Which player would you rather have for the playoffs? Fully Healthy Stephen Curry or Giannis

[michaelm]

How exactly did I change the ground when you legitimately set the terms? The argument being used against Giannis in this instance also cuts against Curry, and it's plain as day.

It's not 2016 anymore. Curry is 4 years oluder.

I replied to a post of yours in which you pointed out that Curry’s team lost to the Raptors ln last year’s finals.

I have consistently stated on here that I am happy to call whichever team wins any finals series, or any play-off series for that matter, the deserved winners unless they do a Tonya Harding on someone, if your players get injured than that is still on the basis of the roster you chose to have.

Steph Curry is one of the best 4th quarter play-off performers in NBA history over a large number of games, and he and GSW actually won a WCF series as recently as last year without Durant. As it stands, Giannis hasn’t made a finals series, and he and the Bucks in fact didn’t win the Eastern Conference title last year. I am not arguing that he is unlikely to ever do so, or even that he won’t end up being a player with more value to his teams than Curry, although the latter is a high bar; there is at least one good reason which doesn’t involve any blame attaching to him why he hasn’t does so as yet, he is only 24, but until he does he hasn’t as I said.

And you replied to that post in saying it wasn't down to Curry being unable to get it done at the end of playoff games. It was. That's exactly what happened in that Toronto series. Be consistent. If you're going to hold it against one guy, hold it against the other.

You're putting Curry up on this pedestal as a playoff performer when he hasn't been a cut above in any of the finals he's played in. This would mean in saying he's one of the best 4th quarter playoff performers in NBA history, you're willing to weight the playoff series which came before those finals appearances while simultaneously keying in on one series for Giannis and ignoring his performances in the Detroit and Boston series last year.

It doesn't make a difference if Curry lost in the finals last year and Giannis lost in the conference finals because they lost to the exact same team.

Fine, have it your way, as long as you are prepared to denigrate Giannis if he ever loses with only one other starting player, and that player not much of a shooting threat, even available to play at the end of a finals game, having played till the last game of 5 successive seasons.

[michaelm]

Double

[Infinite Llamas]

This is easily Curry unless I'm missing something? Why would anyone choose Giannis here for playoff performance? I'm curious

Ummmm because he is the most dominant offensive and defensive player in the game today?

He anchors what some consider the most dominant defense ever and averages 30 points in 30 minutes.

That doesn’t include the fact he is one of the best rebounders in the game or that he is probably the best 6’11” ball handler and passer of all time.

Why would anyone take that to build their team around?

Just to clarify here

A) Brook Lopez is the anchor of that defense

B) Jokic is around that size and a far superior passer to Giannis

[bondom34]

Wait I'm really high on Lopez but he's not the defensive anchor.

Watch on YouTube

[Eric Millegan]

When has Curry proven that he is a winner (other than winning against an injured Cleveland team)?

All of his titles were won because of injuries to his opponents. If Kyrie, Kevin, Kawhi, and CP3 are healthy, Curry has 0 rings.

[skones]

Fine, have it your way, as long as you are prepared to denigrate Giannis if he is ever loses with only one other starting player. And that player not much of a shooting threat, even available to play at the end of a finals game, having played till the last game of 5 successive seasons.

Interesting now that there are other factors at play when it's your guy in question. I'm not denigrating anyone. I'm simply illustrating that you're applying a double standard here.

[durka]

Untill Giannis proves that he cant be game planned against in a series while playing on a top seeded team, I'm going with Steph. I know people will point to Steph getting shut down in last years finals, but once Klay and Durant were gone he had no supporting cast. He made the finals twice in a much harder conference when he was the undisputed #1 option.

[HiRez]

To all of you haters who are saying Steph wasn’t any good, or Steph was only good because of the players around him, consider this:

In the three seasons he played with Durant, the Warriors were plus-1.3 points per 48 minutes with Durant on the floor and Curry off. They were plus-12.1 points with Curry on and Durant off.

[michaelm]

Untill Giannis proves that he cant be game planned against in a series while playing on a top seeded team, I'm going with Steph. I know people will point to Steph getting shut down in last years finals, but once Klay and Durant were gone he had no supporting cast. He made the finals twice in a much harder conference when he was the undisputed #1 option.

