Steph Curry has already won four NBA championships in his legendary career but he is still chasing another one even as he approaches 40 years old.
Curry, who will be turning 39 years old in the upcoming season, said he is still thinking about a fifth NBA championship with the Warriors.
Talking on ABC7 News Bay Area, Curry said his biggest motivator is still to win an NBA championship, even though the Warriors are not projected to win one this season.
“Of course, winning a championship is the ultimate goal. Honestly, it’s the only real motivator behind why you work so hard and invest so much energy not only into your craft and preparing for a season, but also into the team,” Curry said.
“Everybody here shows up with the mentality that we want to win. We know this team faces a challenge. It’s an uphill battle to put everything together in a way that’s different from teams of the past. That’s a challenge we want to accept. And if we fall short, it won’t be because of a lack of effort,” he added.
Much Is Expected From Steph Curry Once Again
Fresh off signing a two-year, $116 million contract extension that secures his path to retiring as a lifelong Warrior, the 38-year-old legend took a $20 million pay cut from the maximum available to provide the front office with future roster flexibility.
However, the immediate outlook presents a significant challenge as Curry will be forced to shoulder the offense early on while co-star Jimmy Butler rehabilitates a torn ACL.
Curry’s core supporting cast features high-profile veterans, including forward Jimmy Butler and center Kristaps Porzingis, though both enter the campaign dealing with early-season injury issues.
Longtime running mate Draymond Green continues to anchor the defensive frontcourt alongside ageless veteran Al Horford. Meanwhile, the backcourt and wing rotation lean on a mixture of depth and youth, led by rising guard Brandin Podziemski, newly drafted forward Yaxel Lendeborg , De’Anthony Melton, Georges Niang, and Gary Payton II, while Moses Moody works his way back from a patellar tendon injury.
Last season, Curry just played 43 games after nursing a lingering knee injury. Nevertheless, he averaged 26.6 points per game on 39.3% three-point shooting.
Steph Curry Admits Hard Truth In Warriors’ Championship Chase
Steph Curry acknowledged the Warriors’ current roster standing and the team’s place in the league’s title race.
“I mean, I’m not an idiot. I know what it means in the sense of that window we had where coming off of ’22, there were opportunities to get better, add new talent, and some worked out, some didn’t. And the jury is still out on how we end this entire journey with a competitive mindset,” Curry said in his interview with NBC Sports Bay Area.
“We knew there’s never really going to be a scenario where you’re going to be in the favorites conversation from a championship-contending perspective. There’s so many great teams out there. But for us to go through a year like we did last year where we had, and the year before in the playoffs, I get hurt, we take an early exit in [the] second round.”
Last year, the Warriors did not reach the NBA playoffs. In the year before that, they went to the second round but lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves after Curry picked up an injury in Game 1.
Curry is still the team’s barometer next season. The Warriors are expected to go as far as Curry takes them.
Steph Curry Opens Up About Chasing a 5th NBA Championship With the Warriors