原文标题：The Second Coming of Stephen Curry
Publisher: GQ Magazine
Original author: HANIF ABDURRAQIB
Translator: Ayu
Article word count: about 7200 words
The unstoppable point guard leads one of the strongest offensive teams in NBA history. Two years after the dynasty disintegrated, he's leading the Warriors toward their next championship — and emphasizing that he is one of the greatest players in the sport's history.
Late at night when there were no races, the calm in the streets surrounding San Francisco's Chase Center was intoxicating. That's right, until you walk in. This calm gradually evolved strangely— a labyrinth of caverns, with corridors intertwined. The lights in the corners flickered in some hiccups, and the music echoed out of nowhere.
Looking for sound, I came to a temporary underground training room. The laughter of a group of trainers rang in their ears as they circled around Stephen Curry, dressed as if he had just finished training. At his feet lay two 30-pound barbells with the Golden State Warriors logo and a Warrior towel draped over his head. Drake's new album Certified Lover Boy is playing at the venue.
It was here, at the Warriors' home court, that Stephen Curry worked hard to reinvent himself and his team. Catching a glimpse of him training in this private place before our interview was like witnessing the origin story of a superhero that is not only a sequel, but also a rebirth. Our heroes are stronger than ever, composing even grander myths. Suddenly, it switched to the next piece of music. When the beat landed on You Only Live Twice, Curry was energized, grinning in the shadow of the towel, gesturing and shaking his head to the rhythm. The song is perfect for athletes facing a second labor period in their NBA careers, in some way to make the impossible seem simpler.
The first phase of the Warriors Dynasty was astounding: three championships and five consecutive finals. In the 73-win season, Curry broke the single-season three-point record, and then created his own three-point moments again and again.
Then everything started to fall apart, with lingering painful memories of the end of game 6, third quarter of the 2019 Finals, with the Warriors trailing the Raptors 2-3 in the series. But in that game, they were also three-point ahead. Kevin Durant was absent from an injury in the previous game, and Klay Thompson, barely able to walk, was lifted off the field and later diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
The replay showed Curry smashing the ball in frustration, a gaffe rare in his calm behavior that he seemed to realize at that moment. He's the only star on the team and has to fight the inevitable fall of the team, and he did, but to no avail, the Warriors lost the Finals, Durant went to Brooklyn in the offseason, and the pandemic derailed the league. Thompson suffered another Achilles tendon rupture while he was nearly recovering from his forte ligament, and Curry suffered a hand injury in the 19-20 season. Some people say that it is a wonderful experience, we have five years of greatness, and no dynasty is eternal.
However, something extraordinary is happening in the Bay Area. The night before, an NBA game was held here. The Raptors are away to San Francisco, losing 14 of their last 16 away games against the Warriors, and this time they are still the losing side. Curry didn't play the crazy performance that fans are used to seeing — he scored just 12 points on 2-of-10 shooting — but the Warriors still won, and it was great. It was different from last season, when it felt like the Warriors wanted to win the game and Curry had to maintain a nearly unsustainable high level. The reason it's "almost" is because, throughout the season, Curry has really managed to maintain that level. These heroic scenes are both magical and a little worrisome, feeling like the last bloom before withering. Curry dragged a team that people thought was going downhill, not caring what damage it might do to his body.
It's a new era of Warriors basketball, and so far, Curry and the Warriors have a league-number one record, and they've made it look easy and fun. Youthful energy was injected into the credible team core. Young players like Jordan Poole have made the leap. Talented monsters like Andrew Wiggins, who are still young, play an important role on both offensive and defensive ends. Draymond Green was back in form as the best defensive player, with a clearer mind than before.
So far, Stephen Curry's job has become much easier. Three weeks after I travel to chase center, Curry will have the opportunity to own his record, breaking Ray Allen's career three-point record at the end of 2021, which of course will happen in Madison Square Garden.
But that didn't come yet, and in a green room inside the Warriors' home arena, Curry sat in a chair. He's 33 now, but doesn't look tired, and he still has a childlike quality — he's a thoughtful orator with a smile on his lips, like he's just heard a secret. He's also stronger than before, no longer the young player who slipped off his shoulders in his jersey during his time at Davidson or in his first few seasons in the NBA. As he braced his chin to ponder the problem, the muscles in his arms reflected a clear outline in his black sweatshirt. I asked him questions about Dynasty and the challenges of spending more than a decade in the league, completing the team's rebuild and moving forward again after just two seasons of extinguishing the flames. He was silent for a few seconds.
