Steve Kerr believes Steph Curry, Andre Iguodala, and Draymond Green's leadership is crucial in tough period
Steph Curry was once again the silver lining in what was another disappointing outing for the Golden State Warriors. The Dubs' superstar produced a 50-point game, the first of the 2022-23 campaign for the eight-time All-Star, even as the Warriors lost 119-130 to the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr spoke of Curry's sizzling performance even as his team slumped to a 6-9 overall record following their loss to Phoenix. He said:
"That's what he does every day. Steph is the anchor of our team and the anchor of our culture. That will not change. We will work together."
Kerr then showered some high praise on Steph Curry while also contextualizing how the presence of the 2022 NBA Finals MVP will help the Warriors navigate a rough start to their season. He said:
"And Steph is not only one of the greatest players of all-time, but one of the finest human beings I've ever met in my life. And I have no doubt that he's going to do everything in that locker room along with Draymond [Green] and Andre [Iguodala], with Loone [Kevon Looney] and the veteran guys to pull the team together.
"We will do everything we can as a staff. I think we can get there. I think we can find our way back. There is a delicate balance in all of this. Pop used to tell us in San Antonio when things weren't going well and the other team was beating us, he'd say, 'You know, those guys make millions of dollars a year to play basketball too.'
"And it's true. Every team in the league is loaded with talent. The NBA is loaded with guys who can play. So if you aren't right emotionally, spiritually, you will get exposed every night. That's where we are right now."
"Steph is not only one of the greatest players of all time, but one of the finest human beings I've ever met in my life."
Steve Kerr believes Steph's leadership will help the Dubs pull through this tough stretch https://t.co/I4Lgj8yeuV
Steph Curry overtakes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for ninth-most 50-point games in NBA history
This was Steph Curry's 11th 50-point game of his NBA career. He surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who has 10 50-point games on the all-time list, and is now tied with Allen Iverson for the ninth spot.
This was also Curry's first 50-point outing while shooting 60.0% or better from the field and 3-point line in four years. Curry dropped 51 points while shooting 62.5% from the field and 68.8% from downtown on Oct. 24, 2018 versus the Washington Wizards.
Despite his record-breaking night versus the Phoenix Suns, Steph Curry is more worried about the Warriors' mounting losses. He said:
"Losing becomes habit if you don't fix it. We've avoided that for a very long time in terms of that creeping into the locker room and losing mentality.
"I think we are very aware of who we are, what our potential is and the fact that you can't stay in this kind of viral mode for too long and not really prove that you can't be that type of time.
"We're not panicking in terms of 6-9 or whatever you are. Lot of games that we have left that we can't figure it out But [I hope] losing does get over really quick."
"Losing becomes habit if you don't fix it."
- Steph on trying to get out of the losing mentality https://t.co/ouVcLKQhKc