Should Stephen Curry leave the Warriors?

The Warriors are mediocre, boring and Steph Curry is practically waving the white flag this season.

“There’s a responsibility to keep the franchise in a good space and in a good place when it comes to where we leave this thing when we’re done,” Curry told reporters after the Warriors’ loss to the Raptors Monday. “No one wants to be obsolete or find themselves in a situation where you’re missing out on opportunities. But that doesn’t mean you’re desperate, just throw your assets everywhere.”

This feels like Tom Brady’s final season in New England all over again. In 2020, the Patriots were headed for hell, the roster was aging, and it was clear the franchise was preparing for a retooling phase. Brady saw the writing on the wall, left for Tampa Bay and won his seventh ring, cementing his legacy as the undisputed NFL GOAT. Now, Steph faces a similar crossroads: Will he make it in Golden State, no matter how dark things get? Or does he pull a Brady and pursue rings elsewhere?

Unlike Brady, Curry cannot enter free agency: he was signed through 2026-27 for a total of $122.21 million after signing an extension last offseason. So if Steph wanted to opt out, he would have to request a trade. Curry is eligible to be traded this season, although he reportedly has more clarity on Golden State’s situation this summer. By June, he’ll know where the Warriors land in the draft and if there’s a superstar trade worth pursuing. But actions speak louder than words, and everything Golden State has done so far shows that they don’t really want to fight right now.

A year ago, the Warriors let go of Pascal Siakam. This past offseason, they didn’t push all their chips toward center for Paul George, Lauri Markkanen, or Zach LaVine. Now, it appears they don’t believe Jimmy Butler — or anyone else available — will shake things up at the expense of important future recruiting assets. With George struggling in Philadelphia and Markkanen dealing with back issues in Utah, a deal may not have shaken things up enough for this team to return to competition anyway. But while Curry is still a top-10 pick and Draymond Green is still an all-world defender, their annual inaction in pursuit of stars suggests that cost-cutting and long-term planning — not winning — are the team’s priorities. the organization.

The state of the franchise is grim. The team’s efforts are not inspiring. The arena seems lifeless. It wasn’t the happy, chaotic Warriors team that revolutionized basketball. That energy is gone, replaced by a snooze of a team playing a style the league understands. And for a group so focused on the future, the two-timeline experiment failed spectacularly. James Wiseman vs. LaMelo Ball. Jonathan Kuminga against Franz Wagner. Moses Moody on Alperen Şengün. Three lottery picks, no clear successors.

“We want to be in that position where we want to be relevant in a championship-type chase,” Curry said Monday after the team fell below .500 at 19-20. “But that doesn’t mean we’re desperate. It’s better to be a little patient and understand what it looks like.

Usually, stars push their franchises to burn all future player picks that help them in the present. LeBron James did it for a decade. And for a moment, it looked like Curry might. Monday’s comments contrasted with his criticism of the two-deadline plan just a week earlier, when he said the post-mortem on it would be “not great” and “I just want to win.” So Steph took a different tone, but after Draymond, he did it publicly.

“Steve Kerr, Steph Curry and I disagree with the idea of ​​mortgaging the future of this organization, saying we’re going there now,” Green told Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. “Bad teams do that. Bad organizations do this.

Green’s comments caused a stir in the NBA world on Monday. Later the same day, during a team shootaround, Kerr told The Athletic: “We are not giving in. But you need to be organizationally realistic about your situation. And you need to be careful about what awaits you in the future. I probably won’t be there, but I will tell you that if this organization gave away the next six or seven drafts for a wild swing, that would be the most irresponsible thing they could do. »

It’s certainly strange that three of the NBA’s biggest competitors are dropping out this season. The message reads like a sort of coordinated PR campaign about mindful trading. Perhaps this is a leverage play to try to get Butler or someone else without mortgaging a single draft pick. Or maybe the team is preparing to tank with Steph dealing with lingering knee soreness and Green with a back issue. Or maybe it’s just a cold reality: the run is over, this team is no longer built for an all-in-run.

