As Stephen Curry’s contract is set to end in Golden State after the 2025-26 season, he is eligible to extend for an extra year this summer. However, as the player is currently concentrated in Team USA’s pursuit of the gold medal in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, this negotiation remains on the club’s to-do-list until he returns from action.
Nevertheless, the All-Star guard has made it clear that his desire is to remain a member of the only NBA franchise he’s ever played for until he retires. And now it seems that the Bay Area front office is on the same page. The club’s general manager has revealed his intentions around Curry’s future this weekend.
“That guy can get whatever he wants,” Mike Dunleavy said in a news conference on Friday. “It’s been a sprint here getting through the draft and free agency and summer league, but all of that will get figured out. Steph, I think I can say pretty confidently, that he will be a Warrior for life.”
Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. Says Stephen Curry Will Never Leave The Franchise https://t.co/hcZWaaTmTo
— The Best News Network (@MightyBetsSN) July 13, 2024
Now that the team has decided to turn the page on Klay Thompson’s era in San Francisco, they can use up their resources to pursue Curry’s renewal as their No. 1 priority. The team also knew that they needed to mix up the roster if they were hoping to return to their title-winning ways.
“I think it would have been hard to run the same team back,” Dunleavy explained. “Although 46 wins is pretty good, we didn’t make the playoffs. But this isn’t something where it’s like broken completely. We just need to tune some things up. I think we’ve been able to do that, and we’re excited about this group.”
The Warriors have now traded in athletes like Buddy Field, Kyle Anderson and De’Anthony Melton, while they still hope to acquire at least one more player that will fit to their shooting and defensive style. However, the GM doesn’t believe this fourth star will come any time soon.
“Free agency stuff has calmed down. We’ve got 14 guys and are against the first apron, so adding in that regard right now would be tough,” he expressed this weekend. “But you’re always looking around the league to get better, talking to teams and exploring stuff. I like our team, but there’s also some things that we can look to improve at.”
Curry is currently enjoying this one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play alongside LeBron and Durant while representing Team USA in Olympics
According to the Golden State icon, the first partnership between him and LeBron James in international basketball started to take place with a phone call during the fall. Steph recalls that these two NBA rivals mentioned the possibility to team up at the Paris Olympics and return U.S. basketball to their former glory after a poor FIBA World Cup last year.
“He was the first person I talked to,” Curry mentioned of his conversation with James about joining forces. “‘Would this be something I would want to do?’ And from there it was like, ‘Let’s get it.’”
As for Kevin Durant, who already shared the floor in Golden State along with Curry, doesn’t consider this partnership to be a “last hurrah” for the superstar trio. “Nah,” Durant told ESPN with a smile this weekend.
“These guys are still playing at an elite level. I feel like Bron could play 4 or 5 more and be here in 2028 in [the Los Angeles Olympics]. Steph’s still playing great ball. I’m doing all right, too,” he assured. “I don’t want this to be a farewell tour or make it just about us three. It’s about trying to win this fifth in a row.”
