no longer the underdog baby-faced assassin. He is the villain now, and I think he’s embracing being the villain,” Williams said. “He’s entering a similar phase to when Kobe was Black Mamba, I think you’re entering a ‘Dark Steph’ phase.”
Similar to the way LeBron James has seemingly been rejuvenated by the arrival of Luka Doncic, Steph has been in his bag since Butler came to town, and the results have been spectacular. Both players are on the back end of their careers and know that this could be one of their last and best chances for a championship.
Could Dark Steph channel his powers to bring another championship to the Bay?
The Warriors shocked the world by winning the fourth title of the Steph era in 2022 as a 3-seed, and they’re positioning themselves to make a similar run this year. As was pointed out on Get Up, the Dubs are 18-2 when Steph and Butler play together. Last night’s game against Memphis showed just how far both Steph and the team have come.
The last time the Warriors played in Memphis was in mid-December, and Steph had the worst game of his entire career. He was held without a field goal by rookie Jaylen Wells and finished with just two points as the Grizzlies won by 51. It really felt like the end of an era. Fast forward a few months later, and the roles have been completely reversed: The Grizzlies are in panic mode, while the Warriors are thriving.
Steph isn’t backing down from anyone, as we saw when he got in Desmond Bane’s face last night. Williams said, “I think this is the scariest thing we’ve ever seen Steph Curry be at, level-wise,” and he’s right. This is bad news for the rest of the NBA and especially whoever gets matched up with the Warriors in the playoffs.
