New York — It’s really hard to be a fan of the NBA and not like everything about Stephen Curry these days.
First and foremost, you have the on-court aspect. By now, it’s well-documented that he is one of the most gifted shooters the league has ever seen, and that ability was on full display during Saturday night’s 3-point contest. His game has reached another level in recent years, thanks to his ability to handle the ball like few can in the league. A shot of that caliber, with those handles, on someone as cerebral as Curry? It’s no wonder he was the No. 1 vote-getter for this year’s All-Star game over LeBron James.
Russell Westbrook may have won the MVP award on Sunday, but it was Curry who stole the show with all the dazzling plays that fans yearn for out of an All-Star game.
He does his share of celebrating on the court when things go his way, but never in an insulting way to the opponents (shaking his head, talking trash, etc). He never flops, isn’t complaining to a referee at every missed call (and there are a lot of them), and does everything within his ability to play the game the right way. Basically, the only reason you might not like him is because he did things to beat your favorite team.
Then, there’s the off-court aspect. Curry is one of the most humble and kind players the league has to offer, and we saw some of that during the All-Star weekend when he honored the memory of a North Carolina shooting victim and randomly bought 11 kids his Curry One sneakers.
It’s not just an act, and anyone who has interacted with him will tell you the same, including myself.
How do I know Curry? Here’s the back-story. If you look at the header photo on my twitter account, you will notice a screen shot of me and Curry in the midst of a skype session. I won one of his twitter contests (he used to run a contest on twitter on a monthly basis and still runs them from time to time) for an opportunity to have a face-to-face chat with him on skype a little over three years ago, long before he was a superstar and long before I was a writer. Not many players in the NBA would care to give up nearly an hour of their time to have a chat with a single fan because they wanted to. That’s the kind of person Curry is, and the touching things he did this past weekend showed that super stardom will not change who he is as a person.
What has been changing is the progression of his game, and his presence in All-Star weekend is the perfect evidence of that. Naturally, Curry is appreciative of the accolades. “Weekends like this is where you kind of step back and just take a breath and enjoy what’s happened,” he said. “Be proud of that and all the people that have helped me [get here] to this point.”
This doesn’t mean that the point guard is satisfied, though. Despite being a top candidate to win the MVP this year, and despite starting in the All-Star game for the second consecutive year, Curry, like his father, says he still has much to accomplish.
“I’m still not anywhere near what I want to achieve, so that’s what keeps me hungry and driven to keep going,” said Curry. “I still got a lot of work to do.”
It’s true. Things Curry has yet to accomplish include: moving past the second round of the playoffs, making All-NBA first team, making an All-Defensive team, winning an MVP and needless to say, winning a championship. All of it is attainable this year, though.
Yes, including making an All-Defensive team.
If there is one thing Curry has improved on the most this year, it’s probably his defense. In previous years, he had the tendency to commit needless fouls rather than trusting the team’s defense, which often put him on the bench due to foul troubles. He had trouble staying in front of quicker point guards. This year, he leads the league in steals, hasn’t been in foul trouble, and consistently defends the other team’s point guards – regardless of how good they are. The Warriors have been the best defensive team for much of the season, and Curry has played a key role. He, however, refuses to concern himself with defensive accolades.
“I mean, that’s out of my control. I don’t know how to go about auditioning for that,” he said about an All-Defensive team consideration. “I just go out and try to impact the game on the defensive end, because I’m the first line of attack, guarding the other team’s point guards. And in this league, every night there’s talent that’s at that point guard position. So if I’m doing my job and defending at a high level, I’m more worried about just getting wins as opposed to making All-Defensive Team and things like that. If it happens, that would be great, but it won’t change how I play – my commitment to playing defense.”
As for how far he’s come since our last chat three years ago, I asked Curry then where he would rank himself among the point guards, and he put himself, Westbrook and Rajon Rondo as 5a, 5b and 5c. He said he wanted to be on everyone’s Top 5 list someday, and it’s safe to say that he has accomplished that goal. The question, then, is did he surpass his own expectations?
“No,” he replied. “I had very high expectations and a dream, but you never know how it’s gonna kind of unfold and take place. Just the emotions you’ll have and different experiences you go through along the way, that’s the fun part about the journey.”
He also isn’t surprised by the level of success the Warriors have had, but did acknowledge the rarity of his team’s impressive record. “Going into the season, you don’t expect to have single-digit losses going into the All-Star break, so that’s the cool aspect of what we’re doing.”
Steve Kerr’s thoughts on Draymond Green’s case as an All-Star:
I thought Draymond Green was snubbed as an All-Star this year, especially when Anthony Davis was scratched from the main event due to a shoulder injury. Given that four players on the Atlanta Hawks were picked as an All-Star (despite being the second best team in the league), it seemed reasonable enough to assume that Green, who plays for the best team in the league (record wise) would get the nod as the third All-Star for the Warriors.
