In this Thursday's game between the Golden State Warriors and the Portland Trail Blazers, there is not much suspense about the outcome. The trailblazers lacking Lillard and McCollum are two major scorers. Simply unable to resist the Warriors’ chariots, the biggest focus of this game and the most talked about is nothing more than whether the Warriors’ number one star Stephen Curry can make 15 three-pointers, which is broken by teammate Klay Thompson_ Span6span kept the NBA single-game three-pointer record, but also broke the NBA three-pointer record held by Ray Allen in one fell swoop.
The offensive desire shown by Curry in the first half does also mean that he wants to set a record at home. After all, facing the trailblazers whose perimeter defense is rotten to the ground, it is difficult for a scorer of Curry this level not to hurt the killer. Curry made 12 three-pointers in the first half, but he didn’t feel good in his hand. He only hit 4 of them, and he only hit 6 of 17 three-pointers. Everything shows that he wants a game. Breaking records is not an easy task.
So some people began to accuse Curry of taking too many three-pointers, which led to the team's overall offensive efficiency extremely dependent on his feel! This is indeed true to some extent. Although his total shots per game this season has dropped slightly (20.3 shots per game, down from 21.7 last season), Curry averaged 13.3 three-pointers per game, which is not only a record To his career high, the percentage of three-pointers shot has also increased slightly compared to last season. In general, Curry has maintained a 58-60% percentage of three-pointers for five consecutive seasons, and his percentage of three-pointers this season has increased to 65.6%, in other words almost three-pointers. The second shots were made from beyond the three-point line.
Does this mean that Curry’s frequency of hitting the basket has been greatly reduced? Of course not. Although his finishing efficiency at the basket is indeed not as good as at his peak, Curry's breakthrough ability is still extremely sharp.The difference is that Curry almost completely gave up long-distance two-point shots. Only one shot in every 30 shots is within the 16-25 foot area (long-distance two-pointers), which was his long distance last year. Two-point shots accounted for half of his shots, less than one-third of the time he partnered with mid-range shooting king Kevin Durant during the three seasons in 2016-19.
Is this a problem? Did Curry take too many shots from the three-point line, which caused his overall efficiency to decline? At least for head coach Steve Kerr this is not the case. Kerr believes that Curry's three-pointers are more important considering the expansion of the team's offense, and the team as a whole also needs to take more three-pointers.
Kerr not only said that, but he did, because the Warriors made 6% more three-pointers than last season, ranking third in the league. And not only Curry, even Andrew Wiggins, who was not good at three-pointers before, replaced his favorite long-distance two-pointers with more three-pointers. At the same time, he has also increased his aggressiveness towards the basket. His number of dunks this season is the same as the Raptors OG-Anunobi, ranking third in the league, just behind Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards And the Bulls dunk king Zach Lavin.
The good news is more than this. Among the top 50 dunk players in the NBA this season, the Warriors accounted for three. In addition to Wiggins, there are also Gary Payton II and Kevin- Looney , with their presence, the Warriors have become the most efficient team in the three-second zone this season.Their shooting percentage in this area is as high as 70.6%, so although Curry’s scoring in this area has decreased, his three-point shot helped his teammates open the door to attack the basket, and teammates also used his own in this area. The score made up for Curry's shortcomings.
Whether it is Cole's offensive system that has worked, or the Warriors are playing more reasonable now, the Warriors have indeed planned the entire team's shooting distribution very well. They ranked third in the league in the number of attempts in the non-basket area of the paint, and sixth in the league in the number of mid-range attempts. Although the Warriors do not have a traditional scoring inside player, their tallest player, Nemanja Bielica, has 47% of his shots from outside the three-point line, and the second tallest Otto Porter has 72% of his shots. The shot is a three-pointer, but they are sitting on the bench with outstanding athletic players headed by Payton II who can hit the basket to score. Part of the reason these players can repeatedly succeed at the basket is because of Curry. The threat of a three-point shot severely damaged the opponent's defensive system. Will trends like
change over time? Perhaps, because Ray Allen's record is getting closer, Curry's enthusiasm for three-pointers may become smaller and smaller as the record is re-established. At the same time, with the return of James Wiseman and Jonathan Cuminga gaining more trust from Kerr, these inside players will also have more and more playing time. And Curry will also encounter more rigorous defensive care from opponents. No team will want to be the background board of a new record, and no team will want to see this record getting more and more outrageous, so these teams should be. I would rather let other players shoot than let Curry get a three-pointer easily.
What the Warriors should pay most attention to is their free throw rate, because their stats only rank 13th in the league. Curry’s struggles at the basket may be related to the change in NBA rules that led to the low foul rate in the league. For small players like Curry, those collisions and cuts that were considered fouls in the past will obviously produce greater Influence. But I think we can’t have higher requirements on Curry.After all, he is 33 years old, and the Warriors currently have the best record of 20 wins and 4 losses in the league, and it is only December. The really important moments will have to wait until the playoffs in April and May next year, instead of now Squeezing his stamina, it is better to let him accumulate for the playoffs, and now it is meaningless to send him on the court to perform the task of assaulting the basket.
More importantly, Curry's career shooting trajectory also has such a trend. His shooting touch tends to be worse in the first half of the season, but as the season progresses, his touch will get better and better. In his career, he shot 41% from three-pointers in November and December, which is good enough for an average NBA player, but for Curry it is a failure. But in January, his three-point shooting percentage will increase to 44%, and after the All-Star Game , Curry's career three-point shooting percentage is 45%.
So does Curry need to change his offensive approach and take more mid-range shots? The editor feels that at least this need not be the case before the playoffs start. After all, basket and three-pointers are the most effective offensive weapons in the regular season, but in the playoffs, these two areas are not easy to shoot. The middle distance will often become the winner or loser in changing the trend of the game. Let’s take a look. The end of the Houston Rockets will be known.
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