Steph hopes Warriors remain competitive in his final seasons

Stephen Curry isn't ready for retirement just yet, but he knows it will soon be time for him to walk away from the NBA.

The Golden State Warriors star opened up about the end of his career in an interview with Tim Kawakami of the San Francisco Standard, admitting that he thinks about retirement "more and more" these days. He also shared his hopes for the Warriors as his career winds down.

"Competitive," Curry said. "I've seen different scenarios. Like everybody talks about Kobe (Bryant) and his last years. From my vantage point, I'm comparing it to guys that only played for one franchise. Dirk (Nowitzki), Tim (Duncan), Kobe, from our era. ... You don't want to be in a situation the Lakers were in those last three years (with Bryant). I know he came off the Achilles injury, but it was, like, they were a lottery team, and it was more just how many points can Kobe score down the stretch of his career. I don't want to be in that scenario. ...

"You have to be realistic. There's probably not a move or a scenario where you're gonna walk into a season or a playoff series as the perennial favorite. There's just a lot of talent around the league. But to be competitive, where you have a chance - that's what we want to see. I'm sure that's what our fans want to see. Playing meaningful games, no matter how it ends. I think that's what we deserve, and I hope that is the reality I get to live in this last part of my career."

Curry, who turns 37 on March 14, is in his 16th season with the Warriors and is under contract through the 2026-27 season. He's averaging 23.4 points, 6.1 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game this season.

Golden State sits 10th in the Western Conference at 27-27.