"Cannot put Steph Curry at the 5": Gilbert Arenas debunks NBA's 'positionless' narrative
The Golden State Warriors made positionless basketball the norm during their reign under coach Steve Kerr, with Steph Curry as the star player. However, Gilbert Arenas debunked the "positionless" narrative by providing a few examples.
On the "No Chill" podcast, Arenas cited Curry as a player who can never be positionless because he can't play forward and center. He also named Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins, who's not known as a positionless player.
Arenas further explained that only one player in the lineup is positionless, which doesn't make the team play positionless basketball. He was clearly not a fan of the concept, along with fellow co-host Rashad McCants.
"No player who played basketball would have used positionless," Arenas said. "Because I cannot put Steph Curry at the 5. I can't put Steph Curry at the 5, so that means he is not positionless. 'Klay, can you play the 5?' Nope, he's not positionless. 'Hey, Wiggins. Can you play the 5? Nope, he's not positionless.
"The only thing that makes it positionless is one guy – a 5 man who can dribble, a 4 man who can dribble or he can guard 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. He's the only f*cker on the team that's positionless," he added.
For those who don't know, positionless basketball means that players can play other positions apart from their original designation.
A guard who can post up and defend bigger guys or a big who can shoot, dribble and pass the ball. They still have the same skill as their initial position, with an added skill or two from playing a different position.
It helped the LeBron James-led Miami Heat win two NBA championships under coach Erik Spoelstra. However, it was Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors who are credited with making the league positionless.
Draymond Green can do it all and was the main playmaker despite being a big man. Steph Curry is the main scorer as a point guard. Other coaches and teams use positionless basketball on defense when all players can switch from any position.
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Steph Curry helps Warriors snap 3-game losing skid
Steph Curry was simply phenomenal in the Golden State Warriors' huge 121-115 win over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night. Curry had 36 points, two rebounds and six assists to help the Warriors snap a three-game losing streak.
The game was close from the start until Curry put the game away late in the fourth quarter. It was great to see Golden State back on the winning track, but their problems won't go away until they tackle them head-on.
Coach Steve Kerr needs to decide on his rotations, while the front office needs to get into action if the team needs a trade before the deadline next month.
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