Shaq & Kenny Debate if Steph Curry is in the GOAT Conversation | Inside the NBA 

Love that shaq doesn't let the kobe disrespect slide

Rip Mr bean, Shaq will never let his lil bros legacy be disrespected.

Shaq putting Steph ahead of him- shows how much he appreciates and admires Steph. Steph is also in the conversation for the best showman in sports. Everytime you tune in to watch - are you not entertained ? Whether anyone puts Steph in whatever category…as long as he’s playing - people will tune in and watch. This is greatness - enjoy it while it lasts

Steph actually changed how basketball has been played in the last 15 years. He’s the GOAT shooter and has had the most influence in how teams are formulated now.

Its funny that Kenny said he had great teams as if none of the other guys had great teams 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Steph Curry's unique status: --GOAT Shooter (only objective fact in NBA/No debate at all) -Changed the game -Most influential player beside Kobe and Mike -Only Unanimous MVP -73-9 team

As big as a warriors fan myself, can’t believe Shaq would pick Steph over himself. Shaq was probably the most dominant force we have ever seen( if people want to debate him with Wilt).

He should be in the conversation for sure. 4x champion, 2x MVP, greatest shooter ever, top 2 PG all-time, greatest regular season team record ever & he changed the way people play basketball for better or worse...he's easily top 10 all-time. It's just preference after that

Shaq ain't trying to hear the disrespectful for Kobe, and I appreciate that!

Outside of guys like Kobe, I do feel like Steph is one the more disrespected and underappreciated legends in our game. So I appreciate Shaq who is a legend himself for acknowledging it. Give these guys their flowers while they're alive to smell them.

it’s time.. a 6’2 guard changed the blueprint of the game, almost 30 years old and I’ve never seen a player like this before the influence and the accolades is there none else to talk about fr 🤷🏽‍♂️

The media try to ignore Kobe’s greatest shoutout to Shaq for keeping his legacy alive

Stteph doesn"t have the size and athleticism of Jordan, Kareem, Kobe and Lebron. Yet he's changed the game. Only very few people can say they've changed the game. We usually put those type of people in the GOAT debate so shut up Kenny.

Love the humbleness from Shaq. He didn’t mention himself in that conversation but he should.

He’s earned his spot in the top 10 no doubt

Well, he's been in my GOAT conversations for a long time now. There are few players that changed the game in a massive way through its course and Steph is definitely one of them. Not to mention his 2021-2022 performance, which was one for the ages.

" You're not putting him over Michael " Really fuckin glad Ernie said that, not gonna lie. Nobody will ever be better than Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, Straight up killers.

Kennys hating ass knows Steph would've bodied him 9 times out of 10

Shout out to Shaq defending his fallen brother's honor. Won't let anybody play with Kobe's name, no matter what issues they had in the past

I see what Shaq means, at the end it the day Curry has mastered the single most important thing a basketball player can master which is shooting. Shooting to me out weighs any other skill a basketball player can acquire.

Steph has been in the conversation! He has fundamentally changed the game of basketball.

Shaq is right! So many ppl are overlooking Steph's greatest skill besides shooting. Steph may be history's best winner besides MJ. U saw the complete dominance of curry and KD, and see how KDs been playing with all the other MVPs! Curry is the BEST player ever besides MJ to build the most unstoppable team whenever he has at least one superstar playing alongside. Klay, green, Poole, Wiggins don't count as superstars, they only play well with curry. Without curry, they will be nobody's to average. In truth, curry has always WON champs as the ONLY superstar in the team other than KDs era. Like Kyrie Irving played with LeBron 4 years, AD with LeBron, Dame with Giannis, Tatum with brown, Leonard and George, Embiid and harden, KD and Kyrie and harden etc. Steph can pair WITH ANY of those superstars and GUARANTEE a CHAMPION! Ppl keep overlooking Steph. Whenever Steph wins a champ, his teammates suddenly become from scrubs to superstars

Ppl act like they are afraid to say Kobe is in that conversation

He’s pound for pound the greatest of all time imo. All other top 10 maybe top 20 players are 6’6 and over and a lot are bigs

Kobe's legacy is second to none, his global icon status is second to none, he's an icon of icon's! He was box office and bigger than life! He is many peoples GOAT and many NBA players GOAT and is definitely in the GOAT convo! Good looking out Shaq!!

