At 37 years old, Stephen Curry remains one of the NBA’s elite talents, continuing to dazzle fans and opponents alike. However, with his contract with the Golden State Warriors expiring after next season, speculation about his future has intensified. This comes amid concerns that the Warriors’ championship window might be narrowing, especially following setbacks like Jimmy Butler’s recent knee injury impacting the broader league landscape.
In a recent breakdown on NBA on NBC, insider Chris Mannix delved into the Warriors’ potential moves ahead of the trade deadline. A key focus was on young star Jonathan Kuminga, but Mannix also highlighted Golden State’s strategy to conserve cap space for the 2027 free agency class—a group that notably includes Curry himself.
Mannix shared insights from league executives eager to pursue Curry, revealing their candid assessments of whether the two-time MVP could ever don a different uniform. “I think it’s going to come down to, at some point, a difficult conversation with Stephen Curry,” Mannix explained. “There’s no indication that Golden State would ever move Stephen Curry, and I’ve talked to executives from teams that would love to have Steph Curry, that if he were available, they would make 10 phone calls to make the first offer. But even they tell me that they look at Steph as a legacy player. They see him as a Dirk Nowitzki-type, a Kobe Bryant-type, someone that’s going to play for one team for his entire career.”
Mannix further noted that even if the Warriors secure Curry with a new deal, rebuilding a title contender around him could prove challenging. The Western Conference is stacked with rising powerhouses like the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs, poised to dominate in the coming years.
Could Curry Depart Golden State?
One franchise repeatedly mentioned in connection with Curry is the Charlotte Hornets. The team holds deep personal significance for him, as his father, Dell Curry, was a beloved icon there. In fact, the Hornets are set to honor Dell by retiring his No. 30 jersey during their March 19 matchup against the Orlando Magic, according to NBA.com.
CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn speculated that if the Warriors ever considered trading their all-time greatest player, Charlotte could emerge as a suitor. Pairing Curry with the Hornets’ youthful core—featuring LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, and Brandon Miller—could create an intriguing dynamic on the court.
That said, Quinn believes any move by Curry away from the Bay Area would more likely occur through free agency. “If the Hornets could get Curry with matching salary and modest pick compensation, they’d do it for the business reasons alone. … If Curry wanted to try his luck as a Hornet, he’d probably do it as a 2027 free agent,” Quinn wrote.
Curry’s roots in Charlotte run deep; he grew up in the city and attended Davidson College, just a short 30-minute drive away.
Curry’s Thoughts on a Charlotte Homecoming
Back in 2022, when Curry was awarded the keys to the city of Charlotte, he reaffirmed his desire to end his career with the Warriors. Yet, he didn’t entirely rule out a brief stint with the Hornets. “People always say, ‘Do you wanna play one year for the Hornets and come back?’ No, no, I’m not breaking any news. I’m not making any promises. All I would say is if there was a team I did wanna play for that wasn’t the Warriors, that would be it,” Curry told Genna Contino of The Charlotte Observer.
Now in his 18th NBA season, the four-time champion shows no signs of decline, posting impressive averages of 27.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. As the league watches closely, Curry’s legacy with Golden State seems destined to endure—but the whispers of a potential Charlotte chapter add an intriguing twist to his storied career.