What’s missing in these NBA Finals? The Steph Curry Show
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https://www.yahoo.com/sports/news/what-s-missing-in-these-nba-finals--the-steph-curry-show-054844580.html
Late in the third quarter, with Cleveland deep in its Game 3 ? of Golden State, Stephen Curry scooped up a dead ball and decided to try to dunk it long after the whistle.
Perhaps it was out of boredom. Perhaps he wasn’t taking the game seriously. Perhaps it was a chance to remind himself what making a basket felt like.
It didn’t matter. LeBron James promptly jumped up, blocking the meaningless shot, sending Curry humbled back to the floor. Cleveland wasn’t going gently into the summer, wasn’t conceding anything. “I didn’t want him to see the ball go in,” LeBron said.
It was one more rejection, one more miss, one more night in the NBA Finals when the league's unanimous MVP failed to show.
Cleveland 120, Golden State 90, and suddenly this is a series. It's still 2-1 Warriors, but Friday’s Game 4 here looms large and everyone is wondering when Steph is going to get going.
“I have to play 100 times better than that,” Curry acknowledged after a 19-point effort that saw him score just two points in the decisive first half. He’s averaging just 16 a game in the Finals (down from 30.1 in the regular season) and hasn’t cracked 20 in a game yet.
If the Warriors are going to dispatch the Cavs with the ease in which it once appeared – if they're going to fulfill the destiny of a record 73-win regular season and an historic comeback against Oklahoma City – then it’s time for the league’s main attraction to make an appearance.
“He was not his usual self,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said.
That means Curry and, to a lesser extent, Splash Brother Klay Thompson need to find their normal selves. Neither has done much offensively in this series. Thompson is averaging just 12 a game, about half of his regular-season production. Both players are shooting well below their averages and, as a result, not getting their usual number of shots up.
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“Me and Steph haven’t shot the ball as well as we want,” Thompson said. “That’s all right. We’re still up 2-1, and law of averages, it will all work out.”
That’s what Golden State has to work with right now, that a duo and a team this good can’t have a slump that lasts too long. It didn’t matter back in Oakland, where teammates made up the difference. Here on the road, that’s a high-wire act of a game plan. Stars have to star now. Or blowouts happen.
The problem on Wednesday is it wasn’t just shooting. Neither played well defensively or on the glass, or took care of the ball. Neither was aggressive, especially out of the gate when James and company took control of the game and never let up.
“Soft,” Kerr said. “We were extremely soft to start the game. … Steph got beat back door, couple turnovers. Just a horrible way to start.”
“They were playing aggressive defense and they came out with a big punch,” Curry said. “I didn’t do anything about it or play my game [or] do what I need to do to help my team.”
Cavs fans spent much of the second half chanting, “M-V-P! M-V-P!” It was a show of respect for James, whose all-around game delivered a forceful collection of 32 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. It was also a slap at Curry, who became the first player in league history to get every vote for MVP, yet hasn’t shown any of it here in the Finals.
There’s a burden that comes with such a vote total. Curry was brilliant in the regular season, a singular entertainment sensation and the quarterback of a record winner. The Finals are the proving ground, though, when someone like a desperate LeBron, who can’t control the voters, can control the game.
“It’s not about living up to a certain expectation, other than the one that I have for myself,” Curry claimed, brushing aside the pressure of being MVP. “I haven’t done that or I didn’t do that tonight. I’ve got to be better.”
Some of this rests on Cleveland. Maybe the defensive game plan, which includes being particularly aggressive on the perimeter, was lost in the two losses in California. It was there, though, in Game 3 and effective on Curry and Thompson.
Still, much of it is on Curry.
He’s now 17 of 39 for the series, 43.6 percent, well below his regular-season percentage of 50.4 percent. He’s 10 of 25 from behind the arc, which is a reasonable 40 percent, but not enough from a guy who averaged 5.1 made 3-pointers per game. He’s clearly out of sync. A first half in which he took just five shots (making one) isn’t enough.
Until he changes the narrative, the talk of this series, particularly in the run-up to Friday night, is going to be about what’s wrong with Steph, a far cry from the dream season.
