StephEN Curry has his eye on Lionel Messi

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi have a lot in common

Lionel Messi and Stephen Curry may be an ocean and sport apart, but their games are as close as can be. In fact, the Warriors star admits that he has his eye on the diminutive football star.

We really shouldn’t be surprised; Curry isn’t your typical star athlete. He is especially not your typical NBA star. Instead of the seven-foot star of yesteryear, Curry is generously listed as 6’3″. He isn’t an amazing, quick-twitch athlete but instead uses masterful skill to get open. Hell, he even plays a lot of golf. He’s just different.

So it shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone that he has an appreciation for Messi. The tiny Argentinian is, after all, the closest thing to a football equivalent to Curry. He isn’t a dominating physical presence either. He can’t rely on blazing speed or hulk to dominate the opponent. Instead, he is a maestro out on the pitch who does things with the ball that most players can only dream of. This should sound very familiar to Steph Curry.

Curry can also do things with the ball we’ve never seen before. His handles are tighter than anyone we’ve seen in a generation and he has an amazing ability to shoot off the dribble. In fact, he might be the best shooter off the dribble in NBA history. It’s high praise but it’s deserved by Golden State’s leader.

Messi too, dominates the game by dribbling the ball in amazing fashion before getting skillful shots off. He can lull the defense asleep with amazing trickery before firing the ball towards the net seemingly out of nowhere. He is a unique football star in the same way that Curry is a unique basketball star.

It’s no coincidence that we can use the same language to describe both men. Both are excellent with the ball and are considered to be the best dribblers in their respective sports. Both are awesome shooters who require defenses to cling tightly to them no matter where they are on the field of play. Defenders have to guard Curry well beyond the three-point line while Messi must be marked well outside the penalty area. It’s eerie how much the two players have in common despite competing in starkly different sports.

The most unifying thing between the two players is that both are among the most fun to watch in the world. Warriors and Barcelona games are both always must watch TV because of the presence of their two stars. We live in a privileged age where we have an opportunity to watch two once-in-a-lifetime talents on a regular basis. Sit back and enjoy the two stars whose talents transcend the sports they play.