Stephen Curry is on one of the most remarkable runs in NBA history
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Steph Curry drops 49 on Seth and the 76ers as torrid stretch continues (2:37)
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7:00 AM ET
Kirk GoldsberryESPN Staff Writer
The greatest shooter of all-time is on the hottest scoring run of his career. Stephen Curry is once again playing like an MVP, putting his team on his back and carrying it into the Western Conference playoffs. It's hard to overstate just how remarkable Curry's current run has been, so let's just let the numbers do the talking.
Curry is averaging 38.7 points per game in April, which is on pace to be the highest such mark of any calendar month throughout his remarkable career (min. five games played). Over the past 25 seasons, the only players who averaged more points in a calendar month than Curry this month are James Harden and Kobe Bryant. Entering Friday's game against the Denver Nuggets (10 p.m. ET on ESPN), Curry has poured in 535 points over his past 15 games, dating to March 14.
But it's not just the buckets. It's also his incredible efficiency. Curry has been logging video game numbers, and he recently became the first player to average 40 points on 50% shooting, 40% on 3-pointers and 90% on free throws over an 11-game span. You're not supposed to be able to do that, but rules don't apply to the greatest shooter ever.
It's no surprise that 3s are the main ingredient in Curry's recent hot streak. In the history of the NBA, only two players have recorded more than five total games with at least 10 made 3-point shots, Curry and his splashy pal, Klay Thompson.
Most Games With 10+ 3-Pointers, NBA History
Stephen Curry (full career)
21
Klay Thompson
5
Stephen Curry (since April 12)
4
These games are quintessential Curry, and they make us rethink the nature of great scoring. Before Curry, nobody could score so well from so far away. There's something awesome about watching Curry get hot and take over games in his own unique way. The fact that he can score 30-plus points in a game on 3s alone sets him apart from every other player in league history. Curry has more career games with 10-plus 3s (21) than the next five players on the list combined (16).
Curry has been racking up more of these special games recently. Consider these two nuggets:
This season, Curry has recorded six games with at least 10 3-pointers, more than the rest of the NBA combined (five).
Four of Curry's games with 10-plus triples have come since April 12. Having four such games on your resume would rank you third all time for an entire career; Curry has four of them in the past two weeks!
We've come to expect an unprecedented blend of creativity, efficiency and shot distance from Curry, but what he's doing recently is wild, even by his standards.
EDITOR'S PICKS
Curry's 30-point run ends: 'It was a special ride'
'Mind-boggling': Dubs in awe of latest Curry feat
Curry changed the NBA forever by demonstrating it is possible to both create and convert unassisted 3-point shots from distances that used to be considered ludicrous. He has done it all season, converting 41.3% of his 286 unassisted 3-point attempts. In other words, Curry dribbling into 3s is one of the most dangerous actions in the league, and while that has been true for years, it has been especially true during this stretch. Since April 12, Curry has made 50% of his off-the-dribble 3-pointers with an average shot distance of nearly 28 feet.
For context, these shots are essentially 10-yard completions in football, but instead of a pass-catcher with a catch radius of six feet, Curry's triples are flying right through an 18-inch ring 10 feet above the ground.
His accuracy is legendary, and coming into tonight's game versus Denver, Curry leads the NBA in both 3-pointers attempted and made, while converting 42.5% from downtown. He's a threat to score from any angle, but this season he has been particularly dangerous from the wings. He leads the league in scoring from both wings beyond the arc.
Kirk Goldsberry
While those long-range numbers are awesome, a closer look at that chart shows that Curry has become a scary 2-point scorer too, which is a big reason he might win his second scoring title this year.
This season, Curry leads his team in points in the paint, and he's converting 57% of 8.9 2-point attempts per game. His abilities to finish on drives and to draw contact are both vital to his overall success. Between his paint production and his trips to the line, Curry is averaging over 14 points per game.
Those are huge complements to his long-range prowess, and those inside-the-arc skills prevent defenders from overplaying his 3-point shooting. Early in his career, Curry struggled in the paint, but thanks to an arsenal of crafty layups and floaters, those days are gone, and those finishes are a key part of his game right now.
