Stephen Curry couldn’t break Ray Allen’s regular-season 3-point record on Wednesday, but the point guard still led his Golden State Warriors to the victory against the weakened Portland Trail Blazers.
The Oregonians landed in Chase Center without their two biggest stars, Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, due to injuries. This situation could have opened the door for Curry to unleash his power and dominate the Blazers (as he usually does), but The Chef had a normal game, scoring 22 points on his rivals.
Still, that doesn’t take away anything from Curry, who entered the match with hopes of breaking Ray Allen’s record. Before the game, rival head coach Chauncey Billups talked about the point guard, calling him the “greatest combo guard” to set foot on an NBA court.
Via NBC Sports Bay Area:
“I always say, to me, they have these lists of who’s the greatest this — I think he’s the greatest combo guard to ever play this game. I don’t think he’s a point guard, two-guard, he’s just a combo guard and he’s the greatest to ever do it at that position.”
The 2004 NBA Finals MVP also discussed the good things Curry has done for the game, lauding his impact in the league after changing the way basketball is played not only in the NBA but the rest of the world.
“He’s one of the most influential players to ever play the game. In the way that he’s changed how everybody kind of plays the game. It’s interesting because everybody plays that game, but there’s only one Steph Curry.”
Last, but not least, Billups reflected on the possibility of Curry breaking Allen’s record and what that could mean for him. Even though is a huge milestone, Chauncey said Curry has been working for that for a long time.
“The significance of him chasing, and some point getting this, is huge,” he said. “He’s already kind of known as the greatest shooter to ever play the game. So that’s probably just validation when he gets it. I don’t think anybody will be surprised when he gets it. It’s been coming for quite some time.”
Steph finished the night with six 3-pointers, which means he’s 10 triples away from shattering Ray’s record, but he’ll need to wait until Saturday, in front of his brother Seth, to make history once again.
The Golden State Warriors got their 21st win of the season after beating the Blazers 104-94. Now they’ll start a 5-game road trip trying to confirm they are the best team in the league.
Meanwhile, the Portland Trail Blazers are a hot mess. Several reports suggesting Damian Lillard is on his way out of the team have surfaced recently, which won’t change anytime soon.
Now Dame is injured, as well as CJ McCollum, leaving the team vulnerable after a rocky start to the season. Billups has a lot of work to do, but he knew the challenge would be tough when he took the job.
