SAN FRANCISCO — Steph Curry’s summer included an iconic performance at the Paris Olympics and a one-year contract extension that keeps him with the Warriors through the 2026-27 season.
His summer also featured his first scripted television show (and acting performance), his annual Curry Cup tour for equity in golf, an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris and a trip to China.
Curry never runs out of energy. But after so much going on this summer, sitting at the podium in the Chase Center’s Bill King Interview Room for media day must’ve been a relief. Finally, back to basketball.
“I’m super excited to be back and to figure out what this team needs to do to win and just the challenge of putting all the pieces together,” Curry, 36, said.
Because the Warriors missed the postseason, this summer was Curry’s longest non-COVID offseason in more than a decade. All of his responsibilities certainly sped things along, but the superstar point guard is eager to get to Hawaii for training camp and open the puzzle box.
“We’ve got a lot of new faces and a lot of guys trying to take the next steps in their careers,” Curry said. “It’s going to be fun from Day One tomorrow when we hit the court and start getting our reps in. We say it all the time in training camp, it is a way of thinking if you want to be great in this league, but it is true for us more than ever: Every day does matter for us to be able to figure this thing out.”
Putting the pieces together, Curry said, might require a tweaking of philosophy. The Warriors have used their “0.5 basketball” system to the highest of heights. But with new personnel, new schemes and styles could emerge.
On both sides of the ball for the past two years, Curry said the Warriors have played “some stagnant ball at times.” Involving and empowering younger players like Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski could be a step toward unlocking the next iteration of Golden State’s brand of basketball.
“I’m coming into this training camp with an open mind of how we’re supposed to play,” Curry said. “I know there’s a Warrior mentality and culture of how we do things, there’s a system that we ran for a decade plus that has worked. It doesn’t necessarily mean that’s how this team needs to play. We have to have kind of antennas up on and an openness to accept what this team’s strengths are, what our weaknesses are, and kind of lean into those.”
Last season, Curry averaged 26.4 points and 5.1 assists per game. A third-team All-NBA selection and All-Star, Curry was also named the league’s Clutch Player of the Year.
But the season was trying at times. He was visibly upset when Draymond Green got ejected in a late-season game in Orlando. Questions about the future of his fellow Splash Brother, Klay Thompson, hung over the team — especially late.
Despite winning 46 games, the Warriors …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
