CHICAGO -- Hard seasons are part of being an athlete.
Before Steph Curry became Steph Curry and the rock-'n'-roll band that is the Golden State Warriors, he was part of a team that won 26, 36 and 23 games in his first three seasons.
Rest assured that wasn't any more fun for him than these last two seasons have been for Dirk Nowitzki.
And yet, here he is.
The sixth-leading scorer of all time and the face of the Mavericks passed 31,000 points on Wednesday night and he did so quietly. Just like he's done a lot of things in his remarkable career.