Stephen Curry being a franchise changer should not be controversial

Stephen Curry, the two-time MVP and two-time champion, has had his abilities questioned once again. His doubters are wrong.

It’s ridiculous that I even have to write this kind of piece. I mean, what more does Stephen Curry have to do to earn more respect? Curry is, without a doubt, a franchise changer.

Outside of LeBron James, there isn’t a single player who has impacted his organization more in today’s NBA. Dirk Nowitzki is right there, but he only has one championship to his name. Curry has two.

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Social media has been on fire over the last few days with an intense debate about Curry’s value and abilities. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin got the ball rolling when he intentionally excluded the point guard from his “eight bet-the-house franchise changing solo talents.” He then listed LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Giannis Antetekounmpo, Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Kevin Durant.

He would go onto call Curry a “collaborative talent.” The league’s most lethal offensive force in the league being reduced to being labeled nothing more than a supplementary piece whose success can only be attributed to the environment around him. For what it’s worth, McMenamin covers the Cleveland Cavaliers and had them winning the NBA Finals in six games.

Yes, Steph Curry has a better team around him than any other non-Durant star in the league. His organization is in better shape than every team except for the San Antonio Spurs. He is not a product of that–he created it.

If you want to argue that Curry is only good because Steve Kerr has implemented a great offense with All-Stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green helping their point guard, just go back a few years. Check out how dominant Curry was as a rookie. Or maybe you should re-visit the 2013 NBA playoffs.

Steph Curry carried the Warriors to the sixth seed in the 2012-13 season. Sure, David Lee was an All-Star, but it wasn’t his team. And he got hurt in the first game of the playoffs.

Andre Iguodala’s Denver Nuggets had completed their best season in franchise history. They were a very good team that, by all means, should have overpowered Mark Jackson’s isolation-heavy offense. But the Warriors had the best player on the court and it wasn’t particularly close.

Curry carried the Warriors to a series victory over the Nuggets in which his third quarter explosions ended Denver’s run. Then he took the eventual Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs to six games with Jarrett Jack as his best supporting teammate.

He proved himself long before Thompson came into his own as a two-way player and Green developed into one of the most versatile players in the game. And he definitely proved himself way before Kevin Durant ever put on a Warriors jersey.

In fact, Curry proved that as a “solo talent” he can do it all, even before he went pro. He had the Davidson Wildcats a basket away from the Final Four. He gave the eventual national champions all they could take. Let’s not pretend that it wasn’t Curry who was 99 percent responsible for that successful run.

He is a two-time MVP and, now, a two-time champion. He is the first Most Valuable Player to ever be selected unanimously. He led his team to an historic 73 win regular season and, on one knee, nearly led his team to a second consecutive title against a peaking James and Kyrie Irving.

If we want to talk about a guy doing something without teammates, then look at his college track record. If we want to talk about doing that at the professional level, then look at when Curry took a second year Thompson, rookie Harrison Barnes, injured Lee, misused Green, and an injury-prone Andrew Bogut in a horrible offensive system to the second round of the playoffs. If we want to talk about individual brilliance that translates to winning, then look at the last three years.

Curry isn’t a “collaborative talent.” He isn’t a “contextual megastar.” He is the context. He is the system.

We just watched Kevin Durant get every single opportunity in the paint in Game 1 of the NBA Finals because the Cleveland Cavaliers were putting two guys on Curry at the three-point line in transition. I don’t think teams are double-teaming him 35 feet away from the rim because of his teammates. It seems unlikely that his unprecedented ability to stretch out an offense to a breaking point and cause chaos has anything to do with Green’s defensive prowess.

None of this would be possible without Curry. They don’t win a championship without him, let alone two. They don’t attract Durant without him. They don’t turn into the premier franchise without having a selfless star like him running the show.

Curry is a franchise changer. I can say that with confidence because he has done it and not just with the Warriors. Look at what he’s done to teams around the league.

The Nuggets fired George Karl and their General Manager. The New Orleans Pelicans fired their head coach after he swept them. The Memphis Grizzlies fired Dave Joerger after he snatched their souls. The Rockets fired Kevin McHale in the aftermath of getting dominated as the two seed.

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Most notably, Steph Curry has broken LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. It’s clear James resents Curry for who he is and how he’s risen. And the Cavaliers fired their head coach after the Warriors destroyed them and now they are panicking because they need to find a way to improve to beat Golden State, but they don’t have a GM. Now there are rumors that James and Irving might both be on the way out.

Curry didn’t change just one franchise. He’s changed them all. He’s revolutionized the game of basketball and everyone is trying to play catch up while getting constantly bludgeoned from 30 feet out.