Exactly, Giannis is great, and maybe he will make 5 successive finals and more besides, but as yet he hasn’t. Durant is my second favourite player, and was especially effective against LeBron in the 2 finals they won, but Curry had stellar numbers and impact in those series as well, with 1 mediocre game in each series, which GSW won 4:1 and 4: 0 anyway. He was imo also the most important player in 4 of the 5 WCF wins; I would give it to Klay in 2016.

I am not sure the Western Conference was the elite conference last year, btw. But while it has been argued that Giannis had under-performing shooters in the ECF series last year, Curry essentially had no other shooters at the end of game 6. GSW’s problem and down to deliberate choices they made that they had such a top heavy roster which succumbed to injury, but hardly down to Curry.

[michaelm]

Deleted

[Lunartic]

To all of you haters who are saying Steph wasn’t any good, or Steph was only good because of the players around him, consider this:

In the three seasons he played with Durant, the Warriors were plus-1.3 points per 48 minutes with Durant on the floor and Curry off. They were plus-12.1 points with Curry on and Durant off.

I, too, am surprised that a team built Curry does not perform well without Curry

[510TWSS]

With Curry you know you can win with him as the healthy #1 option, so I'm still comfortable selecting Steph.

It's unfair to Giannis as he's still younger than Curry was before he started routinely making the Finals. For me, in a head to head given the context here I'll take age and experience right now.

[Lunartic]

The real question is;

This years Bucks vs this years Warriors with healthy Klay, who ya got?

[blazza18]

The question and thread prove there are so many strange opinions still when it comes to Steph. I don't think it's a knock on Giannis to say this shouldn't be close.

[michaelm]

The real question is;

This years Bucks vs this years Warriors with healthy Klay, who ya got?

We get to see next year whether a team built around the original trio can still be a contender. I have Giannis and the Bucks at this stage unless GSW get a player of immediate high value out of their draft pick, and Wiggins flourishes in their system as welL I don’t know what they could have put around a healthy Klay, Curry and Green this year, but consider it very unlikely It would have been a team which could hang with Giannis and this year’s Bucks; this year was always going to be problematic if Durant left, the NBA has equalisation measures including the salary cap for a reason, and GSW were hard capped.

In general you build a team team around Curry, while Giannis obviously has more attributes to carry a team as an individual player.

[michaelm]

The question and thread prove there are so many strange opinions still when it comes to Steph. I don't think it's a knock on Giannis to say this shouldn't be close.

Giannis is obviously very good, possibly a 2 time MVP himself soon, and likely will get even better, so Bucks fans are obviously both entitled to rate him very highly and are knowledgeable about what he does day in day out. As a GSW fan I find this thread far less illogical than all the threads over the 3 seasons prior to this one condemning Durant as a coward/snake etc for joining a 73 win team while simultaneously denigrating Curry, and often Thompson and Green as well.

Curry just doesn’t fit the freakishly athletic mould which is typical of, and the expectation of, an NBA superstar though,and I think that even extends to how NBA players see him.

[Brooklyn91]

Lmaoo at people wondering why Curry is getting unrated. Nobody really respects KDs rings so why would they give Curry respect for those same rings they disrespect KD over? KD has been trashed for that whole GSW run, it was a matter of time before the negativity surrounding that perception of GS starts to rub off on Steph as well.

[michaelm]

Lmaoo at people wondering why Curry is getting unrated. Nobody really respects KDs rings so why would they give Curry respect for those same rings they disrespect KD over? KD has been trashed for that whole GSW run, it was a matter of time before the negativity surrounding that perception of GS starts to rub off on Steph as well.

If neither of them is any good what exactly is the problem with them joining up ?,

[KingDavid]

Which player would you rather have for the playoffs

Starting a team from scratch and fully healthy for this Year

What team? What coach? Who are the teammates? Will we get a Durant clause? Both players would be ideal for the playoffs, but both players need the right teammates and coaching. There's not enough information for me to cast a vote.

[GregOden]

Today Giannis is better. But I would take 2016 Curry over him.