Often players look at their schedule and circle dates of teams they can't wait to play. Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry probably won't admit it, but he probably circles the days when he plays the Portland Trail Blazers. Maybe it's a coincidence, but it seems like he loves playing against them.
It doesn't matter if it's a regular-season game, postseason, or preseason game. A big night from Curry is possible every time he sees the Blazers on the schedule. According to StatMuse, he averages more points against Portland than any other franchise with 28.0 points. Stephen Curry is reaching this mark by shooting 48.2 percent and 45.5 percent from beyond the arc.
Curry's career-high 62 also was earned at the expense of the Blazers. He went insane that night, going 18 of 31 from the field and 8 for 16 from deep. It only took the two-time MVP 36 minutes of play to set this mark. That's a whole lot of buckets in a short amount of time.
Friday night, the Warriors completed their final game of the preseason. Their opponent was no other than the Trail Blazers. It was the preseason, so they didn't have their star Damian Lillard in the lineup. So as a Dubs fan, this game might not be all that appealing. You would expect Curry and company to get the win easily, and the starters will rest early for the regular season on Tuesday.
That pretty much was the case for the most part. The only thing that people forgot is Stephen Curry loves to torch the Trail Blazers. He only played 30 minutes in a 119-97 blowout victory. In that short amount of time, Curry exploded for 41 points. His performance forced the Chase Center to shower him with MVP chants in the third quarter.
Curry's minutes were limited a bit because it was a preseason game. That's what made this even more remarkable. He didn't get off to a fast start, so it didn't look like he would do much. In the first quarter, Curry scored just six of his game-high 41 points. He was 2 of 5 and missed all of his three-point attempts.
His mediocre performance continued until Curry air-balled a three-pointer early in the game. Shortly after, he finally missed the two consecutive free throws LeBron James begged him for in their matchup. Immediately after those rare mishaps for Curry, the two-time MVP went berserk. He scored 15 points in about six minutes in the second quarter.
In the third quarter, Stephen Curry's brilliance continued. He scored 20 more points. It would be the last minutes of another dominant night against Portland. It was Curry's third career 40 point game in a preseason match. It also capped off an undefeated 2021 preseason for the Dubs.
It doesn't matter what time of the year it is. Curry is likely to score big against the Blazers. In a meaningless game or one of importance. No matter the scenario, you can expect Curry at his best. When you see the Blazers on the schedule, get your tickets fast. If you don't, you could miss the next big night for Stephen Curry.
Follow Us
Subscribe