Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry has been one of the most exciting players in the NBA for several years now, but in 2014-15 he has made a strong case for MVP consideration. The league's best shooter entered Tuesday night's game against the visiting Orlando Magic averaging 23.8 ppg (on 49.6 percent shooting) and 7.8 apg for a team with a nine-game winning streak and the second-best record in the NBA. Curry is in full control of his talents and plays in a crowd-pleasing style for a sudden title contender. What more could the basketball world want?
It looks like anyone who watches the Warriors, sated or not, is going to continue to get a healthy dose of Curry's excellence. At the end of a relatively challenging night for Golden State, Curry saved the team from a disappointing loss with an electric game-winner.
With mere seconds remaining in regulation and the Magic up 97-95, the Warriors forced a missed layup from Elfrid Payton to give themselves a chance at the win or an extra period. Curry took the outlet pass from Draymond Green and dribbled up the court without a timeout, taking advantage of a mismatch with forward Tobias Harris. Not surprisingly, Curry got enough separation for one of his trademark pullup jumpers. You can probably guess the outcome:
The Warriors stole the inbounds pass on the game's final possession, finishing off a 98-97 win that extends their winning streak to 10 games and pulls them even with the Memphis Grizzlies for the best record in the league at 15-2. If the Warriors win at home vs. the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday, they will match the franchise record for consecutive wins set in 1971-72.
Truth be told, the Warriors weren't at their most impressive against the Magic. The visitors got terrific games from Victor Oladipo (27 points on 10-of-14 FG) and Kyle O'Quinn (21 points and 11 rebounds) to withstand the absence of center Nikola Vucevic. Meanwhile, Golden State lost a 10-point halftime lead over a 29-17 third quarter and trailed 93-84 with 4:11 on the clock. A set of three-pointers over the next two minutes tied the game, but the Magic made enough plays late to win.
Head coach Steve Kerr expressed his disappointment that the team had to resort to individual heroics in his post-game press conference, but the fact is that a few great plays by an MVP candidate can cover a lot of mistakes. This night didn't showcase the Warriors at their best, but it did allow everyone to see just how good Curry can be when he's needed.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at efreeman_ysports@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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