Stephen Curry on Game 7: 'I need to play my best game of the year'

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It goes without saying that the importance of Sunday's NBA Finals Game 7 between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers eclipses that of any other game on the league calendar. For the players involved, that means the external pressure ramps up to extremely high levels. Different players feel that impact differently, but it's hard to deny that it does not exist in some form. That's especially true of the stars, who must contend with talk of legacies as soon as the final buzzer sounds.
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Those stakes are particularly high for Stephen Curry, the NBA's first unanimous MVP and someone widely acknowledged as the league's new best player right up until LeBron James started dominating this series. While injuries have diminished Curry's form, he has not played up to anyone's expectations, including his own, vs. the Cavaliers.
The pressure is on for Curry to star in a Warriors win. And he knows it. From his media session on Saturday:

You've always resisted the idea that you just have to take over, you have to win a game by yourself. In a Game 7, obviously all of the spotlight on this team, on you, do you have to be great in this game? Do you personally have to be great?​

Yeah. I need to play my best game of the year if not my career because of what the stakes are. So that doesn't mean scoring 50 points, though. That means controlling the tempo of the game. When I need to be aggressive -- well, I need to be aggressive, but when I need to push the envelope, do it, but do it under control. Do it within the schemes that we're used to as a team. Focus on details on both ends of the floor. All those things go into having a great game, and I need to do that.​

What are your teammates telling you? Anything specific about the way they want you to approach this game?​

Basically a hundred different ways of saying what I just said. Everybody is kind of encouraging each other, understanding the opportunity that we have in front of us.​

The plane ride back yesterday was fun because we were very, very kind of light. The attitude was really positive. So I like where we're at mentally and needs to kind of transition over to the game tomorrow.​

It should go without saying that Curry is not alone in feeling the gravity of the moment. However, most do not openly say that they have to play their best. For comparison, here's how LeBron James responded to a similar question:

I mean, I approach -- every postseason game is very key. You don't put too much more added pressure on it because it's a Game 7. One thing we all know is it's the last game of the season, so it's not like you're preserving any energy, be out there saying, okay, I've got to keep my body ready for the next game. There's no next game. So look forward to the challenge. I mean, it's a Game 7, but I don't put too much more added pressure on it.​

LeBron is obviously not a normal NBA figure, but he can acknowledge the importance of the game while still trotting out the same cliches about trusting teammates and staying in the moment. What Curry said is very different, if only in terms of his specific wording. He expressed the need to perform and now will be judged on those terms.
Frankly, it may not be enough if the Warriors win. Golden State won last season's title, too, and various commentators have pointed out that Curry has not yet had a signature performance in an NBA Finals game. It's possible that he will have to score 30 or 40 points in Game 7 to continue being known as a historic figure in the sport. These legacies often rely on more than mere wins.
That's not necessarily fair to Curry. As he knows, though, Game 7 carries plenty of weight.

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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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