Steph Curry outdueled De’Aaron Fox in Sacramento as the Golden State Warriors defeated the Sacramento Kings 122-114. Curry scored 41 points, grabbed four rebounds, and delivered four assists. In a losing effort, De’Aaron Fox had 39 points, four rebounds, and four assists. The Golden State Warriors have started the 2023-2024 NBA season impressively—even without Draymond Green. Draymond Green is injured but is looking to return soon.
Related: Michael Jordan disagrees with Steph Curry
Although the Warriors lost their first game to the Phoenix Suns, they demonstrated, just as they did against the Kings, that they are gunning for another NBA championship. The team’s excellent depth, which includes Chris Paul, gives the Warriors a genuine chance to win the NBA championship this season.
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Steph Curry outdueled De’Aaron Fox
When Curry was and was not on the floor, Chris Paul provided outstanding leadership, generating beautiful floor spacing. Referencing Paul in the ESPN postgame interview, Steph said, “He was dicing them up.” Paul gives the Warriors the best organization on the court they have had in a long time. Such organization is needed to eliminate the many turnovers that have plagued the Warriors in the past few seasons.
Even though one may argue that contending Steph Curry outdueled De’Aaron Fox is too robust a characterization of what occurred on the court, considering he scored only two more points than Fox, Curry’s impact was more significant than those two more points. Curry’s superior movement exhausted the Kings’ defense, leading to the Kings not consistently generating their characteristic high tempo.
Even though it is crazy for Charles Barkley to question Steph Curry’s toughness, I was pleased to see the greatest shooter in NBA history intentionally engaging in physical contact against the Kings. He had such a competitive fire in his eyes. Beating the Kings seems truly personal for Curry.
Parting Thoughts
The Warriors are an even more dangerous team than last season with their current depth and ability to give Curry rest by putting Chris Paul on the court. Paul allows Curry to enjoy authentic rest and not compel Steve Kerr to cut his breaks short. I look forward to watching how the team’s chemistry evolves as the season progresses.
