How Kevin Durant’s departure has revitalised Stephen Curry’s legacy

When it’s all said and done, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry may go down as a top 10 player of all time. At the very least he’s already cemented as the best shooter of all time, and in the top handful of players to have impacted the game of basketball.

Stephen Curry has caught a second, arguably even greater wind as he reclaims sole ownership of this Golden State Warriors’ dynasty.

Curry’s quest to greatness is bound by hard work, selflessness and perseverance, but at the same time, his continued rise can be partially attributed to Kevin Durant. No, I’m not necessarily talking about Durant’s three seasons in the Bay Area, a period where they dominated the league and won two championships.

I’m talking about Durant’s decision to leave Golden State, a move made to grow his own standing and perception around the league. Whether inadvertent or not, the move also revitalized Curry’s opportunity to do the same.

Let’s rewind for a second to the pre-Durant Warriors. Across two straight seasons, Curry won back-to-back MVPs (one unanimously), led his team to a championship, and broke the Chicago Bull’s longstanding record for most wins in a season (72).

He was the biggest challenger to LeBron James for the title of ‘best player in the world’, with many tipping the scales in his favor. A Bleacher Report article in January 2016 had Curry as the best player in the world, with the debate often surfacing across various talk shows. Magic Johnson, who many argue is the best point guard of all time, even stated Curry “has a chance to be the greatest player we’ve ever seen”.

Then, in a sequence that will go into basketball folklore, the argument that Curry was the world’s best player virtually disappeared. Firstly, he and the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead to James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals. James’ brilliance culminated in a third finals MVP, which combined with Curry’s under-par performance, re-asserted him as the best player in the world.

Soon following that, the Warriors stunned the world by signing Durant in free agency. Although he was the one that took heavy criticism for what many believed was a ‘weak move’, there was also question marks on Curry’s stature and his ability to lead a team.

Although he remained a top-five player in the game, there’s no doubt Curry took a step back when Durant arrived, as is his selfless nature. Durant himself also sabotaged some potential individual accolades in order to finally achieve the ultimate team success.

Many, especially Warriors fans, still regarded the Warriors as ‘Curry’s team’. But there’s little doubt that a majority considered Durant the best player on the team, evident by back-to-back finals MVPs when the team success did arrive. Instead of Curry testing James as the best player on the planet, it was now Durant’s turn to challenge for that mantle.

After his own torn achilles and Klay Thompson’s ACL injury derailed the Warriors hopes for a third straight championship, Durant acknowledged the need to venture out and win without a cast that may go down as the most talented team of all time.

His decision to leave Golden State for Brooklyn not only brought parity back to the league but also created new storylines for fans to be enthralled by. Could Durant win a championship outside the Warriors, and could Curry once again be the best player on the best team in the league?

The latter took a sabbatical when Curry broke his hand early the next season, his absence alongside Thompsons’ pushing the Warriors from NBA finalists to the worst record in the league.

Stephen Curry is revitalized

His return last season brought a new version of Curry we’d never seen before. He may have been as good as he’s ever been, leading the league in scoring with a career-high 32 points per game and a top-three finish in MVP voting. Yet the continued absence of Thompson, alongside a below-par roster construction, prevented the kind of team success a player needs to be considered the best player in the world.

Fast-forward to today and Curry is still electrifying the league in much the same fashion, except it’s different this time around. The Warriors have shot out to a league leading 15-2, all whilst Thompson remains sidelined.

When Curry outdueled Durant and led the Warriors to a big win in Brooklyn, he re-entered the discussion for best player in the world for the first time since the beginning of 2016. That’s over five years since his name has seriously been brought up in that discussion. That’s not because of his own game specifically, he’s been consistently excellent across the whole period outside the broken hand. It’s largely down to the seven-foot presence that once sat alongside him, forming a duo that restricted the way we viewed both of them.

Now, they’re taking their own separate paths again. As a result, they’re both widely considered as the top two leaders in the MVP race, also with claims to be the best player in the world. Durant’s decision to leave Golden State may go down as a blessing in disguise for all involved.

Sure, the Durant-Curry duo could have won multiple more championships, but there would have always been a question on their value given the almost unfair nature of the Warriors’ loaded roster. For Curry, he may have been the more important player, but it would have been difficult to see him supplant Durant as the best player on the team. Simultaneously, Durant would have never received the love Curry garners, regardless of how many championships he brought to the Bay.

Another championship for Curry and the Warriors would signify his crowning moment, particularly if it includes that elusive finals MVP. Another title may even be more enjoyable for Warrior fans than the two with Durant, such is the satisfaction in watching this reincarnation of Strength in Numbers.

Most of all, Durant’s decision to leave has been most beneficial to the wider NBA public. Now we’re fortunate to witness two of the modern-day greats perform their wizardry unconfined by each other. There remain stories to be told and questions to be answered, one senses it could be chronicled in a finals matchup for the ages.