When Game 5 started Monday night at Chase Center, Steph Curry trotted out of the tunnel wearing orange and white creamsicle-looking kicks. After scoring 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting and going 0-for-3 from 3-point land, Steph decided to switch things up and change into his trusty Purple Playoff Shoes.
While Curry’s individual numbers actually went down in the second half, the Warriors used a strong fourth quarter to outlast the Celtics in a 104-94 victory and take a 3-2 series lead.
After halftime, Steph went 3-of-12 from the field and 0-for-6 in the Purple Playoff Shoes and scored six points. He finished with a Finals-low 16 points and didn’t hit a 3-pointer for the first time in 234 games, ending his NBA-record streak. But the Dubs find themselves one win away from another title.
Steph Curry's white and orange shoesEzra Shaw/Getty Images
Stephen Curry's purple shoes in Game 5Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
Not gonna lie, I got a bit nervous when he came out in the purple Curry 4 Flowtros. Especially when the Celtics started off the first half on a 10-0 run. It became a legacy game for my Twitter mentions.
Steph also wore the kicks for Game 3 against the Memphis Grizzlies, when he scored 30 points in a 30-point win. Then he changed to them in the fourth quarter of Game 4 against the Grizzlies and helped key a comeback victory. The pièce de résistance came with his legendary 43-point night against the Celtics in Game 4 of the Finals last Friday.
On Sunday, I asked Curry about his undefeated record in the purple Curry 4s. Since Steph seems to be so hyper aware of everything, I figured he knew he had worn those kicks in three games – and they were all wins. Turns out, that wasn’t the case.
“I did not even know that, so I appreciate you -- I don't know if that messes with the juju on there if I'm aware of the record now,” Curry said Sunday. “I've got a lot of different colors, so we'll see. We'll see what happens. Got me thinking now, too.”
My bad, Dub Nation. I thought he already knew. He was also asked about the shoes following his Game 4, fourth-quarter switch during the Memphis series, so I figured it was something on his mind.
As for the possibility of jinxing his 3-point streak: He’s overcome a lot of stiff defenses, double teams, triple teams and shooting slumps since November 2018. There’s no way a question about his shoes caused him to go 0-for-6 from 3-point land in the second half. That 233-game streak -- and 133-game streak in the playoffs -- was gonna end some time. But, hey, Dubs are still 4-0 in Purple Playoff Shoes Era.
Stephen Curry in Game 5Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Image
Now, if the Warriors lost the game AND he shot like that? I woulda felt guilty and I mighta had to delete Twitter.
Steph impacted the game in other ways though. Sporting News’ Scott Rafferty detailed how Curry’s gravity led to this MJ-like finish from Game 5 star Andrew Wiggins. Notice how Curry draws a double-team despite being 0-for-6 from 3-point land at that point in the game.
Marcus Thompson of The Athletic shared a tweet spotlighting Steph’s fingerprints on Game 5:
So Steph might have had off night-shooting, but still played a huge role in the Warriors’ Game 5 victory.
Curry wore the shoes during his Game 4 masterpiece in Boston, will he bust them out for a third straight game in a title closeout situation?
"He was 0-for-9 from three," Draymond Green said. "He's going to be livid going into Game 6, and that's exactly what we need."
