The Bum's NBA Finals News-Notes-Need to Know !!

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Game 1 trends lean to Warriors

June 1, 2015

Game 1 of the NBA Finals takes place Thursday June 4 from Oracle Arena as Golden State hosts Cleveland in the opener.

Based on betting percentages at Sportsbook.ag, the public is backing the Cavaliers in Game 1 as six-point road underdogs as of Monday morning.

It’s certainly not going to be easy to bet against Cleveland, who bring a seven-game winning streak into this series. Also, the Cavaliers have gone 2-1 both straight up and against the spread as underdogs in this year’s playoffs and the lone loss came in Game 3 of the conference semifinals to Chicago. In case you forgot that outcome, the Bulls won 99-96 on a buzzer beater from Derrick Rose.

If you like to use historical numbers in your handicapping, then you could easily change your mind and lay the points with the Warriors this Thursday.

In the last 17 openers of the NBA Finals, the home team has gone 14-3 SU and the majority of these victories haven’t been close with 12 of the 14 wins decided by eight points or more.

The last visitor to win Game 1 on the road came in the 2013 playoffs as San Antonio defeated Miami 92-88 as five-point road underdogs.

The Spurs quickly got the trend back on track last postseason as they cruised past Miami 110-95 in Game 1 of the 2014 NBA Finals.

Can LeBron James and the Cavaliers steal the opener? According to VegasInsider.com NBA expert Kevin Rogers, it doesn’t seem likely.

“James has struggled in his career in playoff series openers on the road, going 1-8 with the Cavaliers and Heat as the lone victory came in the 2015 conference finals against Atlanta. Make a note that it was also the first time that LeBron led a series 2-0 with both victories on the road,” explained Rogers.

Golden State has gone 3-0 in Game 1’s at home in this year’s playoffs but only managed to cover one of those games, which came in the conference semifinals against the Grizzlies. In the non-covers, the Warriors were backdoored by the Pelicans in the first round and despite having a late chance, they couldn’t pull away from the Rockets in the conference finals opener.

Another solid trend to watch for Game 1 on Thursday focuses on the total. The last 17 openers have watched the 'under' go 11-5-1 and a few of the ‘over’ tickets were very fortunate to cash.

For Game 1, oddsmakers at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook sent out an ‘over/under’ of 204 and that number is sitting at 202 ½ as of Monday.

In the two regular season matchups that were split between the pair, the totals ranged from 211 to 216. You could argue that both numbers were fair considering the winner scored 112 and 110 points, but the loser didn’t do their part, failing to break the century mark in both defeats.

Golden State has been a great ‘under’ bet (11-3-1) in the playoffs, especially at home (7-0-1).

Cleveland has leaned slightly to the ‘under’ (8-6) in the postseason and most of the winning tickets have come away from home (6-1).

Listed below are the past 17 results for Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

GAME 1 OF THE NBA FINALS (1998-2014)

Year Matchup Total

2014 San Antonio 110 vs. Miami 95 Over 198.5

2013 Miami 88 vs. San Antonio 92 Under 189.5

2012 Oklahoma City 105 vs. Miami 94 Over195

2011 Miami 92 vs. Dallas 84 Under 188

2010 L.A. Lakers 102 vs. Boston 89 Push 191

2009 L.A. Lakers 100 vs. Orlando 75 Under 205.5

2008 Boston 98 vs. L.A. Lakers 88 Under 191.5

2007 San Antonio 85 vs. Cleveland 76 Under 179.5

2006 Dallas 90 vs. Miami 80 Under 194

2005 San Antonio 84 vs. Detroit 69 Under 176

2004 L.A. Lakers 75 vs. Detroit 87 Under 171

2003 San Antonio 101 vs. New Jersey 89 Over187

2002 L.A. Lakers 99 vs. New Jersey 94 Over191

2001 L.A. Lakers 101 vs. Philadelphia 107 (OT) Over191

2000 L.A. Lakers 104 vs. Indiana 87 Under 194

1999 San Antonio 89 vs. New York 77 Under 172

1998 Utah 88 vs. Chicago 85 (OT) Under 186

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Finals should be worth the wait

June 1, 2015

By the time Thursday rolls around, three crucial hockey games will have been played since the last time we saw the NBA.