"Well, even though we had a long break, we've also suffered a blow." He began, "Just before the outbreak, injuries caused us to fall freely. It's weird because if you look back on those two years now, it might be hard for me to have the patience to stick with it and just stay focused and motivated. ”
He paused briefly and began to sum up: "For us, this is a mentally (we have to) unlock obstacle – staying sharp, staying energetic, hopefully getting back to the top, and personally, I'm just riding the waves. When you're in this league long enough, you're likely to go through a lot of different things, create a lot of different stories, don't have to reinvent your own stadium roles, just adjust your focus as you face different challenges every year. I think the last two years have been a shock to our system. ”
The team found that now the place was a good fit for Curry. His team was falling, and he roared again, renewing himself to improve his strength. It all fits curry's story setpoint – always as a dog. Compared to the skinny kid who continued to fire at Davidson College and brought the team to the quarterfinals, it is obviously difficult for Curry to continue the legend. It's harder than when he struggled with an ankle injury early in his NBA career. In fact, the idea of getting a dog today seems like an invention, like Michael Jordan imagined, killing an opponent in the thin air. When I asked him in disbelief about his perception of this dog's status, Curry smiled triumphantly. He said: "I can't explain this feeling. But I'm still 1000% in shape because I will always remember everything that went through the effort and experience to get to this position. ”
Curry's coach at Davidson, Bob McIloop, was one of the few people who remembered Curry actually being a dog. Curry was a three-star high school student at the time, almost ignored by the league's first-tier colleges, most notably Virginia Tech, the alma mater of his famous NBA player father, Dale, and the school Curry had personally seen.
McIloop said Davidson was one of the few schools to offer Curry scholarships because of the choice he made because of his resilience. McIloop told me: "In the summer before he was in college, we went to see him in Las Vegas for the AAU Championship. He plays in a sub-stadium, not in the main stadium. Fewer people played and fewer coaches. I felt good when I knew there were only two people watching him. McIloop waited a moment to reveal, "He's doing terrible. He passed the ball into the stands, couldn't get the pass, dribbled it to his feet, couldn't shoot the ball. But in that game, he never complained about anything, nor did he blame his teammates. He was always cheering on the bench and looking into the eyes of the coach, he never flinched. That surprised me a little. ”
A large part of McIloop is talking about the intangible value curry has always had. But his game has also been partially altered, like any player who has played long enough and is committed to playing longer. Curry still calls himself "hindsight", and when he does, he talks about the game between the past and the present – the game that has been evolving. The excitement that has always existed in his game is still there. It's not just the shot itself, it's also putting the ball in a jungle-like arm, or a big open shot that looks like it's going to go in when you first shoot. There's also the excitement of Curry's movement. His races were always running around, running in tight spaces, hoping to find some bigger space at the other end. All of these are characteristic of a great game. But Curry's performance on the court has also taken on a new look, rising to new heights on the defensive end — something that has always been uncomfortable for him early in his career.
Curry told me he had an underlying delusion that he was in the midst of a throes: he believed he could still get better, even though he knew he would say it, but wouldn't actually feel it. Still, he claims he hasn't reached that height yet. Curry revealed: "The experience of how I prepared for a season brought some insecurity. I know where the obstacle is and I have to keep improving it. So this insecurity drives me because for three months we'll be thinking about how to get better. ”
In the words of his current coach, Steve Cole, Curry's constant evolution revolves much around how he takes care of and improves his body. He's still gaining muscle — he reportedly gained 5 pounds in the offseason — and has increased strength, speed and agility.
Cole said the muscular stature changed Curry's ability to be a threat anywhere. Cole told me on the phone: "He has changed dramatically since I arrived here seven years ago. The way he exercises will affect how he ends, how he gets into the paint, how he borrows cover. It also helped his defense. He's a good defender. From the early days of his career, people have always seen him as a defensive hole. I just want to ask anyone to stare at him every night.
"This is supported by data. At the time of writing, Curry is playing his best defensive season of all time, playing his highest defensive efficiency since entering the league (97.8), averaging 5.6 rebounds per game, a career-high.
Although Curry is one of the league's strongest superstars, he still feels like an outsider in today's NBA, outside the social circles of the stars. Part of the reason was to determine his dog status in high school and college career. He didn't play on the high-profile AAU team or build relationships and compete with others to allow the team to define players before they entered the league. Of course, that didn't stop Curry and his competitors from forming certain stories. His long-running rivalry with LeBron James is now one of the greatest sporting competitions of our time, with another chapter added at the end of last season, james making a three-pointer on Curry's arm in the final moments of the playoffs to beat the Warriors and the Lakers made it to the playoffs.
