NCAA Tournament Performers, 3/26/08-- Part Two
March 26, 2008
After consecutive 40 and 30 points performances to lead his #10 team Davidson into the Sweet Sixteen, Stephen Curry, one of the biggest stories of the tournament, is someone who really deserves an in-depth look. First and foremost, something has to be said about his penchant for the big stage, as in three NCAA Tournament games in the past two years, Curry has scored a remarkable 100 points. He’s not just a great scorer in the postseason, though, as his stat-line clearly indicates. Looking deeper at his stats, the strides he made this year after a stellar freshman season are truly impressive. While increasing his points per game from 21.5 to 25.7, Curry also managed to increase his efficiency, raising his FG% from 46% to 49%, his 3PT% from 41% to 44%, and his TS% from 62% to an impressive 65% (and just for good measure, he grew two inches as well). His combination of production and efficiency is truly outstanding, and while he doesn’t face the greatest competition in the Southern Conference, he doesn’t falter when matched against the country’s best competition, as we’re seeing in the tournament.
In terms of physical makeup, Curry is undersized for an NBA shooting guard at 6’3, and he is a bit on the thin side, clearly still growing into his body. Athletically, he has decent quickness, but isn’t a very explosive player, and isn’t the kind of guy that is going to blow you away with his first step, though he makes up for that in many ways.
Curry’s game is very much based around his jump shot, which has a high, quick, and consistent release, which holds up well while on the move or when contested. 9.9 of Curry’s 17.8 field goal attempts per game come from behind the arc, and very few are without a hand in his face. Curry hits a handful of very difficult shots pretty much every game, as teams focus heavily on him, rarely letting him breathe, and rightfully so, given that he accounts for about 33% of Davidson’s total scoring, which ranks him 6th amongst all draft prospects in that category. Curry is excellent moving without the ball, almost always in motion and showing good craftiness in his ability to get separation, something he needs very little of to get off his outstanding shot. Curry gets off his shot using every method available, be it fading away, stepping back, turning around, dribbling to the left, dribbling to the right, coming off a screen, or some combination of the above. There really is very little to criticize about his shooting ability. He doesn’t always hold his follow through, but it’s hard to argue with the results. Other than that, he can be prone to having his shot blocked, which is due to his size just as much as it’s due to him having to take so many closely contested shots every game.
Curry isn’t just a long range shooter, though, even if the numbers somewhat suggest it. His remarkable efficiency from behind the arc puts him in a position where it’d be foolish not to take so many threes, so he doesn’t always show his full offensive repertoire. Curry has the same ability to get off tough shots from the mid-range, and he uses his strong ball-handling to do so when necessary. Curry handles the ball well with both hands, showing good control and excellent decision-making with the ball. He incorporates advanced moves such as crossovers, through the leg dribbles, and behind-the-back moves into his forays with the ball, and sells the moves very well with his craftiness. When taking the ball to the basket, Curry combines these moves along with subtle and dramatic changes in speed and direction to weave through the defense, occasionally making some outstanding plays. His first step isn’t anything special, as he doesn’t have outstanding quickness or overall athleticism, but he makes up for it with his craftiness. He keeps his head up and shows very good vision in penetrating the lane, though he isn’t the greatest finisher at the basket due to his size and lack of physicality (he only gets to the line four times per game). He makes up for this by making some tough scoop shots and going reverse to use the rim as a shield, but improving on his floater will definitely help him at the next level.
With pure point guard Jason Richards running the show, Curry rarely is put in the role of point guard, but he definitely shows potential in that regard, showing flashes of good court vision and decision-making skills. He’ll make crosscourt passes to open teammates, hit cutters off the dribble, and he plays the pick-and-roll very well, usually making the defense pay with a strong pass when they double him as the ball-handler. If he returns to school, he should have more opportunity to show his point guard skills, with Richards graduating.
On the defensive end, Curry has very good hands, which helps him grab two steals per game, and he also plays aggressive man-to-man defense both on and off the ball. He plays close off the ball, though struggles getting around screens, not always going over them, leading to some easy shots. On the ball, Curry compensates for his size by playing high up on his defender and keeping his hands up to avoid being shot over, though it still happens from time to time. He isn’t beat off the dribble very much, as he has very good fundamentals and reflexes, to go along with solid lateral quickness.
With every 30+ point performance in the tourney, Curry becomes less and less likely to return to school, and rightfully so. There are many question marks surrounding his game at the next level, ranging from his size to his position to how his skills will translate in general, but his talent, clutch ability, and the intangibles he brings to the table are undeniable. It’s tough to project his role at the next level at this stage of his development, but even without dramatic improvement, a Jannero Pargo or Juan Carlos Navarro type role is not very much of a stretch. If he improves on his point guard skills or grows another inch or two while adding some strength, full-fledged careers at either the PG or SG position are not out of the picture. Despite the many question marks around him, if he does indeed declare this year and continues to perform well in the tournament, he is someone who could sneak into the first round if someone falls in love with him, as in watching him, he clearly has a special factor to his game.
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NCAA Tournament: Stock Watch (round of 64, Thursday games)--Stock Up
March 16, 2007
In the very first game of the NCAA tournament, we got what looked to be the first of many great storylines this March. Stephen Curry, a 6-foot nothing freshman and the son of NBA shooting great Dell Curry, led his team Davidson to a spectacular start against the Maryland Terrapins.
Curry, the nation’s leading scorer amongst freshman behind Kevin Durant, started the game on fire, scoring 18 points in the first half to keep his team right in the thick of things of a high-scoring, highly entertaining, fast paced game. He knocked down nearly everything he threw up in the first half, coming off screens, spotting up on the wing, pulling up off the dribble, and even getting fouled at one point on a 25-foot plus attempt. His range extends beyond the NBA 3-point line and his release is extremely quick. It’s no surprise this kid led the entire country in made 3’s, he’s that good of a threat from behind the arc.
But it wasn’t just a one-dimensional performance. Curry put the ball on the floor a little bit as well, utilizing his pump-fakes and the threat of his shot to open up driving lanes for him to fearlessly penetrate though. He’s not the quickest guy in the world, nor is he overly explosive finishing at the rim, or an amazing ball-handler, but he’s smart, tough and crafty enough to know how to get where he wants to on the floor. He got to the free throw line a number of times just by putting this kind of pressure on the defense, something that really helped keep Maryland honest in the way they defended the 3-point line.
Defensively, Curry did a nice job getting in the passing lanes, showing a lot of hustle going in for steals and then doing a fantastic job once in transition to either finish plays himself or find the open man. He also crashed the glass despite his severe height and strength disadvantage, something that tells you a little about the heart this guy has.
After an amazing 19 point performance in the first half Curry had a much more difficult time getting his shot off in the 2nd half, as he was both defended a lot closer by Maryland’s guards (D.J. Strawberry especially) and seemed to get winded down the stretch. He went over 12 minutes without scoring until the 6:30 mark, but then seemed to get back into the flow momentarily for 5 quick points. In the end, though, it wasn’t enough for Davidson to overcome the superior depth and athleticism of the Terrapins, and Maryland advanced to the next round despite Curry’s coming out party.
Curry doesn’t look like an immediate NBA prospect due to his lack of size and the fact that he’s essentially a 6-foot shooting guard, while he isn’t a great athlete to make up for that. Regardless, though, there is a place in the league for guys who can shoot like that, so if he continues to make strides in his game and improves his playmaking ability over the next few years, it wouldn’t shock us to see Dell’s son continue in his footsteps.
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