“No matter who you’re talking about, when a team plays poorly, the team deserves criticism,” Kerr said. “The coach deserves criticism. The players. I always tell our guys: ‘That’s why we get paid. We don’t get paid to show up and shoot baskets every day. We get paid because we’re going to get a lot of criticism.’ And we deserve it.”
Law of averages, Thompson said. Just a matter of being assertive, Curry said. Still in good shape, both reminded.
Fair enough. They’re the reigning champs. One of them is the MVP. Three games in and neither have delivered, though.
Neither sounded too concerned.
One more game like this, one more night of misfiring as LeBron gains a head of steam, and they will be.
Late in the third quarter, with Cleveland deep in its Game 3 ? of Golden State, Stephen Curry scooped up a dead ball and decided to try to dunk it long after the whistle.
Perhaps it was out of boredom. Perhaps he wasn’t taking the game seriously. Perhaps it was a chance to remind himself what making a basket felt like.
It didn’t matter. LeBron James promptly jumped up, blocking the meaningless shot, sending Curry humbled back to the floor. Cleveland wasn’t going gently into the summer, wasn’t conceding anything. “I didn’t want him to see the ball go in,” LeBron said.
It was one more rejection, one more miss, one more night in the NBA Finals when the league's unanimous MVP failed to show.
Cleveland 120, Golden State 90, and suddenly this is a series. It's still 2-1 Warriors, but Friday’s Game 4 here looms large and everyone is wondering when Steph is going to get going.
“I have to play 100 times better than that,” Curry acknowledged after a 19-point effort that saw him score just two points in the decisive first half. He’s averaging just 16 a game in the Finals (down from 30.1 in the regular season) and hasn’t cracked 20 in a game yet.
If the Warriors are going to dispatch the Cavs with the ease in which it once appeared – if they're going to fulfill the destiny of a record 73-win regular season and an historic comeback against Oklahoma City – then it’s time for the league’s main attraction to make an appearance.
“He was not his usual self,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said.
That means Curry and, to a lesser extent, Splash Brother Klay Thompson need to find their normal selves. Neither has done much offensively in this series. Thompson is averaging just 12 a game, about half of his regular-season production. Both players are shooting well below their averages and, as a result, not getting their usual number of shots up.
Video Not Available
Unfortunately, this video is not available in your region.
SS-100-202
“Me and Steph haven’t shot the ball as well as we want,” Thompson said. “That’s all right. We’re still up 2-1, and law of averages, it will all work out.”
That’s what Golden State has to work with right now, that a duo and a team this good can’t have a slump that lasts too long. It didn’t matter back in Oakland, where teammates made up the difference. Here on the road, that’s a high-wire act of a game plan. Stars have to star now. Or blowouts happen.
The problem on Wednesday is it wasn’t just shooting. Neither played well defensively or on the glass, or took care of the ball. Neither was aggressive, especially out of the gate when James and company took control of the game and never let up.
“Soft,” Kerr said. “We were extremely soft to start the game. … Steph got beat back door, couple turnovers. Just a horrible way to start.”
“They were playing aggressive defense and they came out with a big punch,” Curry said. “I didn’t do anything about it or play my game [or] do what I need to do to help my team.”
Cavs fans spent much of the second half chanting, “M-V-P! M-V-P!” It was a show of respect for James, whose all-around game delivered a forceful collection of 32 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. It was also a slap at Curry, who became the first player in league history to get every vote for MVP, yet hasn’t shown any of it here in the Finals.
There’s a burden that comes with such a vote total. Curry was brilliant in the regular season, a singular entertainment sensation and the quarterback of a record winner. The Finals are the proving ground, though, when someone like a desperate LeBron, who can’t control the voters, can control the game.
“It’s not about living up to a certain expectation, other than the one that I have for myself,” Curry claimed, brushing aside the pressure of being MVP. “I haven’t done that or I didn’t do that tonight. I’ve got to be better.”
Some of this rests on Cleveland. Maybe the defensive game plan, which includes being particularly aggressive on the perimeter, was lost in the two losses in California. It was there, though, in Game 3 and effective on Curry and Thompson.
Still, much of it is on Curry.