Of course, it was Dirk Nowitzki who got the nod as the replacement.
I asked Steve Kerr if he was surprised at all about the lack of attention Green, who has played a vital role for the Warriors on both ends of the floor, received as an All-Star this year. “I think Draymond was probably close. When the injuries occurred to various players, I figured Dirk, Gordon Hayward and Green would probably all be considered.”
“Dirk deserves to be here,” said Kerr with much conviction. “He’s still a great player. Given what he’s meant to the league, I’m glad he’s here.”
As for whether Green can make it to the event in the future, Kerr isn’t counting him out. “I think Draymond will keep getting better and hopefully he will be here next year.”
Mychal Thompson provides his take on Klay Thompson and the Warriors:
It’s no secret how highly Mychal Thompson thinks of his son Klay Thompson. The former No. 1 pick in the 1978 NBA Draft believed Thompson could become a hall-of-fame player ever since he was in high school, and thinks his son is still far from reaching the height of his career.
Asked specifically on how close Klay Thompson is to being the best player he could possibly be, Mychal Thompson told me that his son still has some things to work on before reaching his full potential.
“Klay will get a lot better,” Thompson claimed. “He’s gotta become a better rebounder offensively and defensively. He needs to get to the basket more consistently. He is improving in that area. He needs more focus as far as having a single-mindedness about winning a championship.”
Mychal Thompson said he watches every single Warriors game and explained the team’s recent struggles against some of the worst teams in the league (Knicks, Timberwolves and 76ers).
“They’ve lost their focus. That’s the problem. They need to understand that if you want to win a championship, you really have to come ready to play every game because you can’t afford to give away games to teams you’re supposed to beat. If you want the best record, if you want homecourt advantage in the Finals, you must not struggle with teams that are in the lottery.”
I also tried to press him a bit about the play of David Lee, who has struggled to fit in with the team as a bench player since coming back from injury. Thompson, however, had nothing but praise for the play of Lee.
Q: What do you think about the play of Lee?
A: David’s a complete player. Knows how to play the game. He gives the Warriors whatever they need. Even defensively, he’s doing better. He’s just a smart player, knows how to play and knows how to adjust to the game.
Q: Do you feel like he’s the right fit for that team?
A: Perfect. He’s great coming off the bench. He’ll get you 10 to 12 points and he’s very unselfish.
Why did I press him so hard about Lee? For one, I knew no one on the Warriors – Curry, Klay and Kerr – would want to discuss this particular issue, and understandably so. Mychal Thompson’s assessment of both his son and the Warriors were spot on, so I thought he might provide some necessary insight on the somewhat-complicated situation of Lee. For what it’s worth, I think Thompson knew what I was trying to do and didn’t want any part of it because he had a huge smirk as he finished off his final thought about Lee.
The way it appears right now, Lee is not a good fit with the Warriors. He’s still capable of putting up starter’s numbers on another team, so asking him to come off the bench to play a very limited role has to be a tough pill for him to swallow (no matter what he says to the media). The problem is that the things he struggles with – shoot from the mid-range consistently, finish strong in traffic and play good defense (no matter how much he has improved) – are and will be detrimental to the Warriors’ hopes of winning a championship, mainly because you have so little room for error when you’re in position to try to win it all.
Lee still has another year left on his contract after this year worth about $15.5 million, so trying to trade him won’t be a cakewalk either. Although winning during the regular season certainly helps quiet things, it remains an unfair situation for both parties.
Carmelo Anthony not interested in recruiting:
About a week ago, Carmelo Anthony talked about doing some recruiting over the All-Star break.
Apparently, he has since had a change of mind (or perhaps he was never serious about it). Asked how the recruiting process has gone so far, Anthony’s response was less-than-thrilling. “I’m not recruiting,” he said. “I didn’t recruit and I am not recruiting. I’m just trying to enjoy this weekend. That was my thing, to just enjoy it. I don’t think this is the time or place right now for that.”
(I should have figured someone probably asked him this question already at one point during All-Star weekend, but it was my first time seeing him up close through media availability).
If you want to read more about what players think about recruiting during All-Star weekend, Mitch Lawrence of NBC has it.
Rudy Gobert provides comic relief:
Rudy Gobert was a huge factor in helping the World Team beat Team USA on Friday with 18 points on seven-of-10 shooting from the field, 12 rebounds and three blocks.
With the French press hogging him through much of his availability, I couldn’t get any questions in and didn’t even understand what was being said (everything was said in French), but some comic relief was provided at the end when a reporter told Gobert a lot of people are comparing him to Dwight Howard (really?) and asked if that made him feel comfortable. Here’s the interaction:
Gobert with a smirk: “DaWhite Tower? Uh. Yeah.”
