Before the historic dynasty took place, there were humble beginnings on the side of the Golden State Warriors.
And Mark Jackson was its core proponent — the one responsible for handling the phenomenal talent and preparing it to the next level.
Yet, after all the things that happened, Klay Thompson and Steph Curry have shown their love on the impact that their former mentor instilled on them.
Thompson joined ESPN’s broadcast team during the Golden State Warriors-New Orleans Pelicans game, narrating preparations on his impending return and his current point of view about the team.
When the star sharpshooter said the snubbing of him in the NBA’s 75th anniversary team is his motivation to bounce back after missing two consecutive seasons, he then tipped off his hat on Jackson — acknowledging the faith that it gave on their development of Curry from the past.
“Give Coach Jackson credit,” Thompson told Jackson and Ryan Rucco. “Before anybody else, before anybody believed in us, Coach Jackson did when he called me and Steph the greatest shooting duo of all time, and that couldn’t have been more true. And it’s kind of a testament to your ability to read the game. They called you crazy at the time.”
Jackson jokingly responded, but also appreciated the honor that Thompson delivered to him.
“They still call me crazy for other reasons,” Jackson said. “I appreciate the love, man.”
And after the duel wherein the Warriors prevailed via 126-85 dominant dub, Curry brought up Jackson after a reporter approached him on the unusual two blocks he tallied.
“Yeah man, sometimes you just have the good timing in the right place at the right time,” Curry said. “But I actually looked at Mark. I said I couldn’t do that when he was the coach here, so he had a good laugh out of that when he was on the sideline.”
Way back in April of 2013, Jackson boldly claimed that Curry-Thompson tandem is the greatest shooting backcourt in the history of basketball — which pushed many fans to raise their eyebrows and speculate about it.
“In my opinion, they’re the greatest shooting backcourt in the history of the game,” former Warriors coach Mark Jackson said in April of 2013
It turned out to be true, and perhaps the duo may be considered the best combined backcourt players ever.
As the Warriors became a powerhouse last decade following the firing of Jackson in 2014, it is good that these two remarkable players didn’t forget the man who greatly helped them for their emergence. The love is still there, and memories won’t easily fade away.
