Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Jordan Poole get along just fine on and off the court — well, especially on. That’s clear from how dominant Golden State’s “New Death” lineup has been through two games of the NBA Playoffs.
It’s also been called the “Fast Five” lineup, among other things. But when Curry, Poole, guard Klay Thomspon, and forwards Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins share the court, results have been deadly for the opponent, namely the Nuggets, who are down 0-2 to Golden State as the first-round matchup shifts to Denver.
But when Curry and Poole are playing together, the Warriors have the NBA’s two best free throw shooters on the floor at the same time. Poole’s percentage is higher than Curry’s, but don’t expect the team’s elder statesman to relinquish the privilege of shooting technical free throws.
Curry missed two such shots in the Warriors’ win on Monday, and that left some wondering whether Poole will ever get the opportunity to unseat Curry in this regard. Curry, in no real surprise, said there’s no chance.
First of all, that’s pretty funny. Curry won’t even entertain the idea, which is backed up by statistics, crazy enough.
But this is also interesting because while the Warriors are famous for equality on the court, displayed with unselfish ball movement that searches for the best shot regardless of who takes it, this is an opportunity for Curry to draw a line in the sand, so to speak, and proclaim his seniority and greatness, no matter if Poole’s game looks more and more like Curry’s every day.
I mean, Curry is human. Poole’s rapid ascent is taking the NBA by storm, and Poole does a lot of the things on the court that Curry does, incredibly. Curry, who by all accounts is a fantastic teammate, might feel some type of way about it, simply due to human emotion being what it is.
But that’s Curry’s free-throw line, and nobody else’s. Curry is the one to deliver the Warriors three NBA titles. Curry is the one that brought the Warriors out from under the cover of NBA darkness and thrust the franchise onto center stage. It’s Curry that has been the glue that’s held the entire thing together, though the dynastic years to the present day.
So if anyone thinks that Poole should shoot those technical free throws, Curry has a message for you: stop it. And as we know, Curry will hit nearly all of them, just as he always has. If the Warriors play their situation correctly, it will be Poole’s turn in the somewhat distant future, ideally leading his own team of dynamic superstars, just as Curry is now.
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