Jeremiah Smith channels Michael Jordan to fix his Ohio State penalty problem

"Reminds me of Michael Jordan."

That is what Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said about coaching 39-year-old Stephen Curry in a recent interview.

Kerr made his name as one of the best shooters in NBA history during the three championships he won alongside Michael Jordan on the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s.

Over a decade later, he would be coaching the actual greatest shooter in NBA history, Stephen Curry, on another title-winning dynasty.

The prime of the Kerr-Curry relationship is well in the past now.

But the duo are still looking to win games in the NBA over a decade after starting their relationship.

Kerr discussed Curry in comparison to Jordan in a recent interview.

He said that Curry is the only player he has seen with the Jordan-esque trait of breaking down any defense built to stop him despite age slowing them down.

"Honestly, it really does remind me of what it was like to play with Michael Jordan back in the day," Kerr said.

"Every single night, you are just amazed, and you marvel at what he's capable of doing no matter what the defense does, but also just the longevity of it."

"To see night after night, defenses doing everything possible to slow Steph down as they did with Michael, and yet the love for the game, the competitiveness, the passion, the desire to put on a show for the fans — there's such great comparisons to be made there."

Curry is averaging 30.0 points, 4.5 assists and 4.2 rebounds this season as a 39-year-old.

The Warriors hold a 5-3 record despite being projected to be one of the worst teams in the Western Conference.

While Curry is clearly past the prime of his career that we saw a few years ago, culminating in the 2022 NBA Championship win, he is still one of the most lethal guard scorers in the NBA.

Jordan was the same age as Curry right now in 1998 for his final year with the Bulls.

But the team infrastructure around Jordan ensured they were realistic title contenders, with Jordan as the difference-making piece.

The Warriors and Curry don't have the roster to compete for a title right now.

But fans, experts, and Kerr himself know that Curry is the same level of a difference-maker, provided his team is in the spot to compete.

Kerr's comparison carries unique weight because he played alongside Jordan during the Bulls' second three-peat.

He won championships with Jordan in 1996, 1997, and 1998.

Kerr was known as one of the best shooters in NBA history during that era.

He shot 45.4 percent from three-point range in the 1995-96 season.

After retiring as a player, Kerr became a head coach for the Warriors in 2014.

He won four NBA championships as a coach with Golden State in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022.

Curry was the centerpiece of all four of those title teams.

Their relationship dates back to Kerr's first season coaching the Warriors in 2014-15.

That season, Curry won his first MVP award and led the Warriors to their first championship in 40 years.

Curry won another MVP in 2015-16, this time unanimously.

The Warriors set an NBA record with 73 wins that season.

Curry revolutionized the game with his three-point shooting, making over 400 threes in a season for the first time in NBA history.

He has since been widely regarded as the greatest shooter of all time.

At 39, Curry is still putting up numbers that rival his prime seasons.

His 30.0 points per game this season is actually higher than his career average of 24.8 points per game.

He is shooting 44.9 percent from the field and 41.8 percent from three-point range this season.

The Warriors were projected by many analysts to miss the playoffs this season.

Instead, they have started 5-3 and look competitive in a tough Western Conference.

Kerr's Jordan comparison draws a direct line between two of the most dominant players in NBA history.

Jordan averaged 28.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in his age-39 season in 1997-98.

He led the Bulls to their sixth championship that season, winning his fifth MVP award and sixth Finals MVP.

Curry has not won an MVP since 2016.

He has not won a championship since 2022.

But Kerr sees the same competitive fire and love for the game in Curry that he saw in Jordan.

"The competitiveness, the passion, the desire to put on a show for the fans," Kerr said.

"There's such great comparisons to be made there."

The question now is whether the Warriors can build a roster around Curry that can contend for another title before he retires.

Curry is under contract through the 2026-27 season.

He will turn 40 during the 2027-28 season if he continues playing.

Kerr's comparison suggests that Curry's elite level of play could extend well past the typical retirement age for NBA guards.

Jordan retired after the 1997-98 season at age 35.

He returned at age 38 with the Washington Wizards and played two more seasons.