Who is the greatest point guard in NBA history?
If you ask Stephen Curry that, what do you expect him to say? Gilbert Arenas did and Curry picked himself.
.@StephenCurry30 SAID HE’S THE BEST POINT GUARD EVER. 👀🔥
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) August 21, 2023
HIS WORDS. NOT MINE. 🤷🏾♂️ pic.twitter.com/SYgQHlQwr2
Curry and Magic Johnson — who Curry praises — are the most obvious two for the GOAT PG crown, although Oscar Robertson gets left out of that conversation too much and deserves to be on that level. After that trio comes a second tier of elite guards such as Jerry West, John Stockton, Isiah Thomas, and I would also put Steve Nash and Chris Paul on that tier.
There will never be another player like Magic Johnson and Curry is right, his resume is insane — five-time champion, three-time MVP and three-time Finals MVP, 10 All-NBA teams, 12 All-Star teams, and the list goes on and on. If you didn’t get to watch Magic in his prime, you owe it to yourself to go down the YouTube rabbit hole of his passing highlights and his career.
Arenas gets at a key point, however: Curry’s legacy may impact the game’s future more. It’s not that youth on the playground in the 1980s didn’t emulate Magic, they did. Still, it’s hard to envision yourself as a 6'9" point guard in the same way it’s tough to imagine yourself as 6'9" with the athletic gifts of a god like LeBron James, or to picture yourself as 7-foot Giannis Antetokounmpo or 6'10" and long Kevin Durant.
Youth can see themselves as Curry — 6'2" and a bit skinny but with a will and a well-practiced shot. Arenas is right about this, go to any AAU/youth tournament and Curry is the model, and his style of play is changing the game. Curry will impact generations of players.
Does that make Curry the greatest point guard ever? It depends on who you ask.