There was Game 7 in Madison Square Garden. Another involved Chicago in Anaheim. Lord Stanley’s Cup will already have a team one win closer to being immortalized forever after Game 1 in Tampa on Wednesday night, one step closer to sipping champagne out of a trophy engraved with a new batch of names for future winners to gaze upon. Over 90 major league baseball games will have been played, a corrupt FIFA president retained power and the French Open will have progressed from the second round to the semifinals.

When LeBron James and Stephen Curry dap it up prior to finally tipping off the 2015 Finals, it’s going to become crystal clear why this year’s matchup renders all those events mere morsels of entertainment that helped us pass the time. San Antonio and Miami lived up to the moment in consecutive years, splitting a pair of memorable series, so it’s no small feat to anticipate that, in terms of simply being riveting, this matchup may surpass them in ratings.

Since the Rangers lost and aren't lining up opposite the Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Finals, the NHL took a hit. The NFL is omnipresent, but with Tom Brady's appeal now set for June 23 and Adrian Peterson staying put, even it gets to step aside and let the NBA dominate imaginations thanks to a championship series worthy of the hype.

Somehow, the best player on the planet leads a sizeable underdog (+200 at Sportsbook.ag) into Oakland, a city that hasn’t won an NBA title in 40 years. James is doing so while back in a Cleveland uniform, hoping to end that city’s 51-year run without a major championship after proclaiming that as his ultimate goal in a Sports Illustrated piece announcing his return. He didn’t anticipate having the opportunity this soon, even if oddsmakers did.

While James wrote that it would take time to cultivate a winning atmosphere and grow with a young roster, the Cavs were installed as the universal favorite to get out of the Eastern Conference almost immediately, relinquishing that role only briefly during a slump when James took a two-week hiatus and again after they fell behind 2-1 against Chicago in the semifinals. Despite a sidelined Kevin Love and a hobbled Kyrie Irving, James has guided a team led by a first-time NBA coach and filled with former Knicks and Heat reserves to the cusp of a championship.

Standing in his way is Curry, the overwhelming MVP choice, whose Warriors have now won 79 games of 97 games this season, setting up the possibility they’ll become the most prolific league champ since the 1999-2000 Lakers. Before Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant won 67 plus the 16 it takes to ultimately hang a banner, you have to go back to Michael Jordan’s Bulls to find a team that registered more victories in crowning themselves champs.

Say what? Golden State? Historic?

It’s happened almost too quickly for rookie coach Steve Kerr, who commands a group that arrives with zero combined games of Finals experience outside of his own exploits as a player. GM Bob Myers has admitted the Warriors have blown his expectations out of the water. Curry, as well as his adorable 2-year-old daughter, Riley, have become household names. Klay Thompson, expected to have no problems clearing the NBA’s concussion protocol and starting Game 1, landed on the All-NBA Third Team. Draymond Green has gone from backup forward to runner-up for both Most Improved and Defensive Player of the Year.

That this group has been installed as a substantial favorite (-240) has delivered the early public money to the underdog Cavs, especially since the lengthy layoff has allowed Irving to heal those debilitating knee and foot injuries that forced him to miss most of Cleveland’s sweep of Atlanta. Because neither franchise has had much success on this level, the passion that’s going to be unleashed at two of the league’s top venues, ORACLE Arena and the Q, will ratchet up the intensity up even further.

James will be playing in his fifth consecutive NBA Finals, putting himself in a category featuring a host of 1960’s Celtics as the only men to accomplish that feat. Reserve wing James Jones will join him earning that distinction, although he failed to get off the bench in ’11 against the Mavs. Add in the championship pedigree of little-used reserves Shawn Marion, Mike Miller, Kendrick Perkins and Brendan Haywood and there’s no question the edge in experience favors Clevleand. Still, that advantage will be considerably offset by the fact the Warriors earned the right to get comfortable in their home gym in Games 1 and 2 by compiling such a gaudy record.

Yes, James is the ultimate tour guide and has a bunch of cohorts who have been here before, but if you’re looking for that intangible to play a major role in the series, you’re mistaken. The bulk of his supporting cast, the most able-bodied ones, are right there with the rest of the Warriors as Finals novices. Those on the Cavs bench that have reached this stage are, for the most part, better suited as counselors than participants.

