One of the bigger storylines from Team USA men’s basketball triumph at this year’s Summer Olympics was the bond that formed between LeBron James and Stephen Curry. The two future Hall of Famers had battled many times in postseason play, including in four NBA Finals series, so they had to get used to being on the same side this time around.
While James was named the MVP of the men’s basketball tournament, an argument could be made that Curry deserved the award. He got hot in the United States’ last two games en route to the gold medal, but before that, he had some uncharacteristically cold shooting performances.
While on a recent episode of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” Curry revealed that he gave himself some positive self-talk to get himself out of his slump, with an assist from James, while saying that he had to get used to James being his ally.
“It’s positive self-talk. We were winning, and I was doing my part—setting screens, playing hard—but I wasn’t making shots. I knew at some point I’m going to need to make some shots because that’s why I’m here. After we played Puerto Rico, I was doing an interview, and they were asking me, ‘What’s wrong with your shot? Are you worried about it?’ I said, ‘No, we’re winning, and I know a flurry is coming.’ As soon as I said that, LeBron walks behind me and says, ‘[Expletive] right it is.’ That gave me a lot of confidence. It caught me off guard because, you know, I had to get used to liking that guy after all of our battles. But it was a confidence boost, and it came at the right time.”
Everyone, even Curry and James, will have their share of bad games and even slumps from time to time. But it is important for someone dealing with such a situation to not wallow in self-pity and to instead maintain a constructive attitude. It also certainly helps when others around such a person provide positive energy and belief.
