After the Warriors defeated the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals to capture their fourth championship in the past eight seasons, Golden State forward Andre Iguodala made a bold proclamation about Finals MVP Stephen Curry.
“I think he solidified himself today — not even today, just his career — as the best point guard of all time,” Iguodala said.
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When it comes to point guard debates, Magic Johnson typically lands at the top of the list. Ever since he retired from the NBA in 1996, he has held the No. 1 spot, and it has been difficult to envision someone actually challenging his status.
But with another title on Curry’s resume — and the possibility of more trophies being added to his shelves before his career is over — it’s worth taking a closer look at how the two all-time greats stack up against each other.
(All stats current as of Sept. 16, 2022)
Magic Johnson vs. Stephen Curry: Regular season stats
Curry is a more dangerous scoring threat than Johnson. His ability to shoot, finish at the rim and move without the ball can break even the best defenses. (Sorry to bring up bad memories, Celtics fans.)
Johnson has the advantage in terms of assists and rebounds. His size (6-9, 215 pounds) and skill set allowed him to climb up to third on the all-time triple-double list (138). He sits behind Russell Westbrook (194) and Oscar Robertson (181), the only players who have averaged a triple-double for a season.
| Magic | Per Game | Curry |
| 19.5 | Points | 24.3 |
| 7.2 | Rebounds | 4.6 |
| 11.2 | Assists | 6.5 |
| 1.9 | Steals | 1.7 |
| 0.4 | Blocks | 0.2 |
| 3.9 | Turnovers | 3.1 |
| 36.7 | Minutes | 34.3 |
| 52.0 | Field goal % | 47.3 |
| 30.3 | 3-point % | 42.8 |
| 84.8 | Free throw % | 90.8 |
| Magic | Totals | Curry |
| 906 | Games | 826 |
| 17,707 | Points | 20,064 |
| 6,559 | Rebounds | 3,838 |
| 10,141 | Assists | 5,388 |
| 1,724 | Steals | 1,367 |
| 374 | Blocks | 187 |
| 3,506 | Turnovers | 2,598 |
| 33,245 | Minutes | 28,361 |
Magic Johnson vs. Stephen Curry: Regular season advanced stats
Through 13 seasons, there is a sizable gap between Johnson and Curry in the advanced categories. However, Curry seems to have a few prime years left, so that gap could shrink as he ages into his mid-30s.
| Magic | Advanced | Curry |
| 24.1 | Player Efficiency Rating | 23.8 |
| 80.0 | Value Over Replacement | 60.9 |
| 7.5 | Box Plus/Minus | 6.5 |
| 155.8 | Win Shares | 120.2 |
| 61.0 | True Shooting % | 62.4 |
| 22.3 | Usage % | 28.7 |
Magic Johnson vs. Stephen Curry: Playoff stats
Unsurprisingly, Curry and Johnson are two of the best postseason performers of all time at their position.
Curry increases his scoring output during the NBA Playoffs and he still clears 40 percent from beyond the arc. Johnson bumped up his assist and rebounding numbers under the bright lights of the postseason.
| Magic | Playoffs Per Game | Curry |
| 19.5 | Points | 26.6 |
| 7.7 | Rebounds | 5.4 |
| 12.3 | Assists | 6.2 |
| 1.9 | Steals | 1.6 |
| 0.3 | Blocks | 0.3 |
| 3.7 | Turnovers | 3.3 |
| 39.7 | Minutes | 37.3 |
| 50.6 | Field goal % | 45.2 |
| 24.1 | 3-point % | 40.1 |
| 83.8 | Free throw % | 89.2 |
| Magic | Playoff Totals | Curry |
| 190 | Games | 134 |
| 3,701 | Points | 3,570 |
| 1,465 | Rebounds | 719 |
| 2,346 | Assists | 833 |
| 358 | Steals | 210 |
| 64 | Blocks | 38 |
| 696 | Turnovers | 447 |
| 7,538 | Minutes | 4,999 |
Magic Johnson vs. Stephen Curry: Playoff advanced stats
The advanced stats in the NBA Playoffs are a bit tighter than the regular season figures. Curry has already moved past Johnson in PER, and he’s not far behind in Box Plus/Minus.
| Magic | Advanced | Curry |
| 23.0 | Player Efficiency Rating | 23.2 |
| 18.3 | Value Over Replacement | 11.4 |
| 7.6 | Box Plus/Minus | 7.1 |
| 32.6 | Win Shares | 20.3 |
| 59.5 | True Shooting % | 60.8 |
| 21.2 | Usage % | 29.7 |
Magic Johnson vs. Stephen Curry: Accolades and awards
Johnson leads in nearly every category here, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see Curry match or even pass Johnson’s totals before the Warriors send his jersey into the rafters at Chase Center.
Curry should easily hit double-digits in All-NBA and All-Star selections, and as long as Golden State continues to put the right pieces around him, he should be in a position to compete for more championships.
| Magic | Accolades | Curry |
| 5 | Championships | 4 |
| 3 | MVPs | 2 |
| 3 | Finals MVPs | 1 |
| 10 | All-NBA | 8 |
| 12 | All-Star | 8 |
| 0 | Scoring titles | 2 |
| 4 | Assist titles | 0 |
| 2 | Steal titles | 1 |
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