Game 5 of the NBA Final was the first time in 233 games that Steph Curry did not hit a three-pointer, but it didn’t matter because the Warriors took a 3-2 series lead over the Celtics.
Steph Curry had an off shooting night in the Warriors’ Game 5 win over the Boston Celtics on Monday, and the world is doing what it usually does after a bad night from the superstar -- talking.
As usual, Stephen A. Smith chimed in on the conversation and came to Curry’s defense on ESPN’s First Take on Tuesday morning.
While the Splash Bro finished with just 16 points on 7-of-22 shooting and didn’t make a three for the first time in his playoff career, Smith isn’t giving credit to Boston’s defense.
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“Steph Curry was 0-of-9 last night from 3-point range, I counted at least four 3-point shots where he was wide open. He just missed, it happens,” Smith said. “He’s the greatest shooter God has ever created. I've never seen anybody shoot the basketball like him. He’s entitled. It happens, OK? I’m not worried about that at all.
“We came into last night’s game fresh off a 43-point performance by Steph Curry in Game 4 on 14-of-26 shooting. What the hell do you mean figured him out? One game, because he missed? All of a sudden they figured him out? That is just idiotic. For anybody who would think that, it’s idiotic.”
Prior to Game 5, Curry was averaging 34 points on 50 percent shooting from the field and 49 percent shooting from behind the arc.
And after the historically incredible double-double Game 4 performance from Curry, the Celtics were expected to make several adjustments to better lock him down.
Golden State Warriors
But Smith said he didn't see anything really change from a defensive standpoint, rather that Curry was just missing shots.
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“The point that I'm trying to make is that last night he just missed," Smith said. "But I didn't see the Boston Celtics in terms of a hand in his