Getty Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors battles with Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown during a game against the Boston Celtics.
The Golden State Warriors will be back on the court at Chase Center on Wednesday to take on Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and the Celtics. And while the Beantowners will be seeking a measure of redemption after losing a heartbreaker to the Mavs over the weekend, actually getting it could be a tall task.
After all, they have Stephen Curry to contend with.
In the Dubs’ last game against the Wizards, which just so happened to fall on the night of Steph’s 34th birthday, the two-time NBA MVP had one of his finest outings of the campaign. Over 35 minutes of action, he dropped 47 points on 16-of-25 shooting.
Celtics guard Marcus Smart, himself a two-time All-Defensive Team pick, will be asked to help prevent a similar outburst from happening on Wednesday. Ahead of the game, he shared his thoughts on what guarding the superstar is actually like.
Smart Spills the Tea on Defending Steph Curry
Asked what it takes to go toe-to-toe with the greatest shooter in league history and one of the game’s elite scorers, Smart made it clear that one has to bring their best stuff defensively.
“Will, discipline and determination,” said Smart. “If you’re not ready for a battle, you might as well go ahead and not enter the gym when you’re going up against a guy like Steph. He’s going to make you work on the defensive end the whole game. You know he’s not gonna stop moving.”
With that being the case, it would be easy for someone to classify the experience as a pain in the you-know-what. Smart doesn’t see it that way, though. Rather, he relishes the opportunity to work hard and, potentially, grow as a player along the way.
“Love it — I get my cardio in. But no, I love it. It’s a great way for me as a defender to help me and my defensive game. And to play against a team of their caliber, for this team… it’s big for us.”
Another reason he might love it: the Celtics have actually enjoyed some success against the Warriors in recent years.
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The Celtics Have Had the Dubs’ Number Recently
Although the Warriors narrowly escaped with a win when the two teams met in December, Boston has owned the matchup in recent years. Dating back to the 2019-20 campaign, the Cs had won five straight games against Steph and Co. before their latest loss.
As Smart sees it, defense was the primary factor in that streak.
“Our versatility on the defensive end,” he replied when asked what the secret to their success was.
“You know, we’ve got multiple guys that we can send at those guys they have and feel comfortable enough to be able to do that. Most teams probably only have one or two guys that they could do that with. We have a group of guys that we believe could guard anybody in the league.”
Nevertheless, he expects it to be tough sledding in this game.
“Definitely gonna take all five of us. We’re playing against a great team, great player. So, we understand what we’re up against and we just gotta have our running shoes on.”
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