Stephen Curry is now widely regarded not just as the greatest shooter ever but also as one of the very greatest players ever, period.
When Curry entered the NBA in 2009, though, no one could have foreseen that he’d one day be responsible for revolutionizing the game. In fact, there was a whole lot of criticism of Curry on draft night, and he has brushed them aside in some style.
“First step is average at best.”
“Too skinny.”
“Can’t get to the rim at NBA level.”
“Can’t guard NBA guards.”
“Not a true Point Guard.”
“Poor shot selection.”
The critique of someone being too skinny is odd because you would expect that with the trainers in the NBA, players will bulk up a bit when they get there. Curry, especially, in these last few years, has bulked up a fair bit, but his leaner frame in his earlier years wasn’t exactly an issue either.
Curry may not have the fastest first step, but that was never really going to be his game, to begin with. Despite that, it still hasn’t really led to him struggling to get to the rim, as he is pretty good at it. He rather consistently finds ways to break down the defense with his dribbling to get to the hole.
His defense was another aspect that was always criticized, but again, in these last few years, he has proven he is a solid defender. His defensive prowess was on full display in the NBA Finals last year too, when Curry won his fourth title.
The point on him not being a true point guard was right, but Curry has shown you don’t need to be one to be successful in the NBA. He has also inspired a whole generation of smaller guards to follow in his footsteps, although they haven’t had the success he has had.
Lastly, you get to the poor shot selection. Well, we have gotten to the point now, where no shot that Curry takes is necessarily a bad shot. He has the green light to shoot from anywhere on the court, and that’s what happens when you are the greatest shooter ever.
LeBron James Knew Stephen Curry Would Be Special
While Curry had his fair share of doubters back in the day, LeBron James certainly wasn’t one of them. LeBron famously attended Curry’s games when he was at Davidson, and he stated he knew Curry was special.
Even LeBron though couldn’t have imagined Curry would be this good in the NBA. Four titles, a Finals MVP, two MVPs, and two scoring titles were beyond anyone’s wildest imagination.
It is a testament to Curry’s work ethic that he has gotten so far, and he’s not done just yet. He is still hungry to win more, and you wouldn’t bet against him after a strong 2022-23 season where he put up 29.4 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 6.3 APG, 0.9 SPG, and 0.4 BPG.
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