Cleveland’s most vital x-factor is going to be rebounding. It’s no coincidence it hasn’t lost a game this entire postseason where it has held the edge on the boards. Love’s season-ending shoulder injury has forced Tristan Thompson into a co-starring role and his play has been a revelation at both ends of the floor. With 7-footer Timofey Mozgov also serving as a formidable presence inside, it’s going to be interesting to see if the Warriors will be able to flourish playing small ball, as they’ve been able to throughout most of these playoffs. Memphis gave them the most trouble due to their ability to clog the paint and slow the pace. Given the fact James is certain to also make contributions on the glass, Golden State might be in trouble competing on the glass if its jumpers aren’t falling.

The Warriors primary weapon will be spreading the floor and creating mismatches, especially since Kerr will have the ability to wear down LeBron with four bodies that can all take turns making him work. Green, an All-NBA Defensive First-Teamer, will be joined by Harrison Barnes, Andre Iguodala and Thompson in a rotation equipped to make a far more significant dent than anything Boston, Chicago or Atlanta brought to the table.

Ultimately, the majority of the games in this series will probably also be decided by 3-point shooting, since both teams have effectively utilized the long ball as a weapon in getting to this point and have masterful catalysts in James and Curry that will draw attention and help create open looks.

While those two are odds-on favorites (James 4/9, Curry 2/1) to earn Finals MVP depending on who wins the series, there’s also tremendous value in taking a shot at a Klay Thompson (11/1) or Irving (12/1), who would probably not be marked at such a high pay-off if not for their injury concerns. Green (16/1) and Tristan Thompson (100/1) are intriguing long shots.

The lean here favors Golden State in 7 games, as we’ll see a show that will help us forget this year’s NBA playoffs has delivered an abundance of duds in spite of its share of buzzer-beaters. We may even get one from Curry when it matters most, since it’s been that kind of storybook season for him thus far. Riley would surely join him on the dais to celebrate.

There are still appetizers coming, but the main course is set to be served. It will be worth the wait.

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Warriors' Thompson returns to practice

June 1, 2015

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson has returned to practice after suffering a concussion last week.

Thompson was a full participant in Monday's practice, a major step in the All-Star shooting guard's recovery. The Warriors say Thompson still needs to receive final clearance from doctors to play against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr says he expects Thompson will be cleared to play.

Thompson suffered a concussion after getting kneed in the head by Houston's Trevor Ariza in Golden State's Western Conference finals clinching win Wednesday night. Team doctors initially cleared Thompson to return to the game. He ended up not playing, and the team said he started developing symptoms after the game.

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Cavs limiting PG Irving in practice

June 1, 2015

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (AP) - Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving has been kept out of portions of practice as the team tries to get him ready for the NBA Finals.

Irving has been slowed by left knee tendinitis and a sprained right foot throughout the playoffs. He sat out two games in the Eastern Conference finals because of his knee. Irving said Monday he feels he's in a good place as he recovers. He's continued to receive medical treatment during the long break before the Cavs play Game 1 at Golden State on Thursday.

Irving says he won't be 100 percent in the finals ''unless something miraculous happens.''

Irving played 22 minutes in Cleveland's series-clinching win over Atlanta in the conference finals after missing two games. The All-Star is averaging 18.7 points in his first postseason.

With Irving not himself, backup Matthew Dellavedova has stepped up and provided big plays.

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NBA Finals Outlook

June 1, 2015

The last two years a pair of veteran teams met in the NBA Finals, with Miami winning its second straight title in seven games against the Spurs and then San Antonio thrashing the Heat a year ago. But the winds of change have blown, with LeBron James bolting Miami for his hometown and the Spurs losing in the first round in seven games to the LA Clippers.

Now the Golden State Warriors have exploded with a historical season, tops in the NBA in field goal shooting and three-point shooting, plus No. 1 in FG defense allowing just 42% shooting. And he gets to face LeBron, making his fifth consecutive NBA Finals appearance, his first with Cleveland since 2007.

Throw in the fact that Cleveland has young Kyrie Irving as a young star, has a new generation of young players finally emerged on the NBA Finals stage? Three years ago it was supposed to be the time the kids stepped up in Oklahoma City. OKC came close, winning Game 1 of the Finals before Miami won four in a row. The previous year a younger Miami team came close, carving out a 2-1 series lead before collapsing, as it was those old fogies in Dallas who came away with the title - another veteran team winning the whole thing.

