Recently, Golden State Warriors fans were treated to a trip down memory lane when Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant suited up for Team USA together at the Paris Olympics, where they won gold. Curry and Durant of course won two championships together in 2017 and 2018 as members of the Warriors, cementing themselves as the greatest team of all time in the process.
Recently, another key member of that dynastic run, point guard Shaun Livingston, broke down the chemistry between the two superstars during their days playing together, including the adjustments that each had to make in order to help the other out, via the Knuckleheads Podcast.
“So he took a step back and had to make the biggest adjustment, and I think that’s what KD was looking at, is Steph going to take that step back,” said Livingston. “I’ve never seen someone score so efficiently as KD, like 30 on 12 shots. So when he came it wasn’t really an adjustment for him because he could get his in the flow like no one else I’ve ever seen.”
Livingston also broke down how the two were able to come to an agreement after a tough loss early in their first season together.
“Steph, his was a little bit more volume, he needed a little bit more rhythm. Then after that Christmas game, there was internal conversation among them two, which it had to be,” said Livingston. “Like look, I need you to be Steph Curry, and then once Steph was like alright, KD’s good, he’s good with us, it was like unstoppable from there.”
The Christmas game in 2016 saw the Warriors fall to the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road courtesy of a last second Kyrie Irving shot. The Warriors would still finish the season with a whopping 67 wins and would go on to eliminate Cleveland in five games in the ensuing NBA Finals.
An iconic duo
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There can be little argument against the notion that Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant are the most talented offensive duo to ever step on the floor together in the NBA, especially considering that both were in their primes between the 2016-17 and 2018-19 seasons in which they played together.
Couple this with the fact that the team also had Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, in addition to strong role players like Livingston (who was one of the most lethal mid range shooters in the NBA), and it's easy to see why the Warriors went to five straight finals, including three with Durant in the fold.
