“I’m Not a Foul Baiter”: Stephen Curry Addresses ‘Emphatic’ Celebration After Getting a Foul Call

Apr 4, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) reacts in the second half against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

It looks like the Houston Rockets ended up poking the bear when players decided to taunt the Golden State Warriors ahead of their matchup tonight.

Taking care of ‘Clutch City’ with ease, Stephen Curry also had a moment in the game where fans could see him over-emphatically celebrating a foul call. Later, ‘The Chef’ spoke to reporters about this moment in the post-game press conference.

Stephen Curry as well as Klay Thompson gave fans a flashback of those good old ‘Splash Brothers’ days as the two went off for 29 points each, in what was a massive game in the context of the play-in tournament.

However, reporters were more curious to know the four-time NBA champion’s state of mind during his hyped celebration after an and-one play.

“I was just happy to get a call that was pretty obvious. There was one last game where there’s a still shot of Gafford all across my arms…I’m not a foul baiter and not a guy that tries not to complain. It happens from time to time. But you can always celebrate when it goes your way too.” Curry said, per Anthony Slater

 

As seen in the video above, Curry was clearly hyped after getting the foul called in his favor. He even took a subtle jab at Rockets’ forward Tari Eason when the latter took to Instagram to taunt Curry and the Warriors by clinking three bottles together while on the bench.

His statement on the matter deserves attention too. If you have a look at some of the Golden State Warriors games, you’ll notice how Stephen Curry doesn’t get a lot of foul calls despite dealing with immense contact from defenders.

The particular incident that he spoke about during the contest against the Dallas Mavericks wasn’t very pretty either.

However, unfortunately for him, instances such as the one in question are far from uncommon for the star. And yet, he gets a suspiciously low amount of leeway from the officials.

The Chef has rarely been seen trying to draw contact in the hopes of going to the stripe or getting an and-one play.

In fact, Curry might be one of the few superstars in the league that actually does not get superstar treatment from officials as opposed to some other big names in the league.

So, for Stephen Curry to urge the referees for a foul call might be a reliable sign that some excessive contact did take place after all.

But at the end of the game, Curry and the Warriors were all smiles while the Rockets got a refresher course on why you shouldn’t poke the greatest shooter of all time and his team.

Curry finished the night with 29 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists for the game. He also shot 9 free throws, going 9-9 from the charity line.

As for Klay Thompson, the other half of the Splash Brothers’ duo emulated Curry’s point total with a 29-point game himself, per Statmuse. He also had 4 assists, and 3 rebounds for the game while shooting 11-15 from the field and 7-11 from beyond the arc.

With this win, the Golden State Warriors have now won six straight games and are 7-3 in their last 10 regular season matchups, per NBA.com.

The Warriors will be on the road once again as they visit the Dallas Mavericks next, giving Curry a chance to get even for the missed foul call in their last meeting.