The player who has the entire country in a tizzy. The subject of arguments among analysts and fans alike, is Steph Curry the best player on the planet?
To put it frankly. No.
It is going to take a little more than one and half awesome offensive seasons, an MVP and a Championship to dethrone Mr. LeBron James. It's almost like the media has completely forgot whose dominated the league for the last 10 years and counting, Curry is a fresh face, and a nice story for everyone to believe in and latch onto.
Sure, he just might go down as the best pure 3-point shooter in history, already holding the top two spots for 3-pointers made in a season, and well on his way to shattering the record again this season, having 245 shots already drained, and its only the All-Star break. If pure shooting was all a player needed to do to be called the best in the league, why wasn't Ray Allen ever considered top dog? He had a string of years from 2002 to 2007 where his lowest points per game average was 23 and as much as 26.4. During this time he was also known as one of the best pure shooters in the league, but he was never in the discussion. To be called the best, you have to play both ends, he never did and never was the best. Curry is an exceptional shooter, but that's not enough for me.
For one, his team, the Golden State Warriors play the best team basketball I've ever seen in my lifetime. I have never seen a team play in a more cohesive manner, or play better team defense. To me, that is another knock on Curry, he isn't an exceptional defender, or even a good one for that matter.
When I think of the best player in the world, I think of a player that is elite on both ends of the floor. One that can lock his opponent down on one end and dunk on you on the other. Defense is a very under appreciated point of emphasis in this argument.
I really just think the media is caught up in the "what have you done lately" mantra and Steph is someone new who has exploded onto the scene and won at the highest level.
(Mind you, he didn't even win Finals MVP, that went to the guy who "Shut down" LeBron James, Andre Iguodala.)
To be called the best player in the league, I also think you have to own the league off the court. Look at the careers of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James; they dominated on the court while also being the face of the league. Men, women, and children alike all knew who they were, and their global and marketing reaches were extensive.
Every little kid would shout "Kobe" when shooting a crumpled piece of paper into the trash and these same kids wanted to throw the chalk into the air like LeBron. Everyone wanted to wear their sneakers and mold their amateur game after their idols.
Both of these men are the most recent faces of the league, and i just don't personally see Steph Curry having the same global reach. I don't see kids all around the world idolizing him, or molding their game after his, or wanting more than anything to open up a new pair of "Curry 2s" on Christmas morning.
(Could be because Under Armour, who he's signed with, doesn't have the global appeal of Nike.)
It may just be me, and I am fine sitting with this opinion alone. But I really don't think Steph Curry has the altruism, or attitude to carry the league on his shoulders like MJ did, or Kobe and LeBron.
Bottom line, he is probably the best shooter we'll ever see, on one of the best teams in history, in a time period where the media and "fly by the wind" fans will latch onto anything new and exciting.
Someday, will Curry be the best player in the league? Sure, he has the capabilities of doing so. But today, I'm not ready to hand him the throne.
That throne still belongs to the man who is still averaging 25 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.
That man is none other than the King.
LeBron James, the best player in the league.