He’s now 17 of 39 for the series, 43.6 percent, well below his regular-season percentage of 50.4 percent. He’s 10 of 25 from behind the arc, which is a reasonable 40 percent, but not enough from a guy who averaged 5.1 made 3-pointers per game. He’s clearly out of sync. A first half in which he took just five shots (making one) isn’t enough.
Until he changes the narrative, the talk of this series, particularly in the run-up to Friday night, is going to be about what’s wrong with Steph, a far cry from the dream season.
“No matter who you’re talking about, when a team plays poorly, the team deserves criticism,” Kerr said. “The coach deserves criticism. The players. I always tell our guys: ‘That’s why we get paid. We don’t get paid to show up and shoot baskets every day. We get paid because we’re going to get a lot of criticism.’ And we deserve it.”
Law of averages, Thompson said. Just a matter of being assertive, Curry said. Still in good shape, both reminded.
Fair enough. They’re the reigning champs. One of them is the MVP. Three games in and neither have delivered, though.
Neither sounded too concerned.
One more game like this, one more night of misfiring as LeBron gains a head of steam, and they will be.
Comments
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im hearing hes knees may be bothering him
and something personal may be going on with his sister being cussed out on twitter
or hes just not himself and we dont know why
always fukking excuses for this guy.
are we getting excuses for klay not playing well -
Yeah Curry wasn't aggressive and he played very poorly by his standards. Worst of all, his body language and effort was horrible. Unacceptable for an MVP and the leader of your team.
Not sure where you getting these excuses from. Y'all ? spend to much time listening to the media. -
Yeah Curry wasn't aggressive and he played very poorly by his standards. Worst of all, his body language and effort was horrible. Unacceptable for an MVP and the leader of your team.
Not sure where you hearing these excuses though. Y'all ? spend to much time listening to the media.
true....
i can say i am tired of the media hyping him up....an ? on the rest of the team when its a team sport.
with so many other players that deserve the same type praise they making him the face of clean cut positive anti ? basketball.
that is why i look at him under a microscope and see a bunch of ? .
fukk all that greatest pure shooter ? -
Yeah Curry wasn't aggressive and he played very poorly by his standards. Worst of all, his body language and effort was horrible. Unacceptable for an MVP and the leader of your team.
Not sure where you getting these excuses from. Y'all ? spend to much time listening to the media.
He's not the leader of his team.
The entire team says Green is -
Draymond is the emotional leader in the locker room, but you can't do what Curry has done on the court and not be a leader in terms of confidence and how well your team plays.
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Please stop making threads
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Draymond is the emotional leader in the locker room, but you can't do what Curry has done on the court and not be a leader in terms of confidence and how well your team plays.
Blah blah blah
He's not the leader. Green is the leader. They all follow him. -
Curry a role player when his team not going and when they not setting illegal screens for him he not going and he a front runner same as bron is stop making excuses for him
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we know what it is -
This is the problem when bball becomes pop culture. Too many people latch onto popular narrative
Same thing happened last year to Steph. If the defense overlays you, you go to whats open. No difference than if you're doubled, you pass
That infatuation with hero ball is fan ? . -
Your infatuation with Steph is odd.
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Your infatuation with Steph is odd.
I don't like all the hype an unwarranted attention he gets -
2stepz_ahead wrote: »https://www.yahoo.com/sports/news/what-s-missing-in-these-nba-finals--the-steph-curry-show-054844580.html
Late in the third quarter, with Cleveland deep in its Game 3 ? of Golden State, Stephen Curry scooped up a dead ball and decided to try to dunk it long after the whistle.
Perhaps it was out of boredom. Perhaps he wasn’t taking the game seriously. Perhaps it was a chance to remind himself what making a basket felt like.
It didn’t matter. LeBron James promptly jumped up, blocking the meaningless shot, sending Curry humbled back to the floor. Cleveland wasn’t going gently into the summer, wasn’t conceding anything. “I didn’t want him to see the ball go in,” LeBron said.
It was one more rejection, one more miss, one more night in the NBA Finals when the league's unanimous MVP failed to show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUmkorc5IZ0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXYZwrbQmKc -
Did you miss the Steph Curry show last night?
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bumoity bump bump
bumpity bumo bump -
Obsessed
