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There are a number of ways in which Stephen Curry has brought about some obvious changes to the way basketball is played. It is also a fact that Curry was never expected to reach the heights that he has managed to in his career and that he was doubted by a range of coaches and analysts during his initial years. Back in 2015, Steph produced what was his first-ever MVP season, and led his team to the Championship as well.
The incredible season saw Steph average 23.8 points, 7.7 assists, and 2 steals per game while shooting almost 60% from the field. The MVP ended up impressing Shaquille O’Neal as well, who made a rather hilarious claim about the player during an interview with ‘The Dallas Morning News’.
Shaq claimed that Steph had managed to do something he had never seen in the NBA before. He claimed that while Steve Nash could dominate every now and then, in the same vein, Steph has been taking over games altogether.
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“I like watching Steph Curry. He’s something that I haven’t really seen. I really haven’t seen a small guard dominate like he did. You know Nash did it every now and then, but Steph Curry, like took over the game,” Shaq said, before talking about Curry’s body structure.
O’Neal suggested that Curry’s achievements were even more impressive considering his lack of physical stature, an aspect of his game Steph has tremendously improved on since.
”If you look at him, I saw him a couple weeks ago in New York, and no offense to him but he looks like a little baby. He has no arm muscles, no chest muscles,” O’Neal explained.
It is clear that the LA Lakers great was quickly able to spot the potential for superstardom that was apparent in Stephen Curry as well, right from the start. Of course, the fact that he won the Championship that season and was also the league’s MVP helped massively too.
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Shaquille O’Neal has outlined Stephen Curry as his favorite player multiple times
There seems to be quite a bit of admiration that Shaq has for Steph. That may simply be because Curry pretty much excels at all the things Shaquille O’Neal himself was terrible at.
O’Neal only recently claimed that Curry is the best shooter ever, and way better than he himself ever was, which warrants his place in the GOAT debate as well. This, is in addition to his past claims, as Shaq also considers Steph his favorite player.
O’Neal made a range of statements in support of his claims. He said that Curry had proven his clutch gene multiple times in recent years, and is easily the best shooter of all time. While it is unclear where SHaq himself will rank Steph among his best of all time, it is very evident that he has been well aware of Curry’s quality right from the start.