Steph Curry’s comeback against the Pistons showed without a doubt that expectations are too lofty around the superstar.
Golden State Warriors lost against Detroit on Saturday, their second loss in a row. Steph Curry returned with what almost any NBA player would consider an impeccable game, 27 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
To go with that he had 7 turnovers and seemed a little rusty to begin with.
At the postgame press conference, Steve Kerr began with the words: “He was up and down, he got himself going after a little while…slow start…but wasn’t his best game…but I’m not at all worried about Steph!”
The narrative for Steph Curry seems gradually impossible for him to live up to as years go by. He is an out-of-this-world player, but when he returns from injury like this, you got to give him credit for a decent performance.
Yes, he was throwing the ball away a lot to begin with, but to contribute as he did after an eleven game stretch break was pretty good.
We seem to forget certain things about Steph Curry. He’s not 6-foot-8 in and weighing 250-pounds like LeBron nor is he like the 6-foot-11, 242-pound Giannis.
Steph looks like a regular guy, and he has to be smart on every play. He does not just decide to bulldoze his way through defense with guys flying everywhere. On every possession, Steph needs to outsmart most of the guys in this league. That takes effort!
And he did return with a great performance – if you consider his condition and shape from being out.
Monday he contributed strongly to the victory in Atlanta with 30 points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. He was 10-for-17 from field and 6-for-10 behind the arc. He reduced the turnovers to only 3 at this game, and the Warriors looked a little like themselves again – playing a young and rebuilding Hawks.
Steph is considered a superstar in the NBA. And he is! But to consider his performance on Saturday as up and down, when he just returned after eleven games, is not right.