OAKLAND — As the threes rained down at Oracle Arena on a historic Wednesday night, Stephen Curry firing away with all the fearlessness of a video game player who had used a cheat code, it was impossible not to become a prisoner of the moment.
All these glorious years of the NBA, from Pettit to Cousy, Chamberlain, Russell, Kareem, Bird, Magic, Jordan, Duncan and LeBron, and this sort of star had never been seen. And this — 46 points and a 10 three-pointer night that put him past a 400 mark that was even more unfathomable than the unprecedented 73-9 record that they now hold — was the kind of hoops artistry that demanded a dose of big picture perspective.
There was plenty of that down the California coast from here, where future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant delivered a finale for the ages amid an adoring Staples Center crowd. The Warriors caught wind of his exploits at halftime of their record-breaking win over the Memphis Grizzlies (125-104), but none of them knew about his 60-points-on-50-shots send-off as they put the finishing touches on their own raucous night.
"Wow, wow, wow," Curry said as he took off his shoes at his locker. "Kobe had 60?! That man’s incredible."
A truer statement has never been said, but even Bryant never knew domination like this. He was always a variety act, a slasher who perfected his post-up game and made a wondrous living by way of the mid-range game. The long-ball was part of his repertoire, but nothing compared to this.
Bryant's career high for a season was 180, and only once did he hit at least 10 three-pointers in a game like Curry just did for the fifth time in his career. Bryant, who had 12 on Jan. 7, 2003, shares that league record with Donyell Marshall (March 13, 2005) and Curry (Feb. 27 against Oklahoma City). Bear in mind, a 200 three-pointer season has only been done 52 times.
Andre Iguodala, the Warriors small forward who is close friends and golfing buddies with Curry, provided a prism through which the night could be viewed as well. It was a counter-intuitive view, to be sure, but one that spoke volumes about the speed and scope of Curry’s rise.
"He has become a cultural icon," said Iguodala, who spent his first two-plus seasons in the NBA alongside Hall of Famer Allen Iverson in Philadelphia. "There aren’t too many guys who have that it-factor, and Allen was one of them — especially with what he brought to the game and how people perceived him. He kind of brought the street to the game of basketball. Everyone was attracted to his street. Even those from the suburbs and other countries. And he had that. Steph has that as well.
"He’s kind of buttoned up and has this perfect persona. But that’s not an act. That’s just who he is. Both of those guys are who they are. They don’t try to change for anyone else. Who they are is really genuine, and they’re so talented and they dominate so well on the court, that people tend to gravitate to them. They’ll both go down as two of the greatest players of all time."
The day will come when Curry is the one being talked about in such grandiose ways. Yet while he has a long ways to go until the whole story is told, his place as the leader of a three-point revolution is already set in stone.
The best of the best, players like Iverson who never hit more than six three-pointers in a game, never dreamed of playing the game this way. Yet here's Curry, not only winning the first scoring title of his seven-year career but becoming the most improved scorer in NBA history who won the MVP award in the previous season (plus-6.3 points per game, from 23.8 to 30.1, ahead of Larry Bird's plus-4.5 in the 1984-85 season, according to ESPN).
He achieved his first 50-40-90 season, too, finishing with a career-high 50.4% mark from the field overall, 45.4% from three-point range and 90.8% from the free throw line. According to basketball-reference.com, that feat has now been done 13 times by nine different players. The 50-45-90 mark that Curry reached is far more rare, with only Warriors coach Steve Kerr (while with the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls who had the previous regular season record of 72 wins) and Warriors player development consultant Steve Nash (with the 2007-08 Suns) having done it before him. Last but certainly not least, Curry is the first perimeter player to average 30 points per game on 50-plus percent shooting since Michael Jordan in the 1991-92 campaign.
Curry's joy ride of a season, quite clearly, is in the discussion for best of all time.
None of which is the focus now for him and his Warriors, nor should it be. They have a first-round date with the Houston Rockets that starts on Saturday, a playoff push that comes with the pressure of this record that may never again be broken.
But as Curry reflected on his latest magical moment, it was impossible not to wonder just how far out he might go. The man with unlimited range, quite naturally, is pushing the limits of greatness once again.
"We just know we have a good thing here, and we want to take advantage of it and keep pushing the envelope," Curry said. "That’s what we’re about. ... I want to be great, and I want to be the best I can be."
Follow Sam Amick on Twitter @sam_amick.
GALLERY: ONE GREAT PHOTO FROM EVERY WARRIORS GAME