Overall, veteran NBA teams have been on a roll, with the Celtics winning it all in 2008, the Lakers in 2009-10, the Mavericks in 2012 out of nowhere, and the Heat twice under LeBron and the Spurs last year, with Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich. This year young teams from Boston, Atlanta, Washington and Memphis made the playoffs but are gone.

This year the NBA's Final Four had a pair of teams with a lot more youth than veteran leadership in the Rockets, Hawks, Cavs and Warriors. While the NBA is more of an athletic game, primed for young legs, the experience of the Mavericks certainly helped them three years ago, while the Spurs had a terrific blend of young and older players last season.

But at some point age can work against a team, breaking down from injuries. There really haven't been many youthful teams winning the NBA title lately. The Celtics and Lakers were veteran teams that clashed in the Finals in 2008 and 2010. The experienced Lakers topped the young Orlando Magic in 2009, blowing out the kids in Game 1, 100-75. Prior to that veteran teams like the Spurs, Pistons and 2006 Miami Heat won titles.

LeBron James is 30 and has been in the league 11 years. Another thing that stands out with the NBA's Final Four of 2015 is defense. Golden State (No. 1) and Atlanta (No. 6 were in the Top six in field goal shooting defense allowed during the regular season. Houston (12th) was decent, too, while the Cavs ranked 20th, though that’s a bit misleading as they added key defensive personnel in mid-season and have been a strong defensive team the last two months.

A year ago the NBA’s Final 4 (Thunder, Pacers, Spurs and Heat) all finished in the Top 10 in the NBA during the regular season in either points allowed for field goal shooting defense. Oklahoma City was tops in the West in FG shooting defense, while the Pacers were best in the NBA.

This shouldn't surprise. Three years ago Miami was sixth in points allowed during the regular season, Dallas was 10th.

So how did the mighty Golden State Warriors do against the best of the East?

The Warriors whipping the Cavs at home (112-94) in January, then lost at Cleveland in February (110-99), its seventh road game in eight contests. Golden State lost 124-116 at Atlanta in February when the Hawks were rolling, then won at home, 114-95 in the rematch.

A lot of blowouts!

That’s not something the NBA wants to see over the next week.

Are the kids from the West ready to take over? Or will we see LeBron hoist the trophy again?

Let the games begin!

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Ohio homeboys: Superstars LeBron, Curry both born in Akron

June 1, 2015

AKRON, Ohio (AP) - Welcome to the Rubber Capital, where car tires first rolled, the Goodyear Blimp took flight and two bouncing baby basketball prodigies were born less than four years apart in the 1980s.

LeBron James and Stephen Curry, the NBA's two biggest stars set to square off in the upcoming finals, are from the same city.

Genuine homeboys. The prodigal son and the precision shooter. Talk about a long shot.

James re-signed as a free agent with the Cavaliers last summer, returning to his home after four years in Miami to chase an NBA title. And as fate would have it, Golden State's Curry will come back to his Ohio birthplace to pursue his dream.

''It's kind of ironic that he's going back to Cleveland, where he came into the world, to try and get the world championship,'' said his father, Dell Curry.

Wardell Stephen Curry was born on March 14, 1988, arriving while his daddy, traded by Utah to Cleveland before his second pro season, was playing in Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks.

Curry made his world debut with almost the same speed in which he comes off a screen, catches the ball and drops one of his 3-pointers - lightning quick. His mom, Sonya, said her delivery was only about 2 1/2 hours, roughly the length of a pro game. Within two weeks, she took her boy to his first NBA game, and from the moment he neared the hardwood, she knew she and her husband had created another ballplayer.

''He was asleep,'' she said last week after the Warriors won the Western Conference title and advanced to their first finals in 40 years. ''We walked in, and his eyes were wide open the whole game - the whole game - and then as soon as we left and went to the family room, he fell asleep.

''And so then we knew that he was in tune with that arena and basketball in every sense.''

The Currys didn't spend much time in Ohio as Dell was selected by the Charlotte Hornets in the expansion draft and the family was uprooted again.

Until he left for Florida in 2010, Akron is the only place James ever knew and where the public first glimpsed his greatness as a high school star. He's defiantly proud of his city, often referring to his humble upbringing by saying he's ''just a kid from Akron, Ohio.''

The four-time MVP said he and the league's current MVP, who was also the top vote-getter for this year's All-Star game, have not discussed their Akron bond.

''No, we never have,'' James said. ''I don't think we'll talk too much about it, either, coming up.''

