Antonio Daniels Has Issue With Stephen Curry’s Free Pass

Ex-San Antonio Spurs guard Antonio Daniels and host of SiriusXM’s “Off The Dribble” took issue with Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry getting a ‘free pass’ in the NBA.

LeBron James is by far the one athlete that gets criticized the most in the league. When you bring so much attention to yourself coming out of High School with a nickname as “King James” you better be ready for what is going to get thrown at you from the media and the fans in general.

We have all seen James get picked apart by the media for not rising to the occasion or stepping up to lead his team in big games. When he does, all praise him. When he falls on his face, they are sure to make it known how they feel.

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Golden State Warriors guard and reigning league MVP Stephen Curry seems to get a “free pass” from criticism

according to former San Antonio Spurs guard Antonio Daniels

Daniels feels Curry doesn’t get in the negative spotlight whenever he doesn’t play like the MVP he is in big games, such as in this NBA Finals versus the Cavs.

“I feel like Steph Curry is a guy that constantly gets a pass for whatever reason. Steph Curry constantly gets a pass. If this is Russell Westbrook or Kyrie Irving or LeBron James, we’re not giving them a pass. So why give Steph Curry a pass?

But when he’s not knocking down those same shots, we allow him to be in daze sort to speak. When he’s not hitting shots, he’s not really defending, he’s turning the ball over and we don’t say anything about that though. We don’t say anything about that whatsoever about that. We give Steph Curry a pass.”

In this year’s Finals, Curry has not put up MVP-like numbers, but he is safe

June 13, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after he is fouled by Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) during the second half in game five of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

from the media, as Daniels suggests. Quick to make excuses, stating not being 100-percent and playing on pure adrenaline is what is keeping him going. But missing shots and not coming up big in the final minutes and simply falling off doesn’t bring what James gets every night he doesn’t score 40 for his team. They simply pick apart every star player that does not lead their team to wins.

Jeff Garcia from News 4 San Antonio’s Spurs Zone put it in a Spurs fans perspective.

Spurs fans grill the team’s star players whether it be Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili, Danny Green or LaMarcus Aldridge if they have a string of bad games. Yet Curry seems to evade the criticism when he isn’t playing to the level everyone knows he can play at.

Game 5 is an example. Curry scored 25 points. You are probably saying to yourself that is not bad. Well it isn’t. But when you look deeper at the box score you would see that Curry went 8-of-21 shooting from the floor. The Cavaliers went on to defeat the Warriors to force a Game 6 and the Warriors attempt of win back-to-back championships was put on hold.

But, as Garcia puts it, the NBA’s “Golden Boy” seems to be off-limits for any sort of criticism. He has the likes of ESPN in the palm of his hands. They televised Curry’s complete pre-game workout and even his ‘tunnel shot’.

There was a point during that broadcast that Curry released one and it hit the top of the backboard. Just think if James or any other player did this routine. What would they would get from the media? Maybe something on the lines of, “he’s not practicing game shots.”

Whatever it is, Curry escapes any sort of criticism toward his play.

(H/T Jeff Garcia, News 4 San Antonio)

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