He's in the convo, but it's not getting as far. Kobe was in the convo before Lebron.

So disrespectful that Kenny didn't put WILT in the conversation especially after explaining the criteria. Not only did WiILT affect the game in different categories, he was so great & dominant they changed rules to try to nullify his greatness. Let that marinate for a minute.

We need Shaq, we need a couple other solid players a maybe a pundit like sas to have a 3-4 hour podcast just to categorically go over who is the goat. Have specific categories and a definitive point system. Like a jury pouring over the evidence and mapping out how many points and come up with a #1 but you have to set the categories and have a good wide range of all the aspects of greatness, eliminate feelings and opinions by setting the parameters clearly establishing a points system that can measure everything thoroughly which considers their stats and their teammates and so much much much more

It takes a different man to do what he did on five fouls. And with all due respect, Kenny, shooting is not just any other statistic. Stop describing him as just a shooter and limiting his abilities to just that. He has dominated and NBA consistently through out his career. I agree with Shaq; Steph is in category of greatest players of all time.

Yes, Stephen Curry is definitely in the goat conversation. Doesn't matter about the defense that he plays. It matters that when this man is on the court he is affecting the outcome of the game point blank period. And there's already a slew of others in the chat conversation who's giving you statistical values to state why this man is in the goat conversation so I won't go into that conundrum. After all the game is about scoring and when the game's closed getting timely stops. He's done enough that the outcome has been slanted in GS favor since he arrived

If he was better at defense he should be put in that convo... Definitely most magic player in the last 20 years.

Has Curry ever been on NBA All-Defense team = NO, is Curry an elite defender = NO, has Curry been a top 3 steals leader = NO, has Curry been a top 3 assists leader = NO, is Curry an elite rebounder for his position = NO. There's more to basketball than just shooting. Curry is a one dimensional player who has been the best ever at ONE (1) facet of the game! He should never be considered GOAT material with the likes of Kareem, MJ, LeBron, Kobe or Magic. Each one of those players were multi-talented players who played defense. Facts

Love Shaq!! Has always stood up for Kobe. ❤

Steph may not be the best ever, but he changed the game more than anyone.

Ayy i appreciate shaq for giving these player they flowers. I get both sides of the argument. Its just about appreciating greatness n thats it

Respect to Shaq himself for standing up for Kobe. Crazy that Shaq had to say it for guys like Jay Will and Stephen A to not refute it. Even Kenny acknowledged Kobe after Shaq checked him lmao. Putting Kareem over Magic seems crazy to me.

the fact we keep forgetting bill russell wit 11 rings is insane

Crazy how he doesn’t realize that Kobe changes the game on defense just as much as on offense. Look at the amount of all defensive team awards Kobe has compared to lebron

Definitely is in the convo he is as dominant from deep as Shaq was in the paint he also took the league from Bron in his PRIME

They cut kenny off like 20 times, he was trying to say what separates him from the other dudes is defense. Greatest shooter but the drop off on defense is too much

Not only stats but the fact that a small guard like Curry has changed the game...."in a game that was meant to be dominated by tall people" is even more impressive in my eyes!

For his Height best shooter in it best scorer at his position and what he doing at his age and status best point and shooter in it

Kenny is right. There are a handful of people in the goat conversation. Everything after that we are just having fun. Steph is not close to Michael.

Greatness recognizes Greatness , simple as that.

