Charles Barkley says why he does not believe in Stephen Curry and the Warriors

Charles Barkley says what you ‘can’t expect’ from Stephen Curry this season 

Perhaps overshadowed by the longevity of LeBron James, Curry’s ability to maintain his performance deep into his career is near-unprecedented. He’s scoring 27 a night through six games and is showing few signs of slowing down. 

But he now has a growing injury history, and the Warriors’ championship hopes last season were shattered in the playoffs when Curry went down with a hamstring strain. It was a humbling reminder that while you’d be forgiven for forgetting, Curry is in the twilight of his Hall of Fame career. 

That’s why Barkley is doubtful that they can make a deep playoff run. Speaking on the Dan Patrick Show, the 1993 MVP said, “Steph is clearly on the downside of his career. You can’t expect him to play like he did that game last week in June. I mean, that’s just physically impossible.

“Everybody’s fresh right now. But you can’t expect a 37-year-old to go to November, December, January, averaging 35 points a game, that’s not going to happen. And get through three or four rounds in the playoffs.”

That was made clear when Curry’s season ended in the second round of the postseason. The Warriors looked on track to challenge for the title after knocking off the two-seed Houston Rockets, but eventually their age caught up to them. 

But this year, their 23-year-old is showing that he may be able to carry a bigger load.

Charles Barkley names ‘wildcard’ for Golden State Warriors

The spotlight shining over Jonathan Kuminga was bright at the start of this season. The young star demanded a larger role on the team during Kuminga’s summer-long contract discussions with the Warriors, and he’s backed up his stance so far. 

Yes, it’s early, but he is on track to average a career-high in points, rebounds, and assists, and is proving to be worth every penny of the $48.5 million the Warriors agreed to pay Kuminga. 

Barkley thinks that Kuminga is going to be the player who decides Golden States’ season, for better or worse. 

He said, “He’s the only wild card because we’ve seen how far that team can go with Draymond and Jimmy Butler. They are a first-round team.

“The only question is, can Jonathan Kuminga take the next step, because in the West, you’re going to have to beat OKC. You’re going to have to beat Houston. You’re going to have to beat the Joker.

“So can he grow enough to get them past the second round of the playoffs? That’s the only question with the Warriors.”

Steve Kerr said Kuminga earned a starting role early in the year, which is a big step forward in their relationship, which appeared frosty over the summer. 

If Kuminga can maintain this level of production for the entire year, that changes everything for the Warriors, who can lean heavily on him as their aging stars rest.