SAN FRANCISCO (USA) - Golden State's early exit from the 2024 post-season had a silver lining for Stephen Curry.
The four-time NBA champion's summer commitments with the USA helped him quickly turn his attention to the Olympics and didn't allow him to wallow in frustration over the Warriors' unsuccessful campaign.
Thankfully I had the Olympics to look forward to
"Thankfully I had the Olympics to look forward to so I didn't have five months of just sitting at home," Curry said at his Warriors media day press conference.
The way everything unfolded for Curry after Golden State's loss to Sacramento in the play-in will be viewed a positive light by the player. The Paris Olympics will be viewed as one of the highlights of his career, especially the last two games.
The USA trailed Serbia by 17 points in the Semi-Finals but came back to win, 95-91, with Curry pouring in 36 points, which included a 9 of 14 shooting night from behind the arc.
The Americans then beat hosts France in a thrilling Final, 98-87. Curry scored all 24 of his points from long range, making 8 of 12 from deep. He was 4 for 4 from deep in the final 3 minutes of the game to hold back France's furious comeback.
Curry spoke about the last 3-pointer against France in his media day press conference. After it was put to him that Kevin Durant and LeBron James were open on the weak side yet he took the shot while being double-teamed by much taller Nic Batum and Evan Fournier, he smiled and answered: "They were 100% open.
"I see the two guys, but I'm already in rhythm. As long as I get it off, I feel like I'm going to make it. I see both of them as soon as I shoot it, their hands up..."
Even more memorable than the shot was the reaction of the USA players after he made it.
"They didn't expect me to shoot it, I'm sure they were ready for a pass back to the weak side but as soon as it went in, seeing Bron do the gesture, seeing the guys on the bench, K (Kevin Durant) threw his head back, it was kind of in amazement," he said.
The camaraderie within Team USA played a big role in its success. The national team experience, along with the global atmosphere, was a source of positivity for Curry.
"That was the beauty of that team, too," Curry said. "Because the energy that we showed, the emotion that we showed in the Serbia game on the comeback down the stretch at the Olympics, it matters to everybody to get that done and everybody knew the sense of urgency of the moment.
A memory of a lifetime
"It was a memory of a lifetime, for sure. It's nice the way it finished for me, personally, but we don't get there without all 12 guys on that team and it's definitely something that I will remember forever."
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