Steph delivers 'powerful' speech in chilling pre-Game 7 moment originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Steph Curry had something to say before the Warriors' pivotal Game 7 against the Sacramento Kings.
And his words -- along with his historical 50-point performance -- helped catapult Golden State to a 120-100 blowout victory Sunday at Golden 1 Center.
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Curry delivered the greatest speech of his career before the Warriors' film session Saturday, Draymond Green detailed on his podcast, energizing the group after suffering a demoralizing Game 6 loss on their home court the previous day.
"I’m not going to lie, man, Game 6, that was a gut punch," Green detailed on "The Draymond Green Show" after Game 7. "That night, I sent [Curry and Klay Thompson] a text message. I sent that text at 3 a.m. The first line is, ‘So, I can’t sleep. Just finished the film again.’ And then I go into some other things.
"Steph texts back at 6 a.m., like, ‘Can’t sleep, either. But let me deliver the message before film.’ Say no more. And he delivered such a powerful message."
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Curry's message was simple, yet forceful: Game 6 was an embarrassing defeat the Warriors couldn't let happen again. In fact, he wouldn't let it -- and he needed everyone else to be all in.
"Listen, we just got embarrassed last night. We got embarrassed on our home floor with an opportunity to close out a team, and we never showed up," Green recalled Curry telling the team. "If you’re getting on this bus, you’re making a commitment to this team. I don’t care how many minutes you play, I don’t care if you don’t play a single second, I don’t care if it’s points, rebounds, whatever it is, but if you’re getting on this bus, you are saying, ‘I am going to do whatever it takes as far as my preparation goes, to win this game.
"We’re not going out like that. We have an opportunity to play in Game 7 -- they’re rare, they don’t come around. Take advantage of the moment. Embrace the moment."
And embrace the moment they did. The defending NBA champions stunned Sacramento on its home court, with Curry becoming the first player in NBA history to score 50 points in a Game 7. Kevon Looney grabbed 21 rebounds for Golden State -- 10 offensive -- and every Warriors starter finished plus-25 or better in plus/minus rating. The team as a whole was up to the challenge, holding the NBA's most potent offense to 42 points in the second half.
"When he delivered that speech, I can’t say I knew he was going to come out and get 50, but I knew he was going to come out and do something incredible, and I knew there was no way he was going to allow us to lose that game," Green said.
Curry isn't the loudest Warrior, and pregame speeches typically don't come from him. But this time was different. Andrew Wiggins told The Athletic's Shams Charania after the game that Curry's speech on Saturday gave him "chills."
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Green, who has seen plenty of greatness from Curry throughout their time as teammates, was fired up by his words.
“You’re in this space where you're going to fold or you're going to rise up,” Green told Charania. "Once he did that, you have no choice but to rise up. He f--king got everybody locked in."
Lock in. One of the defining phrases of Curry's illustrious career, and now, a speech for the ages to go along with it.
And with the Warriors advancing to the Western Conference semifinals to face LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, there might be even more where that came from.
