“I’ll never get over how Steph handed LeBron that ring that year up 3-1” - Skip Bayless questions if Steph Curry can take over in the playoffs
On Fox Sports' "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed," Skip Bayless claimed that the Golden State Warriors will only go as far as Steph Curry takes them. Bayless believes the team relies on Curry's brilliance. Bayless said:
"This new Golden State team will go as far as you know who carries them and that is Steph Curry. He has too often come up smaller than he is in postseason games, especially the biggest kind.
"I'll never get over the way Steph handed LeBron that ring that year up 3-1. This is his time. All of a sudden, the skies have cleared and who is the biggest star left? It's Steph by far."
The Warriors, led by Steph Curry, dispatched the Denver Nuggets in five games and advanced to the second round. They will play the winner of the series between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Steph Curry is widely considered to be one of the best players in the league. It isn't an unpopular opinion to believe that the Warriors' championship aspirations rest on his shoulders.
"This new Golden State team will go as far as Steph Curry carries them. Too often he comes up small in the postseason. I'll never get over the way Steph handed LeBron that ring up 3-1."
— @RealSkipBayless https://t.co/5KUAyqf4y3
Steph Curry's solid regular season
Steph Curry had a relatively strong season. The two-time MVP led the way for the Golden State Warriors in their pursuit of yet another championship.
He finished the regular season averaging 25.5 points, 6.3 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game. He shot 43.7% from the field and 38.0% from beyond the arc.
He also shot 92.3% from the free-throw line and recorded 12 double-doubles, along with two triple-doubles. Curry's defense has also improved tremendously.
However, while shooting 38.0% from the perimeter might seem like a solid percentage, it's a significant drop-off for Curry's standards. He has shot 42.8% from three for his career.
This could be partly explained by his absurd shooting volume. The 33-year-old attempted a whopping 11.7 shots per game from long range. However, in the 2018-19 regular season, he took 11.7 threes per game and made them at a 43.7% clip.
Last year, he took an astounding 12.7 per game and converted them at a rate of 42.1%.
He has had to carry much of the scoring burden as Klay Thompson was still ramping up after a long injury absence. While Thompson had spurts of brilliance, he hadn't found much consistency during the regular season.
Curry also did not have his partner in crime, Draymond Green, for a lengthy spell. The Warriors forward suffered a back injury in early January, returning only on March 14.
Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokić and Giannis Antetokounmpo are the frontrunners for the MVP. Had Curry led his team to the summit of the Western Conference, he might have had a case. His injury towards the end of the regular season also didn't help.
Either way, the two-time MVP will be focused on winning his fourth championship.