3 factors that make Stephen Curry an offensive genius
Stephen Curry dribbles the ball in the frontcourt, and the NBA team Sacramento Kings are in reverse gear, moving to protect their paint. Curry picks up the ball, only a few feet from the logo, releasing the ball in less than 0.5 seconds. The ball goes spinning into a high arc, like tracing the arch of the Sistine Chapel by a maestro of our generation, landing perfectly inside the 18-inch-wide rim.
If someone narrated this chain of events to a basketball fanatic ten-years ago, they would only scoff at such a make-belief “Like Mike” story. In reality, it was not only an in-game three-pointer but was also a record-breaker. With the three-pointer mentioned above, Stephen Curry broke James Harden’s 82 three-pointer record from November 2019. It took Harden fifteen games to set the last record, and Curry broke it in the second quarter of his 12th game. Curry made 96 threes in April of 2020-21, a whopping fourteen more than Harden.
What makes Stephen Curry an offensive genius?
Stephen Curry was a demon on the court this past season. A scoring machine if we may. He averaged 32.0 points per game in his 63 regular season appearances, clinching the 2020-21 NBA scoring title. There is hardly any debate left about Stephen Curry's offensive genius. His season-after-season brilliance has overwhelmed the league.
But what exactly makes Curry so formidable on the rival end of the court? Today, we will take a look at the three elements of Steph's game that make him the master of offense for the Golden State Warriors.
#1 Stephen Curry's ability to finish under the rim
While Kyrie Irving arguably has the best handles in the league, Curry is not far behind him. In fact, Steph might just be a more efficient dribbler in terms of restricted area field goal conversion. Where Kyrie averaged 59.7% from 283 less than 5-ft attempts, the Warriors star averaged 62.4% from his 295 attempts from the same region.
The two-time MVP is one of the best rim finishers in the league. He combines his exceptional dribbling with his layup packages. Curry can hang in the air to beat bigger men under the paint or simply draw fouls as they chase him. He can easily execute reverse layups, board shots, or falling-down jelly to outmanouvre defenders.