Kenny really didn’t mention Kobe wtf wrong with this world 🤦🏿‍♂️

What would help shaq’s argument is the impact Steph’s game has. This man’s ability on the offensive end is to scary that coaches forced there defense to full court press him once he gets the ball and if he passes half court some how he’s doubled immediately or tripled. To add on the fact that he’s even more dangerous with out the ball 🤦🏾‍♂️. The amount of threes required in games nowadays to win is insane, shared credit with his splash bro. But the 3 has become a necessity required in everyone’s game no matter the position.

100% in the conversation!!!!

Unless he wins another ring and FMVP, but Steph is already in the top 10

Curry is the only player in history that can have 0 points in a game and still get triple teamed and double teamed right after half court. Come on that’s crazy. On fast breaks all eyes are on curry. He controls a game just being on the court.

If Steph Curry was an elite defender like MJ, Kobe and LeBron (at least LeBron earlier in his career), then I think he would be in the conversation. Right now, he is comfortably in the top 10 ever and is in the conversation for best point guard ever. Best shooter of all time hands down.

Kenny has a point when it comes to his top players. He has the best three, which most people will agree (MJ, LeBron, Kareem) but everything after that is when people will disagree and have conversations or debates. I have not seen many people disagree on their top including those three (no matter the order).

Points, Assists, Rebounds, Defense. Unless you can effective in all categories. You cannot be considered as the greatest player.

One more ring would put him on the outside of it IMO. He'd be in the Kobe-Duncan-Magic-Bird tier where he'd be one of THE greatest, but a shaky case for being the GOAT.

I’ll give respect to shaq when it comes to Kobe he’s always putting him in a conversation because he know that man belongs in a conversation

Lechoke has been put in this since before he "won" any championships. People will probably leave Steph out if he has 7 championships. Tell me it isn't biased as F.

I have nothing against Steph and I always watch his games. But to be the greatest shooter ever and only 2 scoring titles to MJ's 11( 7 in a row) there is a large gap between a great shooter and being the Goat. He has zero DPOY or all defensive teams. Steph is great as Steph, not as The Goat. Leave Steph in his own category!

Lol Shaq lost his mind putting Steph putting Steph over himself

Its been time 🐐🐐🐐

Thank you shaq regarding kobe 👏👏

Kobe is always over looked in this convo..!! Thank you Shaq for remembering..!!

Kenny pissing me off. Steph is more than just the best shooter (no ds) he impact the game by just being on the floor. He'd be triple teamed & that easily creates opportunities for his teammates OR he would still score on however many defenders on him. One of the best to touch a court, Shaq knows it too

Let's just say we have all-time GREATS.

If youre talking skill set then probably no but impact on the game then yes absolutely. Bird/Magic, Jordan, Steph. Those are the only names in the impact discussion which I would argue is just as important as the skill set debate.

Shaq is giving Steph love. But Steph is somewhere between 10-12 all time. Kenny is on point. In the true GOAT convo, MJ, LBJ, Kareem are the only names on the list (and, in my opinion, in that order). Russell (toughest omission from the true GOAT list), Kobe, Magic, Bird, Timmy, Wilt, Shaq, Hakeem (way underrated in these lists), and, yes, Steph are the next tier. Then it's guys like Moses, Doc, KD, Elgin, West, Oscar and so on.

Steph is clearly not the best all around player ever, but he is also clearly the greatest shooter of all time, which is the number one most important ability in basketball, the most impactful point guard of all time over Magic, and also Steph is arguably the most influential player in history who literally changed the game and how it is played more so than anyone else, even over Jordan. The modern era of basketball exists and will continue to progress in that way because of Steph. Putting Steph top 5 all time is perfectly logical if you were to create a top 5 GOAT starting lineup with him as your GOAT point guard. If I wanted to win, I'd pick Steph over Magic, and anyone who has watched both eras would do the same.

It's really just Mike and LeBron in that conversation. Kobe is right on their heels, and then you can name maybe 6-8 others that are in the conversation to be in the conversation. Steph is one of them.