James has been a fan of Curry's for years, first recognizing his potential when the Warriors' guard was at Davidson. James watched Curry play several times, once driving to Detroit to see him in the NCAA Tournament. James said he knew almost immediately that Curry was destined for stardom.

''I just thought he was special, a special kid,'' James said. ''I'm very good at noticing talent and I thought he was special then and he still is.''

James appreciates Curry's game, a blend of finesse, skill and drive.

''He has a great motor,'' James said. ''I think a lot of people don't understand how great his motor is. He never stops moving. His ball-handling, his ability to shoot the ball off the dribble and off the catch. It's uncanny. I don't think there's ever been a guy in on league to shoot the ball the way he does off the dribble or off the catch, off the ball. He just creates so many matchup problems for your defense and you just always have to be aware.''

The Akron boys aren't real tight. Curry was once a guest at James' home, but he's not that familiar with his actual hometown. Still, he and James have a unique connection.

''It's nice to have that in common,'' Curry said. ''But he has more of a history with the city than I do. Maybe three or four years ago I went to his house in Akron and kind of took a lay-of-the-land kind of deal. But other than that, I'm from Akron, but Charlotte raised. So that's kind of where it ends.''

James speaks with admiration of Curry, a player some believe is heir apparent to become the face of the league. If he wins a championship, Curry's ascension could happen quicker.

Perhaps because Curry comes from Akron, James, who has `Akron' tattooed on his right shoulder and `Est. 1984' tattooed on his left, has gone out of his way to help the 27-year-old.

''I've had an opportunity to speak to him a few times on the floor in the past. Just talk about the process of being a great basketball player, and being a leader and doing what it takes to get to this point,'' James said. ''I don't know if he used it or not, but he's done great for himself. He has a great family. His dad comes from this pedigree. He's got so many great people around him, so he doesn't need nothing from me.''

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2015 NBA Finals: Steph Curry's rise from question mark to the MVP

We know the story of Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry. It's been an evolving tale of being overlooked, underestimated and climbing above it all to be named the Most Valuable Player in the NBA for the 2014-15 season. He wasn't ranked or recruited in high school. It almost seemed like he was being granted a favor to play at Davidson in college.

But out of nowhere, the small guard with loads of questions and a game with little conscience exploded and became one of the most watchable players of this era. He's not only a superstar, but also the league's Most Valuable Player in only his sixth NBA season, the 19th player to win an MVP award in his first six seasons.

How did we get here? How did a player who wasn't recruited become a mid-major star before turning into the most valuable player in the world on the verge of leading his team to a championship?
The star of Davidson: Understanding how far Curry has come is understanding what he was coming out of college. It's not like he was a surprise lottery pick; he was ranked in the top five or top 10 on most draft boards, but there were huge questions alongside those rankings. He was an undersized shooting guard, unlikely to have the instincts and playmaking ability of a prototypical NBA point guard. He wasn't looked at as a special athlete, or even quick enough to consistently get off his shot -- or a player strong enough to battle physical NBA guards, especially if he was destined to be a 2-guard.

When you get labeled a tweener, especially at guard, it can be the kiss of death. You're not trusted to run the offense, but you're not trusted to defend your assigned position, either. And these were valid concerns. The talent was there. But was he physically gifted enough to maximize that talent?

Coming out of Davidson after his junior year, Curry didn't profile as a point guard. Mostly, you looked at the way he was utilized in a pick-and-roll set and walked away somewhat dumbfounded that he could be so inefficient at it.

For someone whose points per possession at Davidson ranged from 1.05 to 1.14 and had an effective field goal percentage of anywhere from 55 percent to 61 percent, his pick-and-roll numbers his final season at Davidson were abysmal. He accounted for only 0.735 points per possession as a pick-and-roll ball-handler and his effective field goal percentage was only 37.5 percent.

To put that in perspective, Jonny Flynn's rookie numbers in the pick-and-roll with the Minnesota Timberwolves were 0.766 points per possession with a 41.7 percent on eFG. In his last year at the college level, Curry wasn't better than Flynn against NBA defenses for the first time.

Some of Curry's decisions seemed quite ambitious. He'd try to split soft traps when the defense hedged on a pick-and-roll without making sure to keep his dribble low and close to his body. He take those deep pull-up 3-pointers off the pick and roll, but it wasn't met with the same excitement and anticipation we feel today because we weren't used to that decision.


