Steph Curry, to many people’s surprise, recently admitted he still gets performance anxiety, even in his 16th NBA season.
The league’s best ever three-point shooter confirmed that the pressure of performing at such a high level each night worries him, but it also keeps him accountable.
“Oh, for sure I have anxiety,” Curry said. “A lot of it is baked into the expectations I’ve set and the level I want to play at. It’s your own expectations and awareness of what a good game is. It’s a healthy insecurity of having to prove yourself every single night, which is cool. It keeps you going.”
Like many, ESPN’s Tim Keown was surprised to learn this.
“He plays with such freedom, ebullience and unflappability that it might come as a surprise, as it did to me, to learn that Curry suffers from performance anxiety, that he approaches every game with an unsettled fear of what lies ahead,” ESPN’s Tim Keown said. “He does not appear to be suffering from any existential angst as he’s scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter against the [Los Angeles] Lakers on Christmas Day; he looked equally unaffected hitting eight 3s against France in the Olympic gold medal game; same for the countless times he has tossed his conscience aside and led his team by making shots from previously unimagined distances.”
Unfortunately for Curry, he’s in a difficult situation this season, where the Warriors are trying to use him less, but the team is struggling without him.
“I want to do this for as long as I can,” Curry says. “But the clock’s ticking. We all know that.”
These quotes from Curry are becoming more and common. As as added, “It’s tough at times. It’s scary at times. I know there are a lot less days ahead than there were before.”
As a small guard, all of the competition against larger opponents and postseason runs are beginning to take a toll, he says.
“The scales have tipped, for sure,” Curry said. “It’s more of a measured approach now. I feel like I can still get to the same peaks, but is that an every-single-night-type thing? Maybe not, but it’s picking and choosing your spots and trying to manage an 82-game schedule and hopefully get to a playoff series where you’re fresh.”
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