LeBron James Admits Stephen Curry Is Good at Basketball... and I Guess I Agree

LeBron James was asked about Stephen Curry’s MVP a few weeks ago and he answered that question and people turned it into a whole thing because what is value anyway? He was asked again yesterday and he tried to bury the issue – and any perceived beef – once and for all. Via ASAP:

"First of all, I made the mistake by even answering the question because I knew where it was going to go, and I guarantee how it was phrased to Steph wasn’t how I answered the question. So obviously his reaction was what it was. And I’ve been there before as well. So Steph was definitely the MVP of our league and is the MVP in our league and is a great basketball player, and what he does for this league is amazing."

You know what? He’s right. Stephen Curry is great at basketball. And you would have to be dumb to think otherwise. Which brings me to the Stephen Curry / Jeremy Lin post from last week. It was referenced on SportsCenter last night like it was a real thing with merit.

Oy.

Stephen Curry is not the next Jeremy Lin. The two-time NBA MVP and three-time NBA All-Star who won a title, set and broke the NBA record for three-pointers in a season, and has averaged 22.4 points, 6.9 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game over a 7-season career is better than Jeremy Lin, the Charlotte Hornets 6th man who once had a really awesome 2-month stretch.

All the angry people on Twitter are right – only a moron would think there was any comparison. And I am not a moron. Just look at the actual words from the post.

"Sure, these seasons compare Lin’s ceiling to Curry’s basement and this is obviously a ridiculous premise, but remember that Curry is just 5 months older than Lin and their numbers were eerily similar that year."

I compared Steph’s worst season to Lin’s best and called the comparison a “ridiculous premise.” I suggested the Knicks could have won a title if Lin had stayed. I linked to an equally ridiculous post about the Warriors not tipping at McDonald’s that also confounded the internet. I understand where I went wrong.

The problem is that so many people share so many bad opinions that they don’t truly believe with such conviction, that when someone says something that tongue-in-cheek, it’s not immediately obvious. These bad opinions are now known as “hot takes.” If it’s not clear that I don’t believe something I said, then I’m no better than the real hot takers.

I thought the idea of tipping at McDonald’s and comparing the Warriors championship run to Linsanity were ridiculous and far enough out there that most people would understand they couldn’t possibly be real opinions, but there are so many out there, they actually could be real opinions. It’s actually quite terrifying.

With the reach and audience we have here at The Big Lead, it is important to remember that I have a responsibility to the public. I mean… I am basically Batman.

"He’s the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now. So we’ll hunt him. Because he can take it. Because he’s not our hero. He’s a silent guardian, a watchful protector. A dark knight."

With Matt Harvey’s career all but over, I think I can take that moniker now. I will continue to say stupid things, but I will be more upfront about telling you that I know they’re stupid. That’s what a lot of the folks in the hot take industry lie about. They pretend they believe the things they say. And I can see why. That ridiculous Lin post did good traffic. So for the sake of page views, forget everything I just said. I have bad opinions and I totally believe in all of them!