McCollum explains how hard it is to guard Steph Curry originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
It’s easy to get entranced with how Steph Curry plays the game of basketball. His constant movements, textbook shooting form, and the fact that he’s fundamentally sound in almost every aspect of the game make it seem like it’s almost “Stephortless.”
But that begs the question: how is it actually trying to guard him? Well, New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum has an answer.
“It’s very tough,” McCollum said plainly during the Warriors‘ final summer league game. McCollum also mentioned how the Warriors’ system, Curry’s ability to create his own shot and stretch to the defense all the way to halfcourt, and his stamina are what make him special.
Additionally, McCollum shared what opposing teams’ defensive gameplans are when playing Curry and the Warriors.
“You have to throw different bodies at him; this isn’t a guy you can just guard with one person,” he said. “He’s a galaxy, he’s a planet, he’s a solar system. Everything revolves around him.”
McCollum concludes that overall, the game plan is to minimize his open looks because it’s not really possible to stop him. Paired with Klay Thompson, the “Splash Brothers” arguably are the hardest guard combo to stop in the league and while Klay’s incredible shooting has a lot to do with that, Curry’s shooting prowess is on another level.
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Earlier this year, Curry broke the all-time 3-point record in Madison Square Garden, and teams, as a whole, are attempting more 3-pointers because of Curry. Without him, the “3-Point Revolution” probably would have never happened, which is fair to say for the Warriors’ four championships as well.
At the end of the day, Curry changed the game of basketball, although opposing defenders wished that he hadn’t.