Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry is no stranger to TV commercials given he is arguably the most marketable player in the NBA, but his latest advertisement takes an inadvertent swipe at long-time rival LeBron James.
Curry features in a new advertisement for the Google Pixel 10 which is essentially centered on his loyalty at the Warriors after being drafted seventh overall in the 2009 NBA Draft.
New Stephen Curry commercial takes inadvertent swipe at LeBron James
"I get it. It's hard to change. Me? I'm pretty loyal. I've been on the same team for 17 years. Same coach for 11. Never switched my number once," Curry says in the commercial.
The ad also pays homage to the man who used to always pass Curry a ball for his first shot in warm ups at Oracle Arena. Then, at the very end there is a funny cameo from Jimmy Butler featuring a new hairdo.
The part where Curry talks about how loyal he is, and how he has remained with the same team, was probably not meant as a slight towards James, but one cannot hear the 2x MVP describe his career in such terms without thinking about the contrast it provides between him and the other biggest basketball name of the last 15 years.
Curry truly is an anomaly amongst modern NBA stars in that he has remained with the same team for so long and has never moved elsewhere. Compare that to James who began his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers before abandoning ship to join the super-team Miami Heat, only to re-join the Cavs before departing again for the Los Angeles Lakers.
And James has changed his number several times in his career, alternating between 23 and 6.
Curry is a unicorn in this sense. There really is no one else like him in the modern NBA who is a megastar and has never been with another team. Kevin Durant has bounced from team to team as have other veterans like James Harden, Chris Paul and Kawhi Leonard.
Instead, No. 30 has stayed with the same team and has continued to do his own thing for years and years. He may not be winning MVPs anymore, but he still regularly does things on a basketball court that simply defies belief.
He and James recently reminisced on one of Curry's most storied moments on a basketball court when he passed up a wide open James and Durant to hit the "night-night" three-pointer against France in the 2024 Olympics.
That play is almost a metaphor for Curry's decision to do his own thing and not follow the path of players like James and Durant who haven't been so loyal during their careers.
Warriors fans can only be thankful that Curry has been so loyal and that his legendary career has taken place entirely with Golden State.