Steph Curry Hints at Making Key Contract Sacrifice for Warriors

Curry cited his desperation to win as a key motivator for his next contract structure

Stephen Curry | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Stephen Curry would be justified in signing a max contract extension immediately, but the 38-year-old superstar said Wednesday that he's considering other options.

Speaking with ESPN's Anthony Slater, Curry said that he'll sign his next contract "at the right time" and that staying with the Golden State Warriors is his "obvious goal."

"We're in a very interesting situation," Curry said. "All the different salary cap conditions of whether I sign for a max or less or whatever it is, I want to be on a competitive team. I want to have an opportunity to have some flexibility because we haven't had that in years past, the recent past.

"... This team should have flexibility to make necessary moves if things happen. Those are always just the considerations. For me, information and patience is key. It's just a very unique situation all the way around based on where we've been the last four years, where I'm at in my career, what our team looks like this year and the absolute desperation to win. Trying to balance all that."

Curry is hinting at two things here, which is waiting until next offseason to sign a new contract and taking less than the max.

Why Waiting to Sign Is Important

If Curry signs an extension at any time before next offseason, he'll be cutting into the Warriors' 2027 cap space.

As Slater noted, they are projected to have over $100 million in cap space, but that number could be cut to around $45 million if Curry takes the max.

The last time the Warriors had cap space was when they landed Kevin Durant in 2016. They probably won't get a player of Durant's caliber in 2027 free agency, but they'll have options to go on a spending spree that reshapes the roster.

Among the possible 2027 free agents who have almost no chance of leaving their current teams are Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Among the possible 2027 free agents who could be attainable are Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns, Michael Porter Jr. (restricted) and Brandon Ingram.

Taking a Bit Less Than the Max Could Prove Crucial

If the Warriors are in advanced talks with a star who wants the max and the only way to get that player and stay cap-compliant is having Curry take a bit less than the max, Curry would have the ability to make that call by not signing a max extension now.

Curry doesn't seem concerned about playing the season on his expiring $62.6 million deal, but if he was dead set on a) taking a pay cut to give the Warriors more flexibility and b) having the extension figured out immediately, he could sign an extension with a minimum starting salary of $37.5 million.

Curry is undoubtedly worth more than $37.5 million, and I'd guess he'll get more than that. He'll likely settle on a number in between his extension minimum and his maximum of $65.7 million.

As Slater noted, GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the front office recently presented him with options they would have if he took "slightly smaller pay cuts."

Every dollar saved could count in 2027 free agency.