Golden State Warriors have won their last five matches on the trot and their veteran Steph Curry reckons the team is peaking at the right time. The Dubs registered a convincing 118-104 win against Denver Nugget on Friday.
“[There’s a] sense of urgency down the stretch,” Curry said. “The feeling of where you are in the standings, every game mattering. And the idea that the chess match of ‘how do we win this particular game?’ becomes a little bit more important.
He added: “We thrive off of that. That’s why we’ve been so successful for this many years. Because as the stakes rise, the lights get brighter, we tend to level up.”
Curry scored seven 3-pointers and contributed 36 points to play a key role in his team’s win. In the last three games, Curry has accumulated 125 points, which is the second most after LeBron James in a three-game span by a player age 37 or older, according to ESPN. Head coach Steve Kerr showered praise on his talisman.
“In three different cities at 37,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He looked so fast out there tonight, and I think maybe it’s the most underrated part of his game, is his conditioning. Just incredible what he does out there, especially considering how much attention he draws defensively, how much pressure people put on him, and he handles it night after night and flourishes.”
Curry asked if the Warriors are playing like a team at a championship level.
“We’re playing like that,” Curry said. “We have a lot of work. I’ve been saying that since this run started. We still have a lot of work to do to finish the year strong. You are seeing an identity on a night-to-night that we understand how to win games. Whether it’s games where tempo is a lot faster, you got to score or if it’s a grind-out defensive game. We’ve played better in fourth quarters with leads. All the things that championship-caliber teams do, we’ve been doing, and it’s clearly different than two months ago.
“For us to just be able to get into a playoffs series, we understand what we’re capable of, and whether you’re predicting it or speaking it into existence or whatever it is, the confidence is there. So just ride that wave.”
The Warriors will next take on the Houston Rockets on Sunday.
