Steph Curry is the greatest shooter of all time, but his greatness goes far beyond what he can do behind the arc.
His versatility and unique ability to score in different ways have made defenders’ lives a living hell while trying -- trying -- to guard him.
But it’s equally a challenge for those on his own team to try and keep up with the reigning NBA Finals MVP.
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“It’s always a learning experience to play with Steph,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters after the Warriors’ 124-107 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday at Chase Center. “It doesn’t matter who you are. Even Kevin Durant took a couple of months just to feel the way Steph plays because it’s unlike anybody else on earth.”
Klay Thompson and Draymond Green can read Curry like a book and the Big Three’s more than decade-long tenure together in the Bay has shown on the court a special and unique chemistry that every professional team longs for.
Andre Iguodala and Kevon Looney could even be thrown into that group.
But with a few new faces on the squad this year and several other young players in the mix, it looks like Curry’s teammates are finally getting better at reading where to go and getting used to Curry’s style of play.
And in Wednesday’s win, Andrew Wiggins showed the damage that can be done once you learn and adapt to playing with Curry. Wiggs dropped a season- and game-high 31 points on 12-of-18 shooting from the field and sank six triples.
Curry was just behind him with 22 points, nine assists and six rebounds.
Kerr noted Curry’s versatility makes him such a one-of-a-kind player.
Golden State Warriors
“He plays the pick-and-roll game as well as anybody and then he becomes Reggie Miller as soon as he’s off the ball,” Kerr said. “And the vast majority of dominant players in this league are on-ball guys. And if they’re not, if they’re off-ball guys, they’re not dominant. They’re shooters. So the fact that he does both means that you constantly have to be aware of what’s happening. So he gets off the ball and he moves it and you’re on the weak side, you better be ready to go set a screen for him and when you do, you got to be ready for the defense to jump out and you got to be available for that slip.
“But it generally takes a couple of months for guys to figure that out. But once they do, you can kind of just draft off him. You can play off of him and get all kinds of good looks at the basket.”
Wiggins can confirm.
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The Warriors haven’t had the start this season that they expected. The defending champs are 9-10 on the season and 1-9 on the road.
But Curry’s game hasn’t changed a bit.
In fact, the 3-point god is on track to breaking ... his own records this season. Curry is averaging 32.3 points on 52.9 percent shooting from the field and 44.7 percent from deep, along with 7.1 assists and 6.7 rebounds this season.
But the Warriors’ slow start and early struggles are wiping away his efforts.
Luckily for the defending champs, it’s still early in the season and there’s still plenty of basketball to be played and time to truly perfect playing alongside Curry.