In an in-depth piece for The Athletic, Marcus Thompson II takes a look back at the contract extension Stephen Curry signed five years ago with the Warriors, a deal that helped set Golden State’s dynasty in motion.
As Thompson details, Curry had been plagued by injury issues in his first few NBA seasons, so the Warriors presented him with two options: He could pass on a rookie scale extension and get a maximum salary contract the following summer if he stayed healthy in 2012/13, or he could accept a four-year, $44MM extension offer from the club. Curry opted for the latter, and while it became one of the most team-friendly deals in the NBA, the two-time MVP doesn’t regret signing it.
“At the end of the day, it gave me peace to just play basketball,” Curry said. “That was an underrated factor. I didn’t have to worry about it anymore. It was good money and I wouldn’t have to think about that for four years.”
Of course, Curry eventually cashed in on a much bigger scale — earlier this year, he signed a new five-year contract with the Warriors that was worth an NBA-record $201MM. Still, Thompson suggests that even that record-setting deal didn’t include everything Curry wanted, with the Dubs resisting adding a player option and a full no-trade clause.
Here’s more from around the Pacific division:
- During the Warriors‘ 2016 free agent pitch to Kevin Durant, head coach Steve Kerr told the star forward that he’d probably try to play him about 34 minutes per game. At the time, Durant pushed to increase that number, but he and many of his teammates have come to appreciate Kerr’s limitations, according to Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News.
- A minority shareholder in the Kings is putting 10% of the franchise up for sale, according to Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg. While the identity of the seller isn’t known, the stake would likely come with a seat on the team’s board, Soshnick notes.
- With Chris Paul leaving Los Angeles, Patrick Beverley and Austin Rivers were determined to make the new-look Clippers backcourt work this season, writes Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. So far, so good.
- Former Pistons guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has a good game against his former team on Tuesday night and is making a strong impression with the Lakers so far, as Rod Beard of The Detroit News details.
Hoping KCP status with the Lakers
Stays