Magic Johnson makes his claim over Golden State Warriors’ superstar
In many people’s eyes, Stephen Curry has already built up a strong enough list of career achievements to crown the Golden State Warriors’ superstar as the best point-guard of all time.
Curry’s a four-time NBA Champion, a Finals MVP, a two-time league MVP, and a nine-time All-Star. That’s without mentioning how his career three-point field goal percentage of 42.8%, on incredibly difficult shots, has molded the parameters of the game of basketball worldwide.
Yet Lakers’ great Magic Johnson, who’s a consensus top two point-guard of all-time alongside Curry, doesn’t think it’s enough to hand over the crown to the 35-year-old.
Laker legend Magic Johnson has made it clear he believes he’s still the greatest point guard of all-time over Golden State Warriors’ star Stephen Curry.
Speaking on The Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio, Johnson was quick to compare his resumé to that of Curry who will enter his 15th season in the league in 2023-24.
"“If (Steph) got more than five championships, if he got more than three finals MVPs and three league MVPs, then he’s the greatest. If he’s more than … number one in assists all-time in the Finals, number two in double-doubles and number one in triple-doubles all-time in the NBA playoffs, number four in steals all-time in the playoffs… If he got more than those numbers, he’s the best. The last time I checked, he doesn’t”, Johnson said."
Watch the clip here:
Clearly, Johnson is rhetorically talking about himself when he lists those accolades, saying that Curry’s haven’t nearly matched his. The 64-year-old’s comments came in response to Curry going on Gilbert Arenas’ podcast earlier in the offseason, asserting that he was the best point-guard ever.
Despite being 35, Curry still hasn’t shown any sign of slowing down. After winning NBA Finals MVP in 2022, he averaged the third-highest points of his career last season. His career-high 30.5 points during the 2023 playoffs further proved Curry still has a couple of good years left in him that could help bolster his case over Johnson. Maybe he’ll even hit some of those benchmarks that Johnson himself said would push Curry over the top.
Regardless, comparing stars across eras creates debates that can go on ad nauseam. For now, we can simply appreciate Curry’s greatness in the tail-end of his career without worrying about who ranks higher on an all-time list.