This video shows problematic decisions scouts and executives saw when evaluating Curry. Looking at them now, it looks like the way we're used to seeing him these days, but his game in college didn't yield the same results. It was like watching a puppy try to troubleshoot getting to a toy or something it wanted to chew on.

The shots were off-balance. The drives were a bit wild and the floaters and layups he attempted were reckless. He was feeling his way as a playmaker because everything was centered on finding him deep shots.

It wasn't all bad, though. He had solid passing instincts at times, as long as he was able to find the space. Despite having a turnover rate of 17.2 percent in the pick-and-roll his last year at Davidson, he was able to find big men rolling to the hoop or lurking from the weak side.

His pick-and-roll playmaking numbers suffered a bit because teammates often failed to finish plays. Kickout passes to shooters. Drop-offs inside to big men hovering around the hoop. Finding the roller over the defense as he dribbled away from the passing target. Curry found teammates enough to show he had a feel for the NBA, but still had a lot of room for improvement.

Even though the shooting percentage wasn't there his junior season, Curry's scoring instincts out of the pick-and-roll showed up. He was better in every other facet (spotting up, cutting, transition, isolation, etc.) for scoring efficiency, but the instincts were there.

Curry occasionally would make off-balance shots and even when he missed layups off splitting the trap, you loved his aggressive scoring mentality. He just needed better understanding of positioning and getting buckets. His numbers shooting off the dribble when coming around on picks were bad. But he was trying to make his instincts work with his abilities while developing the game we see him play today.

He just needed to get to the NBA for it all to flourish.

Rookie year -- establishing the shooter: Curry's best skill is obvious. He's the greatest shooter in league history. We didn't know this would be the case coming out of college, and some folks still hesitate to give him such praise because he has a long way to go to match career numbers by Ray Allen and Reggie Miller. However, the volume and accuracy Curry delivers have never before been seen.

Even knowing he was a great 3-point shooter (41.2 percent on 1,004 attempts in three years at Davidson) in college, we've seen plenty of legendary college shooters look pretty good in the NBA without becoming stars. Curry immediately established himself as a great shooter in his rookie season. During his final season at Davidson, Curry was a good spot-up shooter but it wasn't something he did much.

Synergy Sports has spot-up opportunities for Curry as only 8.9 percent of his offense during his junior year. It makes sense it would be that low considering he had to do most everything for his team. He made 40.9 percent of this shots with a 54.5 effective field goal percentage. His guarded catch-and-shoot attempts yielded an eFG of 52.8 percent, while unguarded catch-and-shoot shots gave him an eFG of 61.2 percent. He knocked down 34.7 percent of his jumpers off the dribble (42.1 percent eFG).

He could shoot but wasn't set up nearly as much as necessary for those percentages to really spike.

Once he got to the NBA, those attempts skyrocketed. His percentage of scoring opportunities coming on spot-up attempts jumped to 16.8 percent, nearly double his final Davidson season percentage. And when you give a shooter those kinds of opportunities, you're going to see the natural talent and hard work produce results.

Curry was an elite spot-up shooter instantaneously. His eFG on spot-up attempts was a ridiculous 70.4 percent, and he was the top scorer from spot-up opportunities. Only Jason Kidd (66.8 eFG) and Anthony Morrow (70.7 eFG) were better volume shooters on guarded catch-and-shoot attempts (Curry had an eFG of 66.6 percent). His unguarded accuracy (69.4 percent eFG) put him in the 91st percentile.

He set the record (later to be broken by Damian Lillard) for most 3-pointers made by a rookie. The kid could shoot which helped unlock playmaking opportunities because defenses had to crowd him to prevent the shot.

Curry saw so much more of the floor because of the spacing the NBA game provides. Teams couldn't load up on Curry in the NBA like they did with the college rules. Since he was a rookie, teams didn't know just how deadly he could be. His eFG rose a full 10 percent in pick-and-roll situations and he went from generating 0.781 points per possession with shooting or passing in the pick-and-roll his junior year to 0.946 points per possession as a rookie in the pros.

That's a major jump in production, even though the NBA is supposed to be much harder, especially for rookie point men. Curry went from turning the ball over 17.2 percent of the time in pick-and-roll situations his final college season to 13.4 percent as an NBA rookie. He was better across the board in every facet and it looked like he had a real future as an NBA lead guard.

He just needed to stay healthy to build on his experience.

