Paul Pierce Equates Stephen Curry’s ‘Night Night’ to Hulk Hogan’s ‘Atomic Leg Drop,’ Talks About Putting Klay Thompson to Bed

Emotions were at an all-time high during Klay Thompson’s highly anticipated return to Golden State. The five-time All-Star left the Warriors to join the Mavericks during the offseason. He helped propel the team to six NBA Finals, where they won four championships. Although the night was about Klay, his backcourt mate of 11 years, Stephen Curry spoiled Thompson’s night.

Thompson and Curry changed the landscape of the NBA with their high volume of three-pointers in the early 2010s. They earned the nickname ‘The Splash Brothers’ en route to revolutionizing the way each team plays. Curry rightfully deserves credit for building the foundation of the franchise. However, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett couldn’t undermine the impact Thompson had during his tenure. Garnett took to ‘TICKET & THE TRUTH’ to share his opinion on Klay’s status in the franchise. He said,

“He done built that up. Everybody you got in here you put the flag down. We all did this together.”

Klay’s reception from the fans at the Chase Center reflected the amount of work and effort he poured into his time in Golden State. The competitive spirit he carried as a Warrior was on full display in his first matchup against his former team.

The Mavericks and Warriors went toe-to-toe in the final minutes of the game. Dallas seemingly had the game in the palm of their hands until Curry took over in a matter of minutes. The two-time MVP scored the Warriors’ last 12 points while connecting on a dagger three-pointer over the outstretched arms of big man Derrick Lively.

Curry infamously hit the Mavericks with his iconic ‘Night-Night’ celebration after his game-sealing three-pointer. Garnett adamantly stood behind the notion that Curry is the “most disrespectful guy in the league.” Albeit disrespectful, the two Hall-of-Famers believe Curry’s ‘Night-Night’ celebration is entering legendary status. They placed Curry’s celebration as equivalent to some of the most iconic in sports. Pierce highlighted that it is on par with WWF superstar Hulk Hogan’s legendary ‘Atomic Leg Drop.’

They went on to continue comparing Curry’s celebration to other popular signature moves in wrestling. Pierce mentioned Killer Kelly’s ‘Killer Klutch’, along with The Ultimate Warrior’s ‘Running Splash’.

Curry’s ‘Night-Night’ celebration is fairly new as he first introduced it in Game 5 of the Warriors’ first-round series against the Nuggets in 2022. However, once he uses it, the fate of the opposing team is solidified.

Boston fans hate Curry’s celebration

Although Garnett and Pierce are huge fans of the signature move, the fanbase of their former team despises Curry for it. During Garnett’s rant of admiration for Curry’s killer celebration, he had to refrain himself due to Bostonians “hating” the signature move.

The reason for the negative emotions towards Curry’s finisher is due to the Warriors star breaking Celtic hearts in the 2022 NBA Finals. In the deciding Game 6 against the Celtics, Curry connected on a dagger three-pointer to put the Warriors up 15 points with just over three minutes remaining. He walked back on defense, doing the ‘Night-Night’ celebration while staring at the Boston crowd.

In the same game, Curry taunted fans with another celebration. Following a deep transition three-pointer in the third quarter, he ran to the crowd and pointed at his ring finger. The celebration earned the name ‘Ring Me’.

Curry is one of the greatest showmen in the NBA. Even at 36 years old, he continues to electrify audiences, and his game against the Mavericks proved he doesn’t care who he’s up against, he’ll always put on a show.