In Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Steph Curry answered all of the questions he’s been consistently peppered with.
He silenced the doubters and was elevated to the status he’s always deserved but unfairly denied access to.
After winning his fourth NBA title, Wardell Stephen Curry II was finally deemed an All-Time NBA great by media pundits and fans who formerly refused to grant him admission into the club of NBA elites.
And that’s despite having a Hall of Fame-ready resume that includes history-making and record-setting accolades.
But Steph embraced the hate, accepted the challenge and proved the haters wrong.
Now Chef Curry is a 4x NBA champion.
And he did it without Kevin Durant, something most Curry doubters always pointed to when discussing his career.
There’s no disputing Durant’s greatness, but it shouldn’t overshadow the greatness of Curry.
Aside from his four titles, Curry has two NBA MVPs, two scoring titles, one All-Star Game MVP and one Finals MVP, the latter two of which he earned this season.
In this year’s Finals, Curry led both teams in scoring with 31.2 ppg.
But his game has been elite all season.
He was tenth in scoring with 25.5 ppg.
At the 2022 NBA All-Star Game, Curry dropped 16 three-pointers en route to a 50-point night and All-Star MVP.
”It’s right on the nose of how it should go,” Curry said after the game.
It was a prophetic statement as the season went the way it was supposed to go for the game’s deadliest shooter.
On December 14th, 2021, Curry broke Ray Allen’s record for most three-pointers made when he hits his 2,974th shot against the Knicks in MSG. He finished the game with five threes and 22 points.
Even scarier is the fact that he broke the record in 789 games, 511 fewer than it took Allen to accomplish the feat (1,300).
Yet instead of celebrating him, some chose to dampen the moment by ridiculously comparing him to LeBron.
It was almost comical.
Two weeks later against the Nuggets, Curry set another record when he became the first player in NBA history to hit 3,000 three-pointers.
Despite those amazing accomplishments, some of which probably won’t ever be broken in this lifetime, doubters kept dismissing him.
Curry is the game’s greatest shooter ever but he wasn’t considered one of the greatest players ever.
He only played in 64 games this year, so he wasn’t included in the MVP discussion.
Andrew Wiggins finally balled out, so his resurgence cast a shadow over Curry’s Finals MVP chances.
And the excuses raged on and on.
Yet Curry persevered and continued winning.
When Draymond Green and Klay Thompson were off, Curry carried the team.
And now he’s a four-time champion.
Steph Curry should never have been dismissed.
He has single-handedly changed the game in a way that no player has since, arguably, Michael Jordan.
Back then, everybody wanted to be like Mike.
Now they all want to shoot like Steph.
Need proof?
Watch a pickup game to see how many kids are practicing their stepback threes, even more than their foul shooting or layups.
Visit the blacktop to see how many are lining up behind the arc or pulling up from 25 feet or more, particularly on fast breaks.
That’s Curry’s impact on the game.
He’s changed the way players practice and the way offenses scheme.
Curry has influenced basketball over the last few years, placing the game’s emphasis on range instead of in the paint.
He’s joined LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabar and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to win Finals MVP and multiple league MVPs and scoring titles.
He’s joined LeBron, Tim Duncan, Jordan, Magic Johnson, Abdul-Jabar and Bill Russell as the seventh player with four NBA titles and multiple MVPs.
And he’s the greatest shooter in NBA history with the receipts to prove it.
I don’t understand why it took so long for some to admit Steph Curry into the VIP room of NBA elites, but it’s finally happening.
Now all that’s left is for them to apologize to him for taking so damn long.
