The Golden State Warriors can put a lid on a record-setting regular season with a win in Game 6 of the NBA Finals Thursday night, despite being mostly without the best Stephen Curry has to offer for a lot of their postseason run. That was most glaring in Monday night’s Game 5 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers when Curry went 8-for-21 from the floor (5-for-14 from three-point range) while accounting for four turnovers (with the same number of assists) and missing multiple open shots.

Draymond Green‘s absence was a big factor for Golden State in Game 5, and he clearly brings an edginess that no one else on the team can offer. No other Warriors player exemplifies that lack of intensity more than Curry, due in part to the ease with which he generally does things on the floor, and Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding has taken the reigning league MVP to task in his most recent piece.

Curry takes a lot of shots most coaches wouldn’t advise or accept, but when they fall there are no complaints or issues. When his shots don’t fall Curry’s demeanor noticeably changes, as it would for most players, but to the point of finger-pointing it seems.

From Ding’s article, citing a sequence from Game 5.

“In one sequence, Curry missed the sort of shot his team expects him to make, then he got roasted on defense…and then proceeded to make a tone-deaf gesture urging his teammates to keep after it.”

Knee and shoulder issues may still be bothering Curry, even with his dismissal of a report that stated he will need offseason shoulder surgery. But leaving aside injuries as a reason or excuse, I couldn’t agree with Ding more about Curry’s failing as a leader. In ways visible, and surely invisible, Curry has not been up to par when it matters most to his team.