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Stephen Curry is the hottest name in the world of basketball today. With his wide range of skills, he is known for scoring effortlessly and is already one of the greatest point guards of all-time.
Curry has achieved so much in a very short period of time and became the first unanimous MVP in the history of NBA when he got his hands on the Maurice Podoloff Trophy in 2016.
He has revolutionized the 3-point shooting and knocks down 3-pointers from way downtown with very high accuracy. The three-time NBA champion, after years of being underpaid, signed the then-richest contract of $201 million for 5-years during the 2017 off-season.
A career filled with accolades, Curry holds the record for highest 3-pointers made in a season with 402. He is currently seventh on the list of career 3-point scoring leaders and its only a matter of time before he reaches the number one position.
Under his leadership, the Golden State Warriors raised the bar and touched new heights. Over the years, the team has become a force to reckon with and won three NBA titles after making it to four straight finals. The Warriors played against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the finals on all these occasions.
This article is dedicated to Stephen Curry's basketball greatness as we take a look at five of his most memorable performances against their arch-rivals.
#5 33 points, NBA Finals Game 2, 3rd June 2018
Stat line: 33 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and a steal on 42.3% shooting
The Warriors and the Cavaliers met in the finals for a fourth straight year and the odds were stacked against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors came back from a 2-3 deficit to beat the Rockets. Curry averaged 25 points in the series with a field-goal percentage of 47.0.
In Game 1 of the finals, Curry scored 29 points and helped Warriors beat the Cavaliers in overtime. In Game 2, he continued his dominance and dropped 33 points on a 11 of 26 shooting. He exploded for 16 points in the forth quarter and the Cavaliers were blown out by 19 points.
Curry entertained the home crowd shooting some ridiculous three-pointers and finished with 7-15 from downtown. He was well supported by Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson who combined for 46 points on 18-27 shooting. With this win, the Warriors had extended the lead to 2-0 and demoralized the Cavaliers team.
Warriors went on to sweep the Cavaliers in four games and won their third NBA title in four years. The unanimous MVP averaged 27.5 points, 6 rebounds and 6.8 assists and 1.5 steals over the course of four games.
#4 28 points, NBA Finals Game 1, 1st June 2017
Stat line: 28 points, 6 rebounds, 10 assists and 3 steals on 50.0% shooting
It was Cavaliers vs Warriors, NBA Finals Part III and the Warriors reached their third straight finals without breaking a sweat after dismantling the opposition teams. They were undefeated throughout the playoffs and came into the finals heavily favored to win it all.
This was the first season for Kevin Durant with his new team and he dominated the opposition teams throughout the season with myriad strong performances.
The Warriors, to no one's surprise entered the finals with home-court advantage and were ready to defend their home floor in Game 1. Curry came up big and scored 28 points in the game to beat the Cavaliers. He went for 11-22 from the field and a whopping 6-11 from the 3-point line. He played second fiddle to Kevin Durant who tallied 38 points of his own.
The 3-time NBA champion got off to a hot start scoring 10 points in the first quarter and went on to have a memorable game. He was +20 on the night and dished out 10 assists to go along with 6 rebounds and 3 steals.
The Warriors dominated the Cavaliers throughout the series and clinched the title in 5 games. Steph averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 9.4 assists and 2.2 steals per game in the Finals to squash the Cavs.
#3 38 points, NBA Finals Game 4, 10th June 2016
Stat line: 38 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals on 53.8% shooting
The Warriors were on road for Game 3 and Game 4 of the finals in 2016. In Game 3, LeBron James and Kyrie combined for 62 points and the Warriors got blown out by 30 points. Curry struggled in the game but silenced the critics by answering back with a 'stephortless' performance in Game 4.
He scored 35 points on the night and went for 11-25 from the field with a field-goal percentage of 44.0. Curry was also terrific from the distance as he went for 7-13 from beyond the arc. The Cavaliers' head coach was left scratching his head as Curry kept drawing fouls at the rim. He was 9-10 from the free-throw line and had a monster performance.
Albeit the Cavaliers were in the game at half-time down by just 5 points, Curry took over in the third quarter and with scores tied at 69, he knocked down an open 3-pointer to give Warriors the lead. He tallied 11 points in the third quarter and the Warriors ran away with a huge win on the road and jumped out to a 3-1 lead.
Unfortunately for Golden State, the Cleveland Cavaliers went on to do something unbelievable. They stormed back from a 3-1 deficit and defeated the Warriors to win their first NBA championship in the franchise history. They also became the first team to make a successful comeback after being down 3-1 in the NBA Finals.
#2 35 points, Regular Season, 18th January 2016
Stat line: 35 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals on 66.7% shooting
During the regular season of the 2015-16 NBA season, the Warriors were blown out by the Pistons two nights ago and entered the Quicken Loans Arena looking to get back to winning ways. They steamrolled Cavaliers and won the game by 34 points with a strong performance from Stephen Curry.
The 5-time NBA All-Star started the proceedings by throwing a lob to Andrew Bogut who slammed a thunderous dunk. The 2016 unanimous MVP then dazzled from the deep and exploded for 35 points. He was +34 on the game and connected from anywhere and everywhere. He used his court vision and passing ability to find teammates for buckets on a lot of occasions.
Curry put on an offensive clinic and went for 12-18 from the field with an insane field-goal percentage of 66.7. Steph also attempted 12 shots from beyond the arc and made 7 of those attempts. No one from the opposition team could get it going and the game was all but over after three quarters. His numbers were mind-boggling because of the fact that he only played for 28 minutes and sat out the entire 4th quarter.
#1 37 points, NBA Finals Game 5, 14th June 2015
Stat line: 37 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals on 56.5% shooting
After the first four games of the 2015 NBA Finals, the series was tied at two games apiece and the focus shifted to the Game 5 at Oracle Arena. In Game 5, the baby-faced assassin went red-hot and torched the Cavaliers.
Steph totaled 37 points on a 13 of 23 shooting with a field-goal percentage of 56.5. Curry went bonkers from beyond the arc and shot 7 of 13 from the downtown with a very efficient 3-point field-goal percentage of 53.8. He got oohs and aahs from the crowd for his magical performance.
The Cavaliers' defenders had no answer for the 2-time MVP and he took them for a dance. Albeit LeBron James, who shone with 40 points of his own for the Cavaliers, Steph was just sensational with his all-round performance and was +24 on the game. Thanks to Curry's heroics, the Warriors went on to win this game by 13 points.
The Warriors then closed out the Cavaliers in Game 6 and won their first NBA title in 40 years. Curry averaged 26 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game in this series.
