The Penalty Box: Why We Like Steph More Than LeBron
May 31, 2022 at 10:48 p.m.
The Penalty Box: Why We Like Steph More Than LeBron
By Roger Grossman-
Actually, I feel like it was more of an earthly revelation than a thought.
I was watching the Warriors pass, dribble and shoot their way into the NBA Finals. I was seeing them work together as a unit to achieve a common goal.
They are a team.
That’s when it hit me.
I had always felt like there was a difference between Steph Curry of the Warriors and Lebron James, currently of the Los Angeles Lakers. But I could never put my finger on it. I recognized it, but I could not figure out what it really was.
But that night, I finally did. And with that, I figured out why we like Steph more than we like LBJ.
First, their physical stature matters to us.
Lebron is an imposing figure. He is tall and muscular. He’s an athlete’s athlete.
Steph is built like the kid who bags your groceries.
Lebron’s power is a lot of his game. He drives you to the basket and has the ability to pull up and shoot or shoot it on the run.
Steph draws people to his pregame warm-up dribbling routine, which people video and share with others.
He might be the greatest shooter to ever wear gym shorts. His ability to make shots with people nearby is only surpassed by his ability to make shots from every angle and every spot on the court beyond the mid-court line.
They are both great, but in different ways.
But when I was watching the Warriors finish off the Mavericks last week, the biggest and most important difference became crystal clear: Lebron is about his brand, and Steph is about his team.
Lebron James is a marketing mogul. He moved to LA, in part, to enhance his ability to market himself and grow his value as pitchman and a movie star.
It’s worked!
James also has incredible influence over his team’s roster and direction. He is consulted on who should be added and who should be moved.
In many ways, he is as imposing a figure off the court as he is on it.
In comparison, Steph Curry goes about his business being a basketball player.
He’s never involved in controversy. You rarely, if ever, hear a foul or misplaced word come from his mouth.
Oh, let’s be clear, Curry is marketing gold. He’s smooth and good-looking. He has a sense of humor.
When he smiles, we smile with him.
But what we love the most about Steph is that he makes the others around him better. He is a good teammate. He shares the ball as well as he shoots it. He creates opportunities to scores for everyone on the court.
His skill reminds us of a time when skill and hard work were the only things that mattered. The way he sets up a defender with one move to blow them away with the next is breathtaking. He’s impossible to guard—if you come close, he dribbles by you, but if you back off, he shoots for three points instead of two.
He’s changed the game of basketball for the better. At a time when brute force ruled, he showed us a better way.
He has inspired a new generation of young basketball players to get back into the gym or on the driveway to work on their ball handling and shooting.
Steph Curry made professional basketball fun to watch again.
The NBA Finals will begin Thursday—Celtics and Warriors.
Expect to see a lot of skilled players on both sides. Guys who can shoot and dribble and make the effort to defend and rebound and dive for loose balls.
And at the center of it will be a player in a royal blue and gold jersey with the number “30” on the front and back who you cannot take your eyes off for one second for fear that he will do something you have never seen a human being do.
And you, too, will realize why we love Steph Curry more than Lebron James, and why we should all love him more than anyone else who is playing the game right now.
Actually, I feel like it was more of an earthly revelation than a thought.
I was watching the Warriors pass, dribble and shoot their way into the NBA Finals. I was seeing them work together as a unit to achieve a common goal.
They are a team.
That’s when it hit me.
I had always felt like there was a difference between Steph Curry of the Warriors and Lebron James, currently of the Los Angeles Lakers. But I could never put my finger on it. I recognized it, but I could not figure out what it really was.
But that night, I finally did. And with that, I figured out why we like Steph more than we like LBJ.
First, their physical stature matters to us.
Lebron is an imposing figure. He is tall and muscular. He’s an athlete’s athlete.
Steph is built like the kid who bags your groceries.
Lebron’s power is a lot of his game. He drives you to the basket and has the ability to pull up and shoot or shoot it on the run.
Steph draws people to his pregame warm-up dribbling routine, which people video and share with others.
He might be the greatest shooter to ever wear gym shorts. His ability to make shots with people nearby is only surpassed by his ability to make shots from every angle and every spot on the court beyond the mid-court line.
They are both great, but in different ways.
But when I was watching the Warriors finish off the Mavericks last week, the biggest and most important difference became crystal clear: Lebron is about his brand, and Steph is about his team.
Lebron James is a marketing mogul. He moved to LA, in part, to enhance his ability to market himself and grow his value as pitchman and a movie star.
It’s worked!
James also has incredible influence over his team’s roster and direction. He is consulted on who should be added and who should be moved.
In many ways, he is as imposing a figure off the court as he is on it.
In comparison, Steph Curry goes about his business being a basketball player.
He’s never involved in controversy. You rarely, if ever, hear a foul or misplaced word come from his mouth.
Oh, let’s be clear, Curry is marketing gold. He’s smooth and good-looking. He has a sense of humor.
When he smiles, we smile with him.
But what we love the most about Steph is that he makes the others around him better. He is a good teammate. He shares the ball as well as he shoots it. He creates opportunities to scores for everyone on the court.
His skill reminds us of a time when skill and hard work were the only things that mattered. The way he sets up a defender with one move to blow them away with the next is breathtaking. He’s impossible to guard—if you come close, he dribbles by you, but if you back off, he shoots for three points instead of two.
He’s changed the game of basketball for the better. At a time when brute force ruled, he showed us a better way.
He has inspired a new generation of young basketball players to get back into the gym or on the driveway to work on their ball handling and shooting.
Steph Curry made professional basketball fun to watch again.
The NBA Finals will begin Thursday—Celtics and Warriors.
Expect to see a lot of skilled players on both sides. Guys who can shoot and dribble and make the effort to defend and rebound and dive for loose balls.
And at the center of it will be a player in a royal blue and gold jersey with the number “30” on the front and back who you cannot take your eyes off for one second for fear that he will do something you have never seen a human being do.
And you, too, will realize why we love Steph Curry more than Lebron James, and why we should all love him more than anyone else who is playing the game right now.
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