Curry almost sees the rivalry with James as a miracle, sometimes recalling their early relationship. During the 2008 NCAA Championship, James spent his fifth season with the Cavaliers, personally traveling to Detroit to watch Curry play.
"I was a sophomore at the time, and LeBron was going to come and see me!" Curry said incredulously, "Actually, I still have the jersey he gave me. He signed a jersey for me. I think it was November of my junior year. On the wall of my parents' home in Charlotte, it still hangs there. He wrote to me and called me the King of North Carolina Basketball. So I guess it's like the old story of going from idol to competitor. He paused here, as if out of the whimsical and nostalgic world and back to the reality of their competition, and these tensions were present throughout the competitive process. He shrugged sincerely: "But it's true. ”
Curry also sees Chris Paul as a mentor, but he's always at odds with socializing with people outside of the teammates he calls "my man" — he's spent most of his career building team culture among teammates around him. This is another example of Curry's uniqueness in today's NBA. Players who have stayed on one team for their entire careers have begun to become less and less common, with many players changing teams in pursuit of championships or wandering at the end of their careers, playing their final, minimally successful matches in unfamiliar circumstances.
Of course, some will forget that Patrick Ewing wandered between Seattle and Orlando in his final two seasons, with Hakim Olajuwon ending his career in Toronto. Curry renewed his contract with the Warriors for another four years, when he turned 38. Theoretically, he could have taken the route of Ewing or Olajuwon, but it seemed unlikely that he had blended into the place. Curry laughed and said, "When I was drafted by the Golden State Warriors, my grandma didn't know which city it was in. Everyone on the East Coast thinks Ofa is the whole of California. ”
Upon arriving at the team, Curry immediately fell in love with the team, the Bay Area and its fans. Contrary to the supposed claim that Warriors fans are all accumulated from the dynastic era, there is a long-term swallow-up but loyal fan who struggled to support the team through the weak years, which lasted until Curry first appeared here. The team established its core players through the draft, while also building a basketball culture that was both winning and exciting. But that's changed. Most notably, the team moved back to San Francisco from Oakland, which Curry acknowledged was a challenge. He said he loved Oakland. The team is already tied to there. "It feels a bit like I was traded but still on the same team." He told me that he and the team are trying to build a new culture in San Francisco, a kind of 2.0 Warriors. And another glory of the career.
The team is located in the Bay Area and provides Curry with some opportunities outside of basketball. He used his company, SC30 Inc., to invest in tech companies like travel platform Snaptravel. He said the entry into tech was proposed by Andre Iguodala during the Warriors' first rise. Curry said: "When he came here from Denver in 2013, he came there with passion and some connections, and he started to pique everyone's interest. Our conversations in the locker room started to change, from rap albums to cars to everything we liked: Did you see that company's initial public offering? Then, apparently, realized and touched our backyard, Silicon Valley — he was the first person to make me open my eyes on the field. ”
"Being led by someone like Stephen has brought me a huge harvest"
—Jordan Pu'er
Now Curry has his own media company, Unanimous, which, among other things, produces the miniature golf show Holey Moley. "There's a lot of opportunity [in Hollywood] because the doors are open," he said. There are so many people who can come to this space and successfully stay there and have a successful career. You can't really quantify it right now, but obviously you can have the idea that we can make a real impact? Also, how do I intertwine everything I do? ”
There's a thread running through all of them: a commitment to leading a dog, or a biased person, or— the word Curry often uses—"undervalued."
When we talked, it became clear that the idea was part of his DNA. His book lovers carry his underrated name, which highlights books about writers whose protagonists overcome personal difficulties or think they have been overlooked. Cole Brown's Grey Boy, defined by blurred boundaries between race and class, was one of the book club's top choices; Brown also worked with Ananimous to bring other projects to the screen. Curry's eyes lit up again as he talked about his underrated tournament, which traveled across the country and provided a showcase for the prospects of Samsung high school students. But like the players who played in the vice gymnasium during the big AAU tournament. There may only be one or two coaches paying attention to them. ("When I was a sophomore, junior, and high school, I wasn't even invited to my own bootcamp.) He shook his head and said. ）
When Curry's goals and investments are set, they look a bit like sneaker ads, speaking with some high-profile instrumental music. It may be more beautiful on the surface than inspiring. But his ambitions can only be realized by tying them together. None of this is guaranteed that the next Stephen Curry will be born from a child who has difficulty getting through training camp, or eating and playing ball. These initiatives are all asking the question of what would happen if enough space was provided. What happens if enough young people run through a space to reach a larger, more rewarding space. This is another performance of Curry's game.
