Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James welcomed his rival and friend, Steph Curry, on Tuesday’s episode of his show “Mind the Game.” The two talked about various things with his co-host, Steve Nash, including the impact he has in basketball. Before Curry emerged as a star player, the 3-pointer wasn’t a lethal weapon most coaches used in their system. But that changed when Mark Jackson allowed Curry to take full control.
Jackson was the head coach for the Golden State Warriors from 2011 to 2014. In the coach’s second season, Curry increased the number of 3-pointers he attempted. The point guard went from shooting 4.7 threes a game to 7.7 in just one year with the team. The former Davidson star never looked back after that and stayed aggressive from deep.
Curry’s aggressiveness from downtown didn’t die down, and he even attempted more shots when Steve Kerr took over. In the 2014-15 season, the superstar averaged 8.1 threes.
In the recent episode of the show, LeBron James joked that it was Jackson’s fault for unleashing Curry’s potential. He said that the 3-point revolution “ruined the game.”
“What Mark didn’t realize is he ruined the league, too,” James said. “Everyone shoots 3s now. Everyone. 60 3s a game, 50 3s a game. It’s all Steph. It’s all Steph.”
However, Curry revealed that it was former Warriors general manager Bob Myers who encouraged him to start shooting more threes.
“Shot quality is still … the jury’s still out in the league,” Curry said. “Bob Myers was the first one to tell me, ‘You should shoot 15 3s a game.’ I’m like, ‘What? You know how hard it is to get 12 good looks up?’ But he said, ‘Why not? The math says 15 3s for you is great.’ But, yes, the game has morphed like crazy.”
LeBron James complimented Curry’s gravity without the ball
In the past, it has been discussed how great Curry is when he has the ball. But there have been multiple instances when his peers have reiterated how much of a threat the Warriors star is without the ball. During his guest appearance on LeBron James’ show, the Lakers star expressed how dangerous the NBA star is without the basketball.
“He’s most dangerous, when he doesn’t have the ball… as a competitor, and as a dear friend now, having guys not truly understand what that means… it grinds you in the head,” James said.
“He is most dangerous when he gives the ball up,” James added. “When he’s giving the ball up and he’s moving and moving and everybody is doing like this to Steph [gestures watching], slip happens.”
The two stars have battled countless times and that is the reason why James knows Curry’s strengths and weaknesses.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
