Stephen Curry isn't a man who waits for others to praise him. Asked who the best point guard in NBA history is, the Golden State star answered without blinking - the conversation comes down to two, and he's one of them. "Yeah. I have to be. It's me and Magic in the conversation," Curry said while hanging out with Gilbert Arenas.

With that sentence Curry made it clear that, in his head, only Earvin "Magic" Johnson belongs at the same level. But even as he places himself there, he did it with respect for the legend: "Magic's resume is stupidly good. The very fact that we're even having this conversation is a place I never thought I'd be."

The confidence doesn't come from nowhere. Curry is a four-time champion, a two-time MVP and the only unanimous MVP in the league's history. Eleven All-NBA selections leave little room for debate about his long-term impact - those are numbers that speak for themselves.

And his legacy is bigger than the trophies. Curry changed the very maths of the game; today the whole league builds its offence around the three-pointer precisely because one man proved a shot from distance can be the main weapon, not just a seasoning. Few players change the logic of a sport at all - he's one of them.

Still, the story has a shadow. This season Curry played only 43 games due to injuries, including a knee problem, even though he still averaged a solid 26.6 points and 4.7 assists in his 16th season. Golden State nonetheless didn't reach the playoffs, eliminated by Phoenix in the play-in tournament. A fifth ring would close the debate for good - but for that, the team first has to get back to where Curry thinks it belongs.