After Steph Curry’s sensational game-winning three-pointer from nearly 40 feet away from the basket on Saturday night, the improbable superstar flashed a series of dances in front of the stunned Oklahoma City crowd.
The dances and the celebrations of Curry and his teammates perfectly encapsulated the new-age era of basketball — a brand that brings in the broadest horizon of fans in the league’s history, thanks to a new superstar that bases his game off of something that seemingly anyone can do.
But let’s get something straight. Nobody can do what Curry is doing. In fact, nobody has ever done what Curry is doing. With his current 32.9 Player Efficiency Rating, Steph Curry is having the best season in the history of the NBA … better than Wilt, better than Jordan, and better than LeBron. Though he’s doing it in a way that looks as simple as shooting three-pointers from all around the court — something anyone can try in the gym — Curry is making shots at an alarming rate that nobody has ever seen. He broke the NBA record, which he already owned, for three-pointers made in a season on Saturday night … in February … with 24 games remaining on the schedule.
“Be like Steph” should be no different than “Be like Mike.” The notion that Curry is just a regular guy who can make jump shots — something we all can try to do — is ridiculous. He’s a freak athlete who is playing the game of basketball at a level that is potentially unmatched in the history of the game.
What possibly creates the notion of Curry being a regular guy dominating basketball is his appearance and attitude when playing the game. It’s what makes Curry both highly relatable to some, and highly dislikable to others. A comparison is Curry’s favorite NFL player, Cam Newton. Curry plays in a childlike manner, dancing after shots, talking to the crowd, and creating complex celebrations with teammates. He’s clearly having way more fun than anyone else, and much like Newton, some are put off by what they say to be arrogance. Can you really blame someone for being arrogant when they’re that good? To compound with that, Curry does look fairly normal when playing. He’s listed at 6-foot-3, 190 pounds — a size that isn’t all that daunting in the NBA or even in a pickup game. Due to that, the new-age generation mostly loves Curry. They can try his shots in the gym, they can mimic his celebrations after a win, and, most importantly, they can watch one of the most impressive displays of basketball ever in a style that is all they know. Contrarily, the reception from the older generation hasn’t been as warm — especially from former NBA players.
Oscar Robertson, a former superstar who once impressively averaged a triple-double in a season, claimed Curry’s success is only due to the current NBA defenses. He said he would lock Curry down from half court and not allow him to get his shots. With all respect to one of the most versatile point guards to ever play, that’s a terrible assertion. To believe that Robertson, a fairly lanky 6-foot-5 guard, could do something that no other defender in the NBA is able to is, to put it nicely, a bit far-fetched. Some of the most athletic and talented guards in the game — including Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard, and Mike Conley — have tried to shut down Curry. It hasn’t happened. Defenses are clearly tougher to score on in today’s game. Despite three-pointers being made way more often than ever, teams average around 10 points less per game than they did in the 80s when the three-point line was introduced. Robertson was talented, but he’s way off-base.
Phil Jackson, who coached Jordan and Kobe, compared Curry to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, a player who never came close to the achievements Curry has already reached. Jackson did retract his statements to a degree, saying he only meant their style of play was similar. But to compare the best player in the NBA to someone like Abdul-Rauf is another example of an old-head not appreciating Curry’s game to the degree he should.
Stephen Jackson, a former Warrior in the late 2000’s, claimed his Golden State team, which reached the playoffs just once and missed the playoffs twice in three years, would beat the current record-pace Warriors. All of these claims basically mean the same thing. Much of the older generation doesn’t appreciate or respect the new-age style of Steph Curry and the Warriors.
Looking into that is a shame, because anybody that is currently alive and a fan of basketball should be watching and admiring what the point guard out of Davidson is doing. The fact that former NBA players, older NBA fans, and even younger NBA fans, try to discredit the things Curry is doing is a perfect representation of our society as a whole that often times struggles to adapt to change. One reason LeBron James resonated fairly well to anyone is his style of play. It’s not jump shot heavy … he often drives to the lane and finishes strong — a style that has been along for the entire duration of the sport.
Steph’s style is new. Nobody in the NBA would have even thought of shooting the shots that Curry does in the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, and even the 2000s. Since the three-point line was introduced and used in the NBA in 1980, the amount of three-pointers attempted per game has steadily increased from fewer than three per game to more than 20 per game in today’s NBA. Not only does Curry shoot a staggering amount of deep balls, he shoots them from deeper than deep … and he makes them. This season, Curry has attempted 14 three-pointers from 30-40 feet. He’s converted nine of them. No other played has attempted more than nine or made more than two. Curry’s 64 percent mark from that range would be the third best percentage in the NBA on all field goals. Only Hassan Whiteside and DeAndre Jordan — players who mostly dunk and score around the rim — would beat that overall. Even though his attempts are more difficult than anyone else’s — likely in the history of the league — Curry is incredibly efficient. He’s first among guards in field goal percentage and effective field goal percentage, first in true shooting percentage, win shares, plus-minus, and PER, and third in three-point percentage. He’s well on his way to becoming the seventh player ever to join the 50-40-90 club, which is when a player shoots at least 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point range, and 90 percent from the free-throw line. When watching how he plays the game and then looking at the numbers he’s producing, it’s absurd.
Anyone who is discrediting what he’s doing simply doesn’t want to see or believe that Curry is one of the greatest we’ve ever seen while playing a style of basketball that is revolutionizing the sport.
It’s a different brand of basketball. He’s changing the way the game is played and watched. Some may love it. Some may hate it. Either way, we’re witnessing Steph Curry possibly play at the highest level in the history of the NBA, and nobody can stop him.
Mr. Duke, that is the most well written summary I’ve seen, and I’ve read many since Saturday night, on what we are witnessing. I’m probably older than you and you are dead on about this. Jordan simple did what everyone else was doing but was much better at it. We’ve never seen this before. I’m sure instead of lowering their rims to dunk kids are now emulating Steph with the long ball. I know I would. That is what will have the most significant impact on the game in the long run, in my opinion. Great read, thanks.