The evidence becomes clearer by the day. With the coronavirus pandemic and all its inglorious but sensible restrictions, too many people with too much downtime are flocking to social media and plunging into irrational discussions at first.
Like the one that raged on Tuesday night and Wednesday and was unrelated to Kamala Harris as a vice presidential candidate:
Is Damian Lillard better than Stephen Curry?
The answer is no, but that doesn’t stop the “debate”. Nor should it.
One of the fascinating aspects of sport is that it is, like a crowded barbershop, a virtual playground for silly discussions. Sport is where conflict drives research before it is reduced to laughter and expressions of mutual respect. It is okay to accept that you disagree. On those rare occasions when it degrades to violence, the fault is not of the disagreement but of those who lose perspective.
With Lillard lighting up all opponents in the NBA bubble, getting the Portland Trail Blazers into a pro-playoff position – and doing it spectacularly – it’s only natural for hyperbole to take flight in an insane dimension. The bias from the recent experience is real and it is the fastest path to madness.
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Dame is the best point guard on the bubble, so he has to be the best point guard in the NBA. The first statement challenges the debate, the second invites it.
Which brings the conversation straight to Curry, the point guard everyone else should be measured against. He has the least to prove and is the most decorated player in the unnamed LeBron James league.
Curry is the only active point guard with three league rings. He is the only point guard with two MVP trophies and the only player in history to win the award with a unanimous vote. Furthermore, he is the only point guard who can legitimately claim to alter the offensive philosophies and defensive strategies of basketball at all levels, regardless of gender.
All the things Dame wants more, Steph already has.
But Dame is coming. Is hard.
His performance in Florida was a portrait of cold determination and absurd production. Lillard averages 37.0 points (48.5% of shots, of which 41.4% from deep, 88.8% from line) and 9.3 assists per game. In the last two games, with increasingly high stakes, Dame has scored 51 and 61 points. Of the 69 points Portland scored in the fourth quarter of those two games, both of which were extremely close, he scored 40.
In scoring 61 points to put away the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, Lillard joined Wilt Chamberlain as the only players with three 60-point games or more in a season.
Hats off. Even the caps. Lillard lives up to her nickname Dame DOLLA (Different in the levels allowed by the Lord). The praise he receives is well deserved. He shouldn’t be begging anyone to “put some respect on my fucking name,” like he did on Tuesday night.
Curry might not be surprised to utter that phrase, but it definitely lives in his heart. This is where these two players are most alike. Each was a three-star recruit who dropped out of high school and landed in middle school: from Steph to Davidson, from Dame to Weber State. Everyone entered the NBA amid the yawns of skeptics. They feel disrespected because they have been disrespected.
But comparing Dame to Steph is cheap debate bait.
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Curry, has the chips and the salsa. His teams crush Lillard’s in every post-season round. Steph’s presence in the Bay Area is responsible for the Warriors hysteria that has emerged over the past seven years. The Chase Center can’t be built without the overwhelming success of the team, and that success doesn’t happen without Curry.
Unfortunately, perception is at the root of this stupid debate.
Despite his record and innate toughness, Curry will always be perceived by some as a tender suburban boy, the son of an NBA millionaire player. Her baby face, relatively fair skin, and displays of joy are magnets for jealousy and bound to attract detractors.
Lillard obtains props to survive her upbringing. He’s a Brookfield Village boy who grew up on a five-block stretch between the railroad tracks and I-880 in East Oakland. He is a credible rapper. His court demeanor is so intense it almost seems like a trance. This is serious.
Curry and Lillard deserve better than being pitted against each other, with slander flying in both directions, at a time when one is radioactive and the other inactive.
Debate can be fun, but it’s rarely vital. How about cooling the keyboards a bit and allowing each one to be gorgeous in its own way? Both are, after all, destined for the same Hall of Fame.
