Stephen Curry had a monster year for the Warriors offensively, running the point and putting up big scoring numbers while helping to lead his team to the second round of the playoffs.
Next season, he expects his game to improve on the defensive end of the floor.
From Marcus Thompson of the San Jose Mercury News:Q: Is it possible to be good on defense for an entire season with the offensive load you carry?
A: No excuses. It’s definitely possible. When I’m in the game, I’m not really thinking, ‘I’m tired. Let me milk it on defense.’ I’ve just got to dig deep. That’s what you prepare in the summer for, to battle through fatigue like that. So I think it is possible. I’m not going to be defensive player of the year. But hopefully I can be top 10 (among point guards) and be able to disrupt some of the best point guards in the world.
Q: How does it make you feel when people say you can’t play defense?
A: I don’t really care. I know I can. I know I’m capable of it. I know I’ve shown it. I’m not a liability on the defensive end at all, I don’t think.
Curry is far from a liability defensively, and in fact, his head coach Mark Jackson called him an elite defender as recently as December of last season.
Where Curry needs to improve is really only from an effort standpoint, and he seems to be well aware of that based on his comments. Carrying the load offensively at times can surely be taxing, but that doesn’t mean you can take possessions off on the defensive end of the floor -- either consciously or otherwise.
The fact that Curry is focusing on this aspect of his game might be enough for him to see marked improvement in this area next season.