“That’s the type of person he is, that he’s saying ‘okay young fella is cooking, y’all moving, y’all put him on'” - Gilbert Arenas believes 2-time MVP deserves his flowers for playing a 6th-man role happily
Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas has sung Stephen Curry's praises for agreeing to come off the bench for the Golden State Warriors in their first-round tie against the Denver Nuggets.
Steph came off the bench for four of the five games in the series as he recovered from a foot injury. Rising star Jordan Poole took his place and did an outstanding job, becoming the top scorer for the team.
Here’s 2:20 of Jordan Poole cooking his defenders in his first 3 playoff games
28.7 PTS 🤩 66.7% FG 🤩 59.1% 3PT
He was All-G League 3rd Team last year https://t.co/jkrkZ2VnE8
Not many former MVPs would willingly agree to play as a sixth man, especially during the playoffs. The Warriors have not featured in the playoffs since 2019, and even though it undoubtedly meant more to Steph, he continues to be a team player above all else.
On the latest episode of No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, the first round of the 2022 playoffs was discussed, with Arenas taking some time out to give Steph his flowers.
"We need to give Steph his flowers, sir you get flowers for doing what you have done, and that is, be man enough to come off that bench. (Pointing to himself) never! Ever! Never! Would have agreed.
"I'm the franchise player, I'm chef curry around this motherf****r. I'm balling and you're telling me to come off or come off for the six-man? No. Me? No. I guess if I was struggling this year, no, I'm balling. I'm balling this year what you mean come on cause you know I missed the last few weeks? No. Who else is on this lineup? Send them out. Like, no.
"But, the fact that that's the type of person he is, that he's saying, 'Okay young fella is cooking, y'all moving, y'all put him in and I just keep coming off the bench.' So, the fact that he's still coming off the bench this series is because he's willing to do it."
For the closeout game, Steph was reinstated in the starting lineup, finishing with 30 points and dropping clutch buckets to seal a 102-98 win for the Warriors. Dub Nation is officially in the second round and will face off against the winner of the Minnesota Timberwolves-Memphis Grizzlies tie.
Gilbert Arenas started his NBA career with the Golden State Warriors
Although Gilbert Arenas moved around the league a lot in his 11-year career, he made his NBA debut for the Warriors. He was selected with the 31st overall pick in the 2001 draft.
Two years later, he left for the Washington Wizards after winning the Most Improved Player award in his sophomore season. That year, he averaged 18.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.5 steals.
Arenas continued to advance his game to new heights with each passing year and was one of the top point guards in the league. Unfortunately, injury struck in the 2007-08 season, which saw him struggle for the remainder of his career.