Development slowed by ankle issues: He developed even more the next two season, but was derailed by setbacks. In his second NBA season, Curry became a more efficient scorer as a pick-and-roll ball-handler, transition weapon, isolation creator and off screens and hand-offs. His biggest jump came as a transition scorer though.

The Curry we see now, looking to become a threat as soon as he crosses half court, started to emerge. As a rookie, Curry scored 0.943 points per possession and had an eFG of only 52.6 percent. It was an improvement from his final days at Davidson, but it wasn't good enough for the NBA. He was in only the 16th percentile for transition scorers. In his second season, that efficiency made a huge leap.

Curry looked more comfortable attacking the basket in transition and started becoming that pull-up 3-point artist who dazzles us now. His scoring efficiency jumped to 1.15 points per possession (48th percentile) and his eFG jumped to 61.6 percent. He wasn't the most dangerous threat in transition, but he started to understand how he could confuse a defense by exploiting the transition 3.

Unfortunately, he couldn't build much from his second year to his third year because of multiple ankle sprains in 2010-11 created ligament damage. During May of 2011, he had ankle surgery to repair the damage. He'd have to wait to get back on the court under new coach Mark Jackson because the 2011 NBA Lockout delayed the start of the season.

Before the season finally began, Curry again sprained his ankle. In 2011-12, he improved across the board in most scoring situations, even jumping up to an absurd 72.2 percent effective field goal percentage on spot-up jumpers. But he played only 26 of 66 games because of ankle issues, and another ankle surgery seemed to set him back and put serious doubt into his future as a star.

Burning down buildings in his ascension to stardom: The half-court line has a function. It evenly splits the two ends of the court. The line was implemented in the 1930s to prevent a "soccer style" of offense in which teams could use the court to play "keep away." This was before the shot clock was introduced in 1954, so you could really keep the defense running around using the entire length of the court. Since the half-court line was implemented, it's served as a barrier for the offense.

In the 2012-13 season, the half-court line finally had a new significance. As soon as Curry crossed it with the ball, defenses felt angst. It was impossible to know what he was going to do with the ball, but you knew you had to take away his space then because you couldn't afford to give up morale-shattering deep 3s.

It's also the season Curry established himself as the most lethal outside shooter in NBA history. He broke Allen's record (269) for 3-pointers made in a season (272). He hit with blistering regularity (45.3 percent) from downtown, adding the most lethal accuracy to the highest volume anybody could imagine.

At the trade deadline in the previous season, the Warriors traded Monta Ellis, making Curry the primary ball handler of the future. He no longer shared time as a playmaker. He was the Warriors' true point guard, the leader of the present and future. And this liberation, coupled with a new defensive mindset, helped the Warriors take the next step.

Curry was the great equalizer for the Warriors in every respect. His transition scoring jumped to 1.228 PPP and his eFG in these scoring situations rose to 69.6 percent. Of the high volume transition scorers, Curry was bested only by LeBron James and Kevin Durant in efficiency and percentage, and Curry didn't have an alien body to do most of his work at the rim.

He posted career highs in points, assists and minutes as he lead the Warriors to their first playoff berth since 2007. And it was in that first round against the Denver Nuggets that you couldn't help but notice where the league was headed.

Down 2-1 in the series and trying to steal a game back in Oakland, the Nuggets were hanging on by a thread after the first half. By George Karl's admission during the series, the Nuggets had stolen Game 1 on an Andre Miller layup. Curry answered back with 30 points and 13 assists in Game 2 in a blowout victory, and then had 29 points and 11 assists in Game 3 as the Warriors hung on to win.

In the third quarter of Game 4, Curry torched the Nuggets' hopes of winning the series. He scored 22 points in the third quarter on his way to 31 overall, as the Warriors took a 3-1 series lead. They closed it out in Game 6 before losing to the Spurs in the next round.

As the 2013-14 season started, expectations for Curry and the Warriors rose for the first time. They announced their presence in the 2013 playoffs and that presence was going to be challenged every game. The only way to meet those expectations was with Curry leading the team to greater heights. Any lingering doubts Curry could be a playmaker and a "true point guard" in this league were completely eradicated.

Only Ellis generated more points in the pick-and-roll with shooting or passing than Curry in 2013-14, and Curry's eFG was nearly three percentage points higher. Goran Dragic of the Phoenix Suns is the only high volume pick-and-roll creator who shot a better eFG (by 0.9 percent) than Curry. He was the pick-and-roll in 2013-14 and it was a big reason the Warriors were so dangerous.