He’s been in the conversation

I have Steph #1. No one has been this successful with the league obviously against him sending him to the line the least out of all the legends before him while being defended more than anyone else and destroying opposing defenses like no one before him. He's the best because if he were given the superstar treatment like all others before him he would have won 80 to 82 games in a season 2 to 3x already.

There are probably only two players for whom the opposing teams have a separate book on how to defend them. Michael and Steph. Also, Steph is the only player who consistently is triple-team.

At least the conversation

Yes he in the conversation

He's been in the goat conversation for a long time. People only look at Steph's game and say, well he's great at shooting which subconsciously makes them think that he's not great in other areas. But in reality Steph is the best ball handler in the nba after Kyrie, has some of the most effective and efficient paint finishes and single handedly carries the most influence on a team compared to any other player. The opposing teams have to change their entire game plan when against Steph. The gravity Steph attracts is so great, that it creates opportunities for his teammates to make easy finishes at the rim, opportunities no other player would've created. Why should you be able to dunk if you can have someone else do it for you? Steph 's impact on the game as the greatest shooter of all time is so great that people often overlook all the opportunities that are created due to Steph. Steph's impact on the game isn't always so obvious. But the result reflect it. One of the greatest dynasties ever. Definitely up in the goat conversation.

It is absolutely blasphemous that Magic has not been mentioned. We are talking about a Point Guard, yes Steph is great, but NOT ONE MENTION OF MAGIC!

Only thing you can put against him is defense and his defense is highly underrated

Love you Shaq you always keep it 💯

Goat curry is the only conversation he’s in I’m talk I’m about food 🥘…..

“That pool aint deep, not deep water in there” 😂😂😂😂 Kenny speaking all FACTS

Makes me tear up Shaq sticking up for kobe! Especially when they used to beed never thought they would reconcile! DONT DISRESPECT MAMBA!! Played through injuries and still was putting up numbers!

Hell yea I been saying he in GOAT convo

Kenny felt offended 😂😂😂

Without shooting, Steph impact on the game is as close as D Angelo Russell 😂

Kenny just throw some shade “leadership” or lack there of

To me he is and here is why. He probably is the most influential player ever when it comes to how the game of basketball has changed on the court. I’m not talking about making it global etc.., talking about how he changed it with the 3 point and how team defenses defend now. Also, he is obviously the greatest shooter of all time and to be honest I’ve never seen anyone get guarded like Steph gets guarded. He doesn’t have the ball and gets picked up full court at times cause he’s so dangerous. He is the only player with a unanimous mvp and arguably the best mvp season ever (arguably) by averaging 30ppg shooting 50/40/90 on the best efficiency ever and making over 400 3s. He led his team to an all time nba best 73 wins. Yes he didn’t win the title but winning 73 games is something I never thought would happen. He is a 4 time champion, 2 time league mvp and a finals mvp. He should’ve won finals mvp in 2015 if we gonna be honest. He is amongst the players with the highest true shooting despite being a guard that shoots tons of 3s, most of the people with the highest true shooting are centers or players that get to the rim a lot. He also is top 3 most entertaining player to watch with MJ and Kobe imo. Lebron has a case for being the goat (I don’t think he is but he has a case) despite having done less than Jordan as far as titles and finals mvps and regular season mvps. If we can make that case for him why can’t we for Steph who also has less trophy’s but has been such an influential player. I’m not saying that Steph is the goat, I’m saying that he should at least be in the conversation.

He should... unlike lebron he didn’t need to switch teams to get his

I was fucked up when I didn't hear him put Kobe in that list 😮

I just wanted to say something real quick. Yes Curry will always be in the conversation you don't have to put him as one of the top goats but he will always be in the conversation because when you look at aspects of finishing at The rim you can argue who's the best when you look at rebounding you can argue who's the best when you look at defending you can argue whos the best but when you say best shooter of all time we all have the same awnser

If Curry wins his 5th ring, He'll be in my top 5. If he wins his 2nd FMVP, he's my best PGOAT. If he wins his 3rd MVP, I'll place him over LBJ.

