Steph Curry certainly stirred up a debate when he named himself the greatest point guard ever. Since then, multiple members of the media have shared their opinions on where the Golden State Warriors guard sits in the pantheon of all-time point guards.
During a recent appearance on ‘The Bill Simmons Podcast,’ Charles Barkley took aim at Curry. Barkley’s comments were structured around whether Curry could sustain his elite level of play in a more physical era, citing the Detroit Bad Boys as a potential opponent.
“As much as I love Steph Curry, and I love Steph Curry, can you imagine the Bad boys beating the hell out of him?,” Barkely said. “If you think he could take those blows that John Salley, Dennis Rodman, Bill Laimbeer, those body checks that they were putting on Michael and Scottie and myself and guys like that, you really think Steph Curry wouldn’t break?”
On one hand, Barkley’s comments are fair. The 80s and 90s were a much more physical brand of basketball, where teams would actively look to hurt their opponent’s best player. However, Curry wouldn’t have been living inside the paint. The fact remains that Curry is still the best shooter in history and, as such, would have continued spacing the court and firing away when in space.
Curry may not have become such an elite off-ball weapon due to the bumps he would take when cutting off screens, but he would still be the sharpshooting threat that he’s been throughout his career.
Fortunately, Barkley’s comments are hypothetical, and we get to enjoy Curry dominating in the current iteration of the NBA, where he’s able to showcase his immense skill and scoring ability.
