The Serbians almost broke the USA’s gold medal dream in the Olympic Semis. However, Stephen Curry had saved his best performance in the Olympics for the crucial bout. He drilled five triples in the first quarter itself, which kept Serbia from building a 20+ points lead in the first half. The sharpshooter also showed up in the clutch and finished with 36 points, carrying his squad to a four-point win. Since then, the 4x champion has been showered with adulation from fans, analysts, and his teammates alike.
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His former Golden State Warriors running mate Kevin Durant admired his performance by claiming that the Lord himself was communicating through Curry’s bonkers scoring display. Meanwhile, an art connoisseur has also found another divine link to the Team USA guard.
An X handle on artworks found a parallel between a Renaissance painting about Jesus Christ with one of Stephen Curry’s iconic moments during the game.
With under 3 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Curry got a wide-open look as Serbian guard Aleksa Avramović flopped to get a whistle in his favor. But when Avramović realized that he had committed a huge mistake by leaving the world’s best three-point shooter open, he put a hand on his forehead in despair. His facial expressions clearly indicated that he had messed up big time.
The image of the Serb guard’s reaction on the floor as Curry calmly took the three-pointer made various rounds on social media as this was the turning point in the game that gave Team USA a one-point lead over the Serbs. The X handle in question attached the viral picture to a portion of the 1455 painting by Dutch painter Dieric Bouts called ‘The Resurrection’.
As the name suggests, the painting shows the return of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion. In the 569-year-old Renaissance painting, Jesus Christ is emerging out of his tomb with a cross-shaped Staff in his hand.
One of the three guards in the vicinity is overwhelmed by the light that is emanating from Jesus, because of which he shields his eyes by placing his right hand around his forehead area. Thus, Curry’s effect on Avramović here is likened to Christ’s effect on the Roman guard as both watch in disbelief.
Resurrection, by Dieric Bouts, 1455, 📸 by @aytcunal pic.twitter.com/7x985lDgd6
— ArtButMakeItSports (@ArtButSports) August 9, 2024
Just like Stephen Curry, this painting is also viewed as a masterpiece. Art Museum Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena bought Bouts’ The Resurrection for a whopping $3.7 million in 1980! It is $14.1 million in 2024 when adjusted for inflation.
Fittingly, both the Warriors guard and the celebrated painting currently reside in the state of California.