After I asked how a star's responsibilities have evolved over the decades, he mentioned his father. Curry told me, "I had a front seat and watched my dad go through a 16-year career, "Dale Curry," the pinnacle of his career, stayed in Charlotte, and in the late '90s he founded a foundation to set up computer learning centers in neglected communities.
For Stephen, who was sitting on the sidelines, he was also asked to act like his father did off the pitch. "My siblings and I used to volunteer a lot and spend a lot of time in these places," he said. I understand what happens when a community is motivated to raise money and find a platform for children to spend their time, develop themselves and invest in themselves. I saw it on that level. Unless you see it with your own eyes, there's no way you can really understand it."
Curry is considering the ability to transform the platform and spread positive energy. It's been less than a decade since Dell retired (2002) to Stephen joining the alliance (2009), but in that phase, technology changed. Exposure is getting higher and higher, and the level of awareness of the players has risen dramatically. In turn, they gain more influence, allowing some players to regain confidence. He said: "I am still in the process of building and trying. It doesn't sound too noble, but I really respect and appreciate everything that basketball has to offer me and my family in my life. I never thought the opportunity was taken for granted. It wasn't perfect in the early days of my basketball career. Doing so in the early stages can make a big difference. However, I know it's worth it. ”
The Golden State Warriors currently find themselves in a unique transition phase: The team is getting older. Curry, Thompson, Iguodala and Green, all in their 30s, have equipped the next-generation squad with players such as Pooler, James Wiseman, Jonathan Cumminga and Moses Moody. They're not in rebuilding mode and their best players seem to have a lot of oil, but they focus on sustainability and how to stay competitive late in their core players' careers.
With that in mind, Cole highlighted Curry's shift in leadership. Cole said, "Well, he's never been the kind of guy who yells. He likes to pull his teammates aside and quietly give advice. But now, he's more likely to speak in front of the team than he was five years ago. He was one of the oldest people on the team and he recognized the responsibilities that came with it. ”
Curry knew the team's form so well that he had to grow into a leader with little roadmap. When he came to the Golden State Warriors, there were veterans, but no culture of winning. Curry, Green, and Thompson had to figure out their own leadership styles and how to teach them what they had learned when the time came. The time has come. The team is pounding for the next title, while the best players are still at the top and playing alongside their young and talented teammates. It's a shocking balance, and Golden State Warriors' core players may be more relaxed when they say goodbye at the end of their careers.
Curry grinned as he considered the team's construction and his current responsibilities in the Warriors system. He said: "Well, it's also weird because Jordan Poole was 15 when we won our first title in 2015. Jonathan Cumminga and Moses Moody were like first-year high school students, and now they're here. It's strange that they look at us and think we're almost like the gods of basketball. He laughed, then shrugged: "Now they're here to help us hit the championship like this again." ”
This particular nostalgia is true for Jordan Poole, who evokes a specific memory of Curry's greatness: the "infamous" super-far-range three-pointer he scored against Oklahoma in 2016.
"I grew up in Milwaukee, so I mostly watched the Games in the East on TV," Poole said. It was a rare night I watched the Western Conference and it didn't disappoint. ”
For Poole, the transition from audience to participant is surreal. Curry, Thompson, Green and Iguodala are all part of a "world-changing dynasty" — and he's now struggling to keep it going, he said. He did this by seeking Curry's leadership. He said: "Being led by someone like Stephen, someone with a lot of experience on and off the pitch, would be a huge bonus for me. He is always focused on the game. He is very patient with the team, especially for young people. ”
For his part, Curry dreams of Purr becoming an All-Star five years later, with Cumminga being the best defensive player and Wiseman the most valuable player. He said he and Green would be satisfied by then.
But there is still a process of winning games, building culture, conquering audiences and accepting questions. Others insist that Curry ruined the game — he brought a tendency towards the far-reaching three-pointers that only people of this era would try. These guys may be too young to remember those critics of Steve Nash ruining the game, or Aaron Iverson ruining the game before him. All these players, for me, for many of the diminutive kids I know, are a miracle. They play in a project that wasn't exactly built for them, but they extract all the abilities they can get. Sure, Curry is older now than before, but he's still a small defender who not only plays well, but also charms. Like Nash and Iverson, let the opponents marvel.
Some kids even threw 35-foot balls before trying to perfect the midfield, and the kids finished the dribbling motion with their heads down, missing out on big empty teammates. But when I left the pitch, there was one more thing that came to my mind.
Stephen Curry has had a wonderful, long, exciting time with us, and we can't have him forever. Even if he just renewed his contract, four seasons would pass in a flash. But fortunately, there are still some kids, short and skinny, watching Stephen Curry's blueprint drawn in real time: how to dominate what's not for you until it's right for you.