Say what you want about Stephen Curry’s defense—just don’t question his greatness. Sure, he’s had his flaws on that end of the floor. Early in his career, his defensive numbers were far from elite, often forcing Steve Kerr to hide him against tougher matchups. And now, as he gets older, that chatter has resurfaced. But for former NBA guard Austin Rivers, all that talk misses the point. In his eyes, Curry’s place among the greats is already cemented—flaws and all.

He does acknowledge the deficiencies, though. “Steph Curry was a guy that was hidden on defense for years. The difference is Steph actually tried. He just couldn’t defend.” And that’s true. In 2009–10, Curry’s first full season, he allowed 111.5 points per 100 possessions—well below league average and among the poorest marks for a starting guard. It was so apparent that he lacked the strength to fight through screens and the lateral quickness to stay in front of quicker guards, leading to easy close-outs and high foul rates.

But you don’t reach his level without the champion mentality he possesses. Just like LeBron James, he knew that he had to work on his defense to prove the doubters wrong. “He got a little stronger, he got a little wiser, he got better and better and better and better. Now they still out search him in games now, but it’s not like it was,” said Rivers on his podcast. By 2022, Curry had reportedly added 15 lbs of functional muscle. And in addition, invested heavily in studying opposing offenses and mastering team-defensive rotations.

His defensive growth — marked by career-highs in steals, deflections, and blocked short midrange attempts in 2021 — pointed to serious preparation and film study. Even Draymond Green took notice back then, telling 95.7 The Game, “Now, he’s one of the best defenders we have on our team.”

And what did it result in? Kerr routinely praising Curry’s defensive work and deploying him on tougher assignments, a sharp contrast to hiding him in bench-unit lineups a decade ago. So seeing Steph improve his game despite being one of the best on the court showcases his mentality.

But Game 4 of the Warriors-Rockets first round series left something to ponder. Steve Kerr, bringing Steph onto the defense in the last possession, was called into question.

Austin Rivers: Bringing Stephen Curry out on defense was “nothing personal”

On the Off Guard pod, Pausha Haghighi asked Austin Rivers this: “What do you think about the other day when the Warriors won against the Rockets, the last possession for the Rockets, Steve Kerr took Steph out on defense?” Considering Steph’s obvious defensive woes, it should be obvious right? Well, according to his brother-in-law Rivers, it was nothing personal- just business.

“That’s fine, man. I listen, I understand typically what doesn’t happen with a player like that when you’re talking about one of the greatest of all time. But if you have someone who’s physically a better defender on the team, the object of the game is to win. It’s nothing personal,” said Rivers on the pod.

Despite Steph’s initial defensive woes, Austin Rivers does think that there’s improvement on that front. But that doesn’t mean he can be thrown into the defensive deep end and perform like someone like Draymond Green. So Steve Kerr’s justified his moves time and time again. There’s a reason he’s won 9 championships in total, right?