Curry is one of the most complete scorers in the league right now, and because the Warriors are no longer a superteam, he is becoming a more central weapon. Even though Steve Kerr's offenses are typically known for motion and ball movement, something different is happening right now.
The NBA on ESPN and ABC
Catch all the 2020-21 season action on ESPN, ABC and the ESPN App.
Friday , April 23
• Celtics at Nets, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
• Nuggets at Warriors, 10 p.m. on ESPN
All times Eastern
Simply put, Kerr has handed the ball to Curry and just let him work. In a move that will make many Warriors fans happy, Kerr is using Curry a lot more in the pick-and-roll game recently.
Since April 12, Curry has used 31.7 picks per game as the ball handler. Prior to this, he averaged 24.5 on the season.
Before his hot streak, Curry ranked outside the top 10 in usage percentage on the season. However, from April 12 to 19, Curry recorded a usage north of 40%, the highest in any five-game stretch of his entire career, and one of the highest such marks in the whole league.
Three of Curry's five highest games in terms of usage percentage have come since April 12, including the second-highest mark of his career against the 76ers earlier this week.
In that Philly game, in which Curry scored 49 and melted my face with a barrage of fourth-quarter triples, he had an average touch length of 5.21 seconds, per Second Spectrum tracking data. That was his second-highest average touch length in ANY regular-season game under Steve Kerr, per Second Spectrum tracking. Those touch lengths are downright Harden-esque, and while they might not be typical for Curry's style of play, they also reveal that Kerr is tweaking his approach for the stretch run.
As the Warriors approach the critical last few weeks of the regular season, they have two big reasons they should be confident. The first is Curry, who has emerged as the league's most dangerous scorer and is on fire, even by his remarkable standards. The second is the schedule. Golden State has one of the easiest remaining schedules in the league.
Although the Dubs currently sit in ninth, they are just one game behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth spot, which is big, because teams that finish seventh or eighth get two chances to win one game and earn entry into the Western Conference playoffs. And assuming they get in, this scrappy Warriors team immediately becomes one of the scariest seventh or eighth seeds in history.
play
Steph Curry drops 49 on Seth and the 76ers as torrid stretch continues (2:37)
Facebook Messenger
7:00 AM ET
Kirk GoldsberryESPN Staff Writer
The greatest shooter of all-time is on the hottest scoring run of his career. Stephen Curry is once again playing like an MVP, putting his team on his back and carrying it into the Western Conference playoffs. It's hard to overstate just how remarkable Curry's current run has been, so let's just let the numbers do the talking.
Curry is averaging 38.7 points per game in April, which is on pace to be the highest such mark of any calendar month throughout his remarkable career (min. five games played). Over the past 25 seasons, the only players who averaged more points in a calendar month than Curry this month are James Harden and Kobe Bryant. Entering Friday's game against the Denver Nuggets (10 p.m. ET on ESPN), Curry has poured in 535 points over his past 15 games, dating to March 14.
But it's not just the buckets. It's also his incredible efficiency. Curry has been logging video game numbers, and he recently became the first player to average 40 points on 50% shooting, 40% on 3-pointers and 90% on free throws over an 11-game span. You're not supposed to be able to do that, but rules don't apply to the greatest shooter ever.
It's no surprise that 3s are the main ingredient in Curry's recent hot streak. In the history of the NBA, only two players have recorded more than five total games with at least 10 made 3-point shots, Curry and his splashy pal, Klay Thompson.
Most Games With 10+ 3-Pointers, NBA History
Stephen Curry (full career)
21
Klay Thompson
5
Stephen Curry (since April 12)
4
These games are quintessential Curry, and they make us rethink the nature of great scoring. Before Curry, nobody could score so well from so far away. There's something awesome about watching Curry get hot and take over games in his own unique way. The fact that he can score 30-plus points in a game on 3s alone sets him apart from every other player in league history. Curry has more career games with 10-plus 3s (21) than the next five players on the list combined (16).
Curry has been racking up more of these special games recently. Consider these two nuggets:
This season, Curry has recorded six games with at least 10 3-pointers, more than the rest of the NBA combined (five).
