Stephen Curry believes young players should forget his look-away shots and focus on fundamentals. However, the numbers suggest he is responsible for this shift in shot selection.
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Stephen Curry is arguably the greatest shooter in NBA history. He solidified this position Friday night during the Bulls game when he crossed Ray Allen in all-time 3-pointers made (Regular season and playoffs combined) and occupied the top spot on that list.
A highlight video of Curry pointing to fans before his shot falls in is doing rounds on social media. It is a classic Curry move and he has the kind of consistency beyond the arc to pull it off. He’s had a massive impact on the NBA as well as the younger generation of players.
Chris Matthews, popularly known as Lethal Shooter, is a shooting coach and quite famous among NBA fans. He trains NBA players, WNBA players and celebrities. He’s worked with Anthony Davis, 3-pt contest winner Buddy Hield, Danny Green and several others.
In an Instagram post, he revealed how young players insist on learning to shoot like Chef Curry. He advised them against it and stressed on building the right foundation. Steph was in complete agreement with what Chris said about avoiding these trick shots.
“This should be the last shot you’re attempting in Elementary, middle, high school or college IN A LIVE GAME and GUESS what 99% of the NBA can’t make these consistent. EXCEPT FOR STEPH, HE’S THE BEST SHOOTER TO EVER WALK THIS EARTH!!!”. This mentality is rampant in NBA as well. Players tend to take long-range shots even though there’s time left on the shot clock.
This has led old heads to believe this shift is negatively impacting the game, which is true to some extent.
Numbers reveal the massive impact Stephen Curry has had on basketball
NBA has been dominated by big men for decades. The entire game was played from the paint and mid-range. At present, however, players are settling for 3s in transition and attempting logo shots and half-court shots casually.
Comparing the league averages over the last 3 decades reveal the kind of influence guards like Curry, Lillard and Harden had on the game. In 1990, 6.6 3s were attempted per game which increased to 13.7 in the 00s and fluctuated in and around that number for the next 7-8 years. The league average in 2020 was 34.1 which is close to a 6-fold increase compared to the 90s.
While Reggie Miller and Ray Allen paved the way for this transition, Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard and James Harden brought about the ultimate change. The game is headed in a new direction for better or worse.
The unanimous MVP has led the Golden State Warriors to an incredible start to the 2021-22 NBA season. Steph is second in the MVP race behind former teammate Kevin Durant. In all likelihood, Curry will take the top spot on All-time 3s made (Regular season) this year dethroning Ray Allen.