I feel like he should be. He didn’t need to switch teams and join another top 75 nba all time player. He only played with one in his career and they were unbeatable together. Lebron needs to switch teams all the time to get 75 all time players

Kenny said Steph's got great teams but doesn't mention bron's 3 super teams that got him his 3.5 rings.

I like the convo. Props to Shaq. Even though the undisputed GOAT by a wide margin is Kareem. Have you checked his Wikipedia page and seen his high school and college career notes? Puts MJ in a distant second.

This is a very interesting take by Shaq. As a huge Steph Curry fan myself, I wouldn’t put him in the goat conversation bc that only belongs to 3 players in history which Kenny named correctly. It’s MJ, Bron, and Kareem. The rest only fight for the 4-10 spots and I truly believe Steph is already top 10 with the potential to sneak into the top 5 if he can pull off one more championship along with another finals MVP. But even than I wouldn’t put him in the goat conversation. I think the ship has sailed for Steph to be considered the Goat just like it has for Lebron. I think Steph is currently around the same level as a Kobe, Shaq and Duncan. It’s debatable if he’s slightly under those guys or slightly over but that’s about it. He’s not in the conversation of the Goat and probably won't ever be unless he does something truly spectacular in the very end.

Wilt Chamberlain folks.... He's in that conversation solidly... No stretching needed.

SHQ, I SO RESPECT YOU FOR BEING ANEST AND PUTTING HIM OVER YOU. THANK YOU SIR SHQ

Shaq talking crazy 💀

Of course! Steph absolutely belongs in the convo. I believe he is more deserving of consideration over LeBron.

I’ve been saying he’s the best pg all time since 2019 and that’s just how i feel about it, but I respect magic @ #1 for most ppl. but Shaq just outdid me 😂 GOAT STEPH I LOVE IT

Steph is definitely GOAT level. The only reason we weren't having that debate is because of false narratives. Steph is the most underrated superstar of all time and it's not even close. Wade played with prime Lebron and said Steph is on that level and to put him on Mt. Rushmore. Y'all forget Lebron got wrecked by Kawhi and later the Mavs even when he had his superteam with Wade and Bosh. Also like Stephen A. just noted, Lebron was dominating the East which was largely acknowledged to be the weaker conference for a long period of time. JimmyHighRoller presented advanced stats showing Steph has the highest added win% of any player in history, #2 is Lebron, #3 is Jordan. Nick Wright just noted that Steph has the highest playoff series win % in history (85%) next to Bill Russell. Steph won before and after KD = continuity of winning = Steph is a winner. Period. What has KD accomplished legacy wise pre and post Steph. Ty Lue (coach of Lebron) said Steph is the head of the snake and they blitzed him even when KD and Klay were on the floor. When Lebron played against Steph, he already had over 10 years to develop as a player. Steph had only really started developing starting in 2013 because of previous injuries and Monte Ellis was the main guy until leaving in 2012. Steph vs Lebron started in 2014-2015 season. Steph literally changed the META of basketball. Probably only people who have caused rule changes (e.g. Wilt) and can rival this. This is an objective accomplishment in a different STRATOSPHERE FAR GREATER than any subjective nominations (1st team, mvps, etc). Everyone needs to stop sweeping this under the rug like it's just another little fact. And much more can be said (e.g. only player to win multiple chips without another top 75 player besides Kobe, etc). So Steph is definitely GOAT level and will be properly recognized/appreciated when he's gone and people better understand more important metrics/accomplishments.

Please stop Kenny & others who refuse to see the obvious. Of course Steph has to be in conversation. He's elevated the game...how could he NOT B. He transcends BB. He is one of the BEST to ever grace the court. PERIOD

he changed the game and players drafted , how is he not one best ever

I was waiting for Shaq to say Kobe. As a Warriors fan, I’d say Steph is a Top 10 player of all time. 🐐 conversation? Why not. Just to be in the conversation doesn’t mean he is #1. To me, Jordan reigns supreme above all.