Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry surprisingly ranked in top three of S/I’s top 100 list

Steph Curry, the Golden State Warriors superstar point guard, came in at No. 3 in S/I’s list of the top 100 NBA players of 2019.

Sports Illustrated gave Steph Curry love, more love than Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and many other stars. It’s about time Curry gets the national attention he has rightfully earned.

Two S/I writers, Ben Golliver and Rob Mahoney compiled this list of the NBA’s top players of 2019. Mahoney, who was given the task to pen Curry’s importance, did it brilliantly.

Here’s an excerpt of what he said. The full article can be seen here.

"You know the standards with Curry (26.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 6.1 APG) are well and truly out of control when a 50-40-90 championship season is met with a collective yawn. This is just par for the course when you’re the superstar at the heart of one of the greatest teams of all time, not to mention the very reason for that team’s existence. Kevin Durant would not have come to the Warriors if not for Curry. It was the environment that Curry had helped foster that enticed Durant in the first place, and it was Curry’s willingness to accommodate Durant that sealed the deal. A dynastic team was born because Curry is exceptional even among superstars.Curry and the Warriors are a great match of player and system, but again: it’s the particulars in Curry’s game that make it viable. The entire ecosystem is predicated on the idea that a player doesn’t need to dominate the ball to dominate a game. Curry took that noble idea and elevated it beyond any reasonable expectation."

He’s absolutely correct too. Without the remarkable come up of guard Steph Curry, this entire ecosystem that is the Golden State Warriors might never have happened. Without Curry, it all would be different.

However, Curry did evolve. He became a two-time MVP. He managed to shatter how the NBA conceives the three-point line. We often times forget that during his MVP season of 2015-2016, Curry averaged 5.1 threes per game.

Curry has done the unthinkable. At 6-foot-3 and not all that athletic, it’s Curry’s work ethic that’s taken him to the next level. Seeking his fourth ring in five seasons, Curry will be back again, and for the first time, he’ll begin the season with a three to start his age.

Now 30-years-old, it’ll be interesting to see how Curry can continue to dominate the NBA. He’s seen injuries derail him during the last two postseasons, so how can he counterbalance those injuries. Can he stay on the court?

That’ll be the big question as Curry enters his tenth season in the league.

You nailed it, S/I. Curry is bound for another high-impact season as one of the renown leaders of the Golden State Warriors.