They improved to 51 wins -- their highest win total in 20 years -- Curry not only was named to the All-Star Game for the first time, but also was second-team All-NBA. The Warriors would be eliminated in seven games in the first round by the Clippers, but began to setting their sights on the highest of goals.

The NBA's Most Valuable Player: As we sit one playoff round away from finishing the 2014-15 season, there's no doubt this campaign has belonged to Curry.

He dominated the highlights. He dominated the MVP discussion most of this season and ran away with the voting (100 of the 130 first-place votes). Not only was he voted in as an All-Star starter, he was the leading vote-getter. He was a unanimous decision as All-NBA First Team (along with LeBron).

And Curry earned all of those accolades. He was the best player on a 67-win team that mosstly blew away the rest of the league every night. They were one of the most dominant home teams we've ever seen. Curry was so good as the leader he often rested in the fourth quarter.

He was the third best spot-up shooter, behind Klay Thompson and Kyle Korver. Curry was the best pick-and-roll creator. He even beat his record for 3-pointers made in a season by knocking down 286.

For Curry, 2014-15 was the most efficient scoring season of his career. Tracking his progression from his final year at Davidson to this MVP campaign, you can see he didn't have the highest marks in every major scoring situational category of his career, but they average out to his most productive year.



The same goes for his shooting efficiency. Across the board, Curry had near highs in effective field goal percentage for the five major scoring situations. They also average out to the best shooting season of his career.



Curry has answered every question since he entered the NBA Draft. He wasn't a true point guard. He wasn't quick enough to be a lead guard nor big enough to be a 2-guard. He wasn't supposed to be this good and he probably wasn't even supposed to get this far. We've seen plenty of big time college scorers from smaller schools flame out once they face tougher defenses and bigger, more physical NBA players.

That's not what happened with Curry. Instead, he set fire to the league.

There are no longer questions of whether Curry can get the job done; there are only questions of whether you can possibly stop him. More terrifying, he's only 27 and still getting better.

VIEDOS CAN BE SEEN HERE:

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-...ark-to-the-mvp

[StarDust Bum]

Nash on Stephen Curry's shooting: 'The greatest there's ever been'

Steve Nash is one of the greatest shooters in NBA history, with four 50-40-90 seasons (field goal percentage, 3-point percentage, free throw percentage) on his resume. He's also one of the biggest basketball influences for MVP Stephen Curry, who seems to be breaking shooting records by the minute. We've never quite seen a shooter like Curry, but stylistically Nash is the most similar. The future Hall of Famer had a great deal of praise for Curry when asked by Bleacher Report's Ric Bucher to put his greatness into perspective:

"The only pause I have is from fear of being ignorant," he said. "Am I missing someone? Does he need to play longer or do it longer? Does he have to do it in the playoffs more years? But my first reaction is, 'Why not?' He's as good as anyone I can think of on every level—pure shooting, array of shots, percentage, getting hot, plays to the end—he checks all the boxes."

…

"Steph takes it to another level," Nash said. "I was able to do it going left and right, and we can both do it at speed, but I was always trying to get to the three-point line. He can do it from deeper and, frankly, I never took a step-back. He has no trouble taking a step-back and making it. You add that to all the other shots. It could be a clincher in this game of deciding who's the best."

…

"Consistency," Nash said. "Can someone consistently make shots, night in and night out, year after year? That's the true mark of a player. You could break it down a lot of ways, but that's the bottom line. How rare are off nights? There are certain guys, they shoot the ball, you always think it's going in. Steph is able to seamlessly get his feet down, gather his weight between his feet and go up in the air and shoot it in rhythm as if he'd just been standing there, caught it and shot it.

"Truly, from the eye test, he's the greatest there's ever been."

Nash also pointed out that Curry will likely have a lower field goal percentage than him forever, but didn't think that was a problem. Nash's mentality was always different -- he wanted to get his teammates involved first, while his coaches often begged him to be more selfish. Perhaps Nash would have shot more often if he entered the league 15 years later with the same skill set, but maybe that just never would have been his nature.

Curry has spoken about Nash paving the way for him many times, and he knows their games have been compared for years. You can be sure that he'll appreciate this particular compliment from this particular source.