Stephen Curry and Coach Steve Kerr Make History; Warriors are Red Hot

“Number 4000! A shot for the ages, from a player for the ages. Truly the portrait of an artist.” 

TNT’s Kevin Harlan illustrated the moment perfectly as Stephen Curry accomplished the unthinkable in a dominating Golden State win over the Sacramento Kings Thursday night.

Stephen Curry became the first player in NBA history to hit 4,000 threes. And he’s not doing it alone—the Warriors are red hot, surging at the perfect time as they make a late-season push with their sights set on another deep playoff run as a legitimate title contender.  

To put 4,000 three-pointers into perspective, imagine this: If you lined up every one of Stephen Curry’s made threes from end to end, the distance would stretch over 75 full-length NBA courts. If each shot were a splash into a bucket of water, Curry could fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

As Harlan put it, Curry is not only a great player — but he serves as an “artist”. Not just any artist, but one who has redefined the game as a whole. His iconic ‘shimmy’, the chewing of his mouthguards, classy shoes, no-look shots, and of course, his magnum opus, the three pointer, all cement him as an artist that creates on-court masterpieces.  

Also in that game, Draymond Green led the Warriors in scoring against a Sacramento Kings squad eager to spoil Stephen Curry’s historic night. But the Kings couldn’t stop history. Green led the team in scoring for the first time since Game 7 of the 2016 Finals, the second longest streak in NBA history since the merger in the 70s. Not only did Green lead Golden State to a dominating 130-104 blowout, but Curry became the first player in NBA history to drain 4,000 career three-pointers, further cementing his legacy as the greatest shooter the game has ever seen.

“It was beyond my wildest dreams to push a record that far”, Curry noted after the win against the Kings. 

The 3-star recruit out of highschool ranked 300th in his class began shocking the world during Davidson’s famous March Madness Cinderella run in 2008, making it all the way to the Elite Eight. Ever since then, the spotlight has been on Curry and hasn’t gone away.

Draymond praised his historical teammate after the game saying, “to see him cross that milestone that no one has ever crossed is very fitting — the way he changed the game, how important he made the three point shot he made to the game of basketball. Overall, couldn’t happen to a better person.” 

Draymond not only talks highly of his teammate, Curry, he even takes a page from his celebration book.

Aside from humorous celebrations, the Warriors have serious momentum. They currently stand somewhat uncomfortably, however, in the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference. The Timberwolves have also won 7 straight games and sit just half a game back from Golden State. With only around 15 more games left in the season, neither teams can get separation at the No. 6 spot in the standings. The Warriors do hold the tiebreaker over the Timberwolves, though. 

A fun little stat for what it's worth: the last time the Warriors won 7 straight, they won a title in 2022.

“Vibes are good right now,” Curry added in the postgame conference. “But like I said, we are not getting ahead of ourselves. Every night is a chance for us to get a little better, find a little bit more confidence, build that chemistry that we’re gonna need down the stretch. And win as many games as possible.”

Winning to end the season strong has definitely been the narrative as the close of the season approaches. 

This narrative shift struck the team once Jimmy Butler was signed in early February. Since Butler has joined Golden State and has played in the lineup, the Warriors are 14-1. 

In that span, Butler has been a sigh of relief for Warriors head coach, Steve Kerr. Butler’s been able to open up the team on both sides of the ball; offensively and defensively. He’s elevating a team that started out hot and then fell to a No. 10 (seed in the West, to now a title contender — all while having quiet numbers in the points column. A talented, seasoned veteran player wanting to come in and facilitate the offense and purely just win is just what the Warriors need. 

“When it’s my time, you’ll know it’s my time,” Jimmy said. “Until then, I’m going to pass the ball to the open man, get my guys some jumpers, get them out in transition and we gonna keep winning.” 

Butler isn’t just all talk, it shows up on that stat sheet, too. The Warriors rank Second in the NBA in assist ratio since his signing on Febuary 8th. The team is sharing the rock more and more. 

Butler has also brought relief for the ‘non-Curry’ minutes, something that has plagued Kerr’s tenure sporadically since Kevin Durant left in 2019. Before Saturday’s matchup against the Knicks, the Warriors are now +33 without Curry and +39 without Draymond Green, per ESPN. 

Since the Butler signing, the Warriors rank 2nd in Defense Rating and 5th in Offensive Rating. Before that? They were 18th, and 10th respectively. 

Alleviating the pressure on Curry on a nightly basis will keep this team running towards a dark hose title contention. Butler’s ability to get to the charity stripe and add stoppage minutes to those ‘non-Curry’ periods is vital.

Thank you, Jimmy. 

Thanks to the likes of Curry, Draymond, and Jimmy putting the Warriors in playoff shape — Kerr earned his 558th win as the Warriors head coach, moving Kerr to the franchise leader. Kerr tops late Hall of Famer Al Attles to achieve this accomplishment. 

“Growing up in L.A. in high school as a Laker fan and hearing Chick Hearn talk about Al Attles on the sidelines, watching him on TV, watching their championship in ‘75, he was an iconic NBA figure,” he said. “I didn’t even think I could ever coach in the NBA, so when you sort of put it all together and end up here, passing this icon, it makes no sense. I’m very blessed to live the life that I do and to have been on this path.”

Kerr, 59, changed the culture at Golden State from being a below-average team in the West to surging to their first title in 40 years during the 2014-2015 season, Kerr’s first. Along with all the other rings he brought to the Bay, Kerr fostered legacy. 

With Kerr at the Helm, led by Curry, Draymond, and Jimmy — the league should be on the lookout for a red-hot Golden State team.

The Warriors host a Nuggets team that just suffered a tough Jordan Poole game winner tonight at 10pm EST on ESPN.