After Stephen Curry‘s 30-point, 15-assist domination of the Lakers on Sunday, Warriors coach Steve Kerr decided to pay Steph one of the highest compliments a player can receive in his post-game comments. Except, Kerr’s basically laying down the gauntlet of ensuing challengers after declaring Steph the best point guard in the NBA today.
To be fair to Kerr, we agree! Curry, always one of the best shooters in the game, has turned into one of the league’s craftiest ball handlers and creative passers.
“That’s as good a point guard job as I’ve ever seen, what Steph did tonight,” Kerr said after the Warriors blew out the Lakers. “Managing the game, being aggressive at the right times, taking care of the ball, finding guys.
“The guy has taken another level. I think he’s the best in the NBA right now at that position.”
There it is.
There was one factor of Steph’s game that’s kept him — and many other offensively dazzling guards — from being mentioned among the elite before this season, though. That factor, defense, was mentioned over the summer when former Warriors assistant coach Brian Scalabrine spoke out about then-coach Mark Jackson not holding his players accountable. He used Jackson’s insistence Steph match up against an opposing team’s less-talented guard as an example.
Something to keep in mind, while pondering Scalabrine’s clairvoyance, and it’s something Steph mentioned when we brought up Scalabrine’s comments to Curry over the summer, but the Warriors have got 6-7 Klay Thompson teamed with Curry in the backcourt. Klay can take the best opposing wings, which means Steph can match up against the opposing point guard, like say, Chris Paul — long considered by many analysts to be the best PG in the league right now.
Kerr says Curry has answered the questions about his defense already:
“The only thing I wasn’t sure about was Steph’s defense at a high level,” Kerr said. “But the level of Steph’s defense this year is beyond what I expected.
“I knew he was better defensively than people gave him credit for, but honestly, what he’s done this year at that end is remarkable.”
Let us also not forget that through 10 games Steph is averaging the fourth most points per game in the NBA (24.8), the fifth most assists per game (7.7), the third most steals per game (2.3) and he’s tied for the second most made three-pointers (31), something he holds the NBA record for in a single campaign when he connected on 272 of them during the 2012-13 season.
Plus, this was Magic-al.
Kerr wasn’t known for embellishing his feelings as a color commentator for TNT, and while he’s definitely got an incentive to laud Curry’s game, we’re not so sure Kerr is doing anything more here than speaking the truth as he knows it.
Then again, keep an eye on the first Clippers-Warriors game at 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT Christmas day. CP3 might have a counter to Kerr’s comments.
Is Curry the best PG in the NBA right now?
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