Four of Curry's games with 10-plus triples have come since April 12. Having four such games on your resume would rank you third all time for an entire career; Curry has four of them in the past two weeks!
We've come to expect an unprecedented blend of creativity, efficiency and shot distance from Curry, but what he's doing recently is wild, even by his standards.
EDITOR'S PICKS
Curry's 30-point run ends: 'It was a special ride'
'Mind-boggling': Dubs in awe of latest Curry feat
Curry changed the NBA forever by demonstrating it is possible to both create and convert unassisted 3-point shots from distances that used to be considered ludicrous. He has done it all season, converting 41.3% of his 286 unassisted 3-point attempts. In other words, Curry dribbling into 3s is one of the most dangerous actions in the league, and while that has been true for years, it has been especially true during this stretch. Since April 12, Curry has made 50% of his off-the-dribble 3-pointers with an average shot distance of nearly 28 feet.
For context, these shots are essentially 10-yard completions in football, but instead of a pass-catcher with a catch radius of six feet, Curry's triples are flying right through an 18-inch ring 10 feet above the ground.
His accuracy is legendary, and coming into tonight's game versus Denver, Curry leads the NBA in both 3-pointers attempted and made, while converting 42.5% from downtown. He's a threat to score from any angle, but this season he has been particularly dangerous from the wings. He leads the league in scoring from both wings beyond the arc.
Kirk Goldsberry
While those long-range numbers are awesome, a closer look at that chart shows that Curry has become a scary 2-point scorer too, which is a big reason he might win his second scoring title this year.
This season, Curry leads his team in points in the paint, and he's converting 57% of 8.9 2-point attempts per game. His abilities to finish on drives and to draw contact are both vital to his overall success. Between his paint production and his trips to the line, Curry is averaging over 14 points per game.
Those are huge complements to his long-range prowess, and those inside-the-arc skills prevent defenders from overplaying his 3-point shooting. Early in his career, Curry struggled in the paint, but thanks to an arsenal of crafty layups and floaters, those days are gone, and those finishes are a key part of his game right now.
Curry is one of the most complete scorers in the league right now, and because the Warriors are no longer a superteam, he is becoming a more central weapon. Even though Steve Kerr's offenses are typically known for motion and ball movement, something different is happening right now.
The NBA on ESPN and ABC
Catch all the 2020-21 season action on ESPN, ABC and the ESPN App.
Friday , April 23
• Celtics at Nets, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
• Nuggets at Warriors, 10 p.m. on ESPN
All times Eastern
Simply put, Kerr has handed the ball to Curry and just let him work. In a move that will make many Warriors fans happy, Kerr is using Curry a lot more in the pick-and-roll game recently.
Since April 12, Curry has used 31.7 picks per game as the ball handler. Prior to this, he averaged 24.5 on the season.
Before his hot streak, Curry ranked outside the top 10 in usage percentage on the season. However, from April 12 to 19, Curry recorded a usage north of 40%, the highest in any five-game stretch of his entire career, and one of the highest such marks in the whole league.
Three of Curry's five highest games in terms of usage percentage have come since April 12, including the second-highest mark of his career against the 76ers earlier this week.
In that Philly game, in which Curry scored 49 and melted my face with a barrage of fourth-quarter triples, he had an average touch length of 5.21 seconds, per Second Spectrum tracking data. That was his second-highest average touch length in ANY regular-season game under Steve Kerr, per Second Spectrum tracking. Those touch lengths are downright Harden-esque, and while they might not be typical for Curry's style of play, they also reveal that Kerr is tweaking his approach for the stretch run.
As the Warriors approach the critical last few weeks of the regular season, they have two big reasons they should be confident. The first is Curry, who has emerged as the league's most dangerous scorer and is on fire, even by his remarkable standards. The second is the schedule. Golden State has one of the easiest remaining schedules in the league.
Although the Dubs currently sit in ninth, they are just one game behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth spot, which is big, because teams that finish seventh or eighth get two chances to win one game and earn entry into the Western Conference playoffs. And assuming they get in, this scrappy Warriors team immediately becomes one of the scariest seventh or eighth seeds in history.