Reporter: “You think you can top what he’s doing?”
Gobert with a confused look: “DaWhite Tower”?
At that point, someone clarifies the name and says “Dwight Howard”, and Gobert then says “Oh Dwight Howard! I thought, I thought he said “The White Tower (of London)”
As for what he thinks about the Howard comparisons (again, really?), Gobert simply showed appreciation and said he idolized Howard as a kid growing up.
Shabazz Muhammad explains growth from rookie year:
Given how little Shabazz Muhammad played in his rookie year, it was fair to start wondering if taking him in the first round may have been a mistake by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In his second year, however, he has shown the ability to flat-out score the ball, be it as a starter or off the bench. After collecting 10 points and five rebounds on Friday in the Rising Stars Challenge, Muhammad told me about his role with the Timberwolves and how he’s turned things around from last year.
Q: You had a great stretch in the starting lineup while some of the starters were injured. How has the adjustment been now that you’re coming off the bench again? Do you want to be a starter?
A: Yeah. Obviously, I’d love to start. Right now I’m just being patient. I’ve shown what I can do when I did start. We have a very good player in Kevin Martin and he’s been doing things he has to do to play so I’m just going to come off the bench and have the energy. It’s really good because I can come off the bench and I’m still the number one option on offense while playing the second guys. I think it’s a great opportunity for me to watch also to learn when I’m on the bench and become a sixth man, because it’ll help me learn [the things I need to do] to become a starter one day.
Q: What’s been the change from last year to this year? You’ve shown tremendous growth since your rookie year:
A: Definitely, and I would say it has just been my conditioning. I really worked hard this summer to change and transform my body. My athleticism has really made a big jump from that.
I’m not sure if that’s an indication that he didn’t work as hard coming in as a rookie, which would be a bad thing, but the key is his willingness to improve, and he has done just that and more this year.
Dennis Schroder’s desire to be a starter:
Dennis Schroder has really come into his own as the primary backup point guard for the best team in the East, but his dreams go beyond being just a backup.
After scoring 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field to go with nine assists and three steals, Schroeder wasn’t shy about expressing his desire to eventually become a starting point guard in the league.
“That’s my goal. I try to go for it and I work hard everyday. I’m trying to make it,” he beamed. “Right now, how it is in Atlanta, it’s great but I want to become a starter one day for sure.”
How I met the defensive coach of the Warriors:
At the beginning of Saturday night’s festivities at the Barclays Center, I was seated next to no one in particular at the media section, which initially made for a relatively dull experience. Why? Because you want to experience the moment with someone who cares to be there.
In came a man who somewhat looked like Charles F. Gardner of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (it was kind of dark in there), so I assumed it probably was him to cover Brandon Knight in the Skills Challenge, or something along those lines. He sat right next to me and we spoke to each other occasionally, but most of it was nothing more than small talk, like how preposterous I thought it was that the Gatorade I bought for $6.50 wouldn’t come with the bottle cap because it was the arena’s policy. Gardner wondered if it was to make sure that I wouldn’t swallow the cap.
About 20 minutes into the event, a young gentleman spotted who I thought was Gardner from a couple of rows above us, and came over to pay his respects. It was a little strange, though, because the tone of the greeting wasn’t really that of one writer to another. It was more like an underling reporting to his very-important boss. As Gardner turned to greet his friend, I checked his credentials out of curiosity, and it read the following: Ron Adams.
Adams, of course, is the assistant coach responsible for the defensive schemes of the Warriors. The man who came to greet him was the strength and conditioning coach of the team.
I had felt like the biggest fool, having wasted all that precious time while sitting next to a man I had a tremendous amount of respect for. Instead of picking his brain, I sat there complaining about my stupid cap-less Gatorade.
It was a little strange that the assistant coach of the West wasn’t better notified about where his seat was supposed to be. From what I gathered, he and the strength and conditioning coach were basically sitting where they weren’t supposed to, hoping the owners of those seats wouldn’t show up (presumably, they had better seats and just didn’t know where they were located). Luckily for me, the open seat Adams took belonged to Chris Sheridan, who decided to stay home on Saturday to avoid the terrible weather and traffic.
Adams was there to watch the performance of not only Curry and Thompson, but also Kyle Korver, Marco Belinelli and James Harden – all players that he once coached.
Needless to say, I had an extended conversation with Adams for the remainder of the events, and that was probably the highlight of the entire weekend for me because it was a real conversation – off the record – with someone who has such a great understanding of the game and someone who is coaching the team I so closely monitor. As expected, I walked away from the encounter a more knowledgeable man.
Jim Park is a blogger and editor of Sheridan Hoops. Follow him on twitter @SheridanBlog.
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