Steph Curry Reminded Everyone Who the Best is

Steph Curry returned to action, scoring 40 points in the game and 17 in overtime. He reminded everyone that he is still the best player in basketball.

Conventional wisdom suggests that when you don’t do something for three weeks, it’s going to take you some time to get back into the swing of things.

It’s a good thing for Warriors fans, then, that Stephen Curry defies all conventional wisdom. After suffering a Grade 1 MCL sprain in Game 4 of the opening round against the Houston Rockets, Curry has watched his team from the sidelines. The Warriors closed out the Rockets in 5 and jumped out to a 2-1 lead against the Portland Trail Blazers.

As Draymond Green and Klay Thompson showcased all of their abilities on the national stage, Curry was working, strengthening his knee so he could return to the court. Everyone asked: should he come back this round? Should the Warriors keep them out until the Western Conference Finals or until they’re down 3-1?

Then, ahead of Game 4, there were rumblings that the recently-announced 2x MVP could return to the court.

Head coach Steve Kerr told media that if his point guard had a comfortable pre-game warmup and he could do all the things he wanted to then Curry would play. He added that the superstar would only play 25 minutes or so, coming off the bench for the first time in four years.

Curry got off to a slow start as expected, but still impacted the game. Immediately upon entering the game, the Warriors, who had been struggling to muster offense, were able to get a wide open three in the corner. He hit a midrange jumper then he air balled an off-the-dribble three-pointer energizing the frenzied Portland crowd even more. He missed his first 10 attempts from long range, hitting his 11th and shimmying.

He helped lead a comeback as Portland tried to hold their early lead, bringing Golden State all the way back into it. With the shot clock off, the Warriors had the ball and Curry isolated. He drove on the right side with time winding down shooting a runner off glass that didn’t stay down.

Then history happened.

Curry dominated overtime. He scored a record 17 points, hitting an array of ridiculous shots. After knocking down a trey over Al Farouq-Aminu, Curry turned to the packed Portland crowd and said “I’m here. I’m back.”

This was a signature performance. Curry’s 40 point output on the road and off the bench after missing three weeks with a knee injury is one of the greatest playoff performances in league history. It may not be LeBron James‘ 29 straight points or Michael Jordan‘s hangover “Flu Game,” but it truly was special in it’s own right.

Curry surely heard all the talk while he was recovering:

Damian Lillard is just as good as him. He’s not the MVP–his team is doing just fine without him. He’s soft for not playing.

You can bet that he took note of all the things that were said. Then he crossed everyone that said them up and knocked down a step back three in their face. He was out for a while. Perhaps folks forgot just how good he is. Perhaps they were trying to build up all these narratives, to discredit him while he was out in order to try to sway public perception of him.

The two-time MVP is back. And he’s still the best basketball player in the world.