“His dad was a hell of a shooter, Reggie Miller was a hell of a shooter… Larry Bird was a hell of a shooter” - John Salley on why Steph Curry is not the greatest shooter of all time
Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors is considered as the greatest shooter of all time. However, former Detroit Pistons star and four-time NBA champ John Salley does not believe that Steph is the GOAT shooter.
In an appearance on the "Pardon My Take" podcast on Barstool Sports with Dan Katz and Eric Sollenberger, Salley discussed the greatness of Isiah Thomas and how his former teammate has been severely underrated. He even compared Thomas' career to Steph's, saying:
"They hate him because he's short... He's six foot, and he did everything everybody else was doing. And in the same amount of time that Steph Curry was playing, Isiah had better stats, but no one wants to mention it."
Katz and Sollenberger reacted to Salley's comparison of Isiah to Steph by saying that the latter is undoubtedly the greatest shooter ever. However, Salley pointed out that there are other great shooters in NBA history and Curry has the advantage of taking more shots beyond the arc.
"Not really, but his dad was a hell of a shooter. Reggie Miller was a hell of a shooter. Dale Ellis was a hell of shooter. Larry Bird was a hell of a shooter... and how many more shots he's taking?" Salley said.
Steph is the all-time leader in three-pointers made with 3,117 and counting. Curry is nowhere near retirement and there's a possibility that he could reach 4,000 threes or even 5,000 before his career is over. The two-time MVP takes three-point shots at a higher rate, but he also makes 42.8% of them.
John Salley once put Steph Curry on the same level as John Wall
Saying Steph Curry is not the greatest shooter of all time is not the first time John Salley has made some outrageous comments about the Warriors superstar. In an interview with VladTV last year, Salley put Curry at the same level as John Wall. He stated:
"Remember, it's never what you are worth, it's what you negotiate. John Wall is unbelievable, but the problem is that he was buried in Washington, where we didn't get to see him. So when you got really good guys on really bad teams, you don't get to see their greatness because they are not winning."
Salley added:
"They work even harder because they are trying to win each game as opposed to Steph Curry, who could say 'Hey, my ankle is hurting today. I just need a 5-minute break.' When you are on a bad team, you don't get a five-minute break. You don't have a guy like Klay Thompson on this side or Shaun Livingston to step in on this side."
John Salley is not afraid to make outrageous statements, but saying Steph is not the greatest shooter ever and on the same level as John Wall are just plain crazy. Curry changed the game of basketball through his shooting ability, while Wall missed the entire season despite not being injured.