This is the first layer of his underrated status: .
Stephen Curry fits none of these molds. He is 6’2" and 185 pounds. He does not dunk on people. He does not play "look-at-me" defense where he swats shots into the third row. Because he does not look like the prototype of a dominant athlete—because he has skinny calves and a baby face—we instinctively lower our ceiling for him. Stephen Curry- Underrated
Because he has been doing it for a decade, we have lost our astonishment. And in losing our astonishment, we underrate him. Critics will always point to defense as Curry’s weakness. He is not Jrue Holiday. He is not Marcus Smart. But the "Curry is a defensive liability" narrative is at least five years out of date. This is the first layer of his underrated status:
When you are so good that a single miss in Game 7 is a national trauma, you are not un-clutch. You are the standard. For years, critics used the lack of a Finals MVP as a cudgel. "He can’t be top-10 without a Finals MVP!" He does not dunk on people