Despite all the issues with the team’s struggling youth, lack of depth and Kerr’s rusty system, the front office would probably be more willing to make a win-now move if Curry was still playing at an MVP level. But he is not. Curry is averaging 22.7 points on 16.8 shots, two career lows in the first three seasons of his career. Steph’s efficiency has also declined since he no longer gets to the basket as often, posting just 12.6 percent of his attempts in the restricted area compared to 25 percent in his glory years. And while he remains a devastating outside shooter, 3-point shooting habits have caught up across the league. It’s hard to justify a big trade when your best player is either slowed by a knee issue or is simply showing the natural signs of aging at 36 years old.

But even so, Curry remains a great player with an unrivaled perimeter game that distorts defenses, and his Olympic gold medal demonstrated his nuclear shooting abilities. He can still play at the highest level. So if there’s no trade to be made now or this summer, it’s certainly possible that this could be Steph’s last dance with the only franchise he’s ever known.

It’s a special honor to be a one-team player like Kobe Bryant or Dirk Nowitzki. Kobe Bryant gave us the iconic final 60 points, but the Lakers averaged 30 wins over the final five seasons of his career. Dirk Nowitzki mentored Luka Dončić, but worked hard on lottery-bound Mavericks teams. But there’s one big difference between Steph and these legends: Steph is playing basketball at a much higher level at 36 years old. He can still contribute to a championship level team. He’s more like Brady – a player who could elevate the right team to title contender.

If Steph hits the trade market, the possibilities are endless. Imagine him teaming up with Nikola Jokić in Denver, flanking Victor Wembanyama in San Antonio, or supercharging the Magic, Rockets, or Timberwolves. Any of those would give him a better chance at a fifth or sixth ring than the Warriors realistically could.

“It would mean everything” Steph told Andscape in 2023 when asked if he had won a fifth championship. “And you obviously understand every championship you get, you put yourself in another echelon of legends who have won at the highest level. Obviously, Bill Russell, no one will understand that (11 rings). But getting to Jordan winning six and Kobe winning five is Tim Duncan of the Spurs. So this is all about the inherent legacy that you will continue to create.

Brady’s decision to leave the Patriots clearly demonstrates that getting a life sentence is overrated. Raised in Northern California, Brady idolized Joe Montana growing up and saw him leave the 49ers for the Chiefs late in his career. Montana made the playoffs in two seasons in Kansas City, but the team was unsuccessful. So Brady knew the risk of leaving the comfort of home. And he discovered the benefits. Winning his seventh ring in Tampa Bay only cemented his legacy in New England, even if he didn’t wear a Pats jersey. It became the ultimate validation of his greatness, proving that he could win anywhere, with anyone.

Curry built his life in the Bay Area. The challenges of being uprooted from one’s family must be part of the equation. But his legacy on the field is intact. If Steph were to leave Golden State, he would still be revered as a franchise legend. The statue will still be built. The retired jersey number will still hang in the rafters. Steph still has room to climb the all-time rankings, and at this point, only the rings will move him.

One of the biggest sacrifices of Steph’s career was allowing Kevin Durant to join the Warriors. Curry could have refused to cede some of the spotlight. Instead, he chose to share it. KD helped him win two more rings, but ultimately won both Finals MVPs. And Steph’s numbers took a nosedive in those years. But this choice was for the good of the franchise.

Leaving might also be for the best of Golden State. After all, as Steph himself said: there’s a responsibility to keep the franchise in a good position once he’s done. So what’s better for the Warriors: stay around .500 for the foreseeable future or trade Steph for a haul before he declines and then rebuild? It is clearly the latter solution. Especially with the 2025 and 2026 drafts featuring generational talents like Cooper Flagg and AJ Dybantsa. Flagg’s versatile upside or Dybantsa’s versatile talent would better define a rebuild than clinging to the past.

Maybe the Warriors will get a chance to be a top pick in the next two drafts. Maybe a star that suits him will become available. Maybe Steph’s Brady plan involves sticking around long enough for the team to reload for more runs.

But for now, the championship window is closed. And this season is over, so Curry has six months to consider which door he walks through: the one that keeps him where it all began, or the one that challenges him to pursue something even bigger.