Steph Curry sealed the Warriors’ win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday with a clutch 3-point shot.
Steph Curry's dagger 3-pointer in Friday's 115-105 win over the Los Angeles Clippers should've looked familiar.
Very familiar.
Curry put the Warriors up by 12 with a step-back 3-pointer with just over a minute to go at Chase Center on Friday night. The two-time MVP's behind-the-back crossover to create space from Paul George was a move right out of former Cleveland Cavalier Matthew Dellavedova's nightmares, as Curry dropped a similar move -- from an eerily similar spot on the floor -- on the Australian at Oracle Arena in Game 5 of the 2015 NBA Finals.
With our All Access Daily newsletter, stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams!
SIGN UP HERE This fan-made cut showing the two moves side by side shows that "eerily similar" might be underselling the resemblance.
That's downright creepy.
Curry dropped a game-high 38 points against the Clippers on Friday, knocking down 13 of his 24 field goals and nine of his 14 3-pointers. The two-time MVP scored 30-plus points for the fifth time this season, as the Warriors improved to 5-4.
Golden State Warriors
Find the latest Golden State Warriors news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
Draymond Green and Curry are the only two healthy players remaining from that 2015 win, and the pair have played on much bigger stages than in an empty arena for the ninth game of the regular season. Nonetheless, Friday's victory over the title-contending Clippers was an important one for Curry's younger, more wide-eyed teammates.
"For us that have been there, it's kind of weird celebrating a win like that," Curry joked in a post-game interview with ESPN's Malika Andrews. "But we're a young team. We're trying to find our identity and understand how we're gonna win games this year. It takes all [11] guys that stepped on the floor tonight and just finding 48 minutes. That was a gutsy win for us. To come back and show ourselves in the second half, show we have that competitive spirit and [we've] got to carry that forward."
RELATED: Paschall credits Warriors' staff for success as small-ball big
Curry's game-sealing 3-pointer Friday evoked memories of his first MVP season, but his stat line so far looks a lot like his second. The 32-year-old now is averaging 30.6 points, 6.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game. In 2015-16, en route to becoming the first unanimous MVP in NBA history, Curry averaged 30.1 points, 6.7 assists and 5.4 rebounds per game.
These Warriors have four fewer wins through nine games than the 73-9 squad opened the season with in 2015, and the importance of Friday's victory to this year's team says a lot about their differing mindsets. But if Curry continues to look like his 2015 self, he very well could add a third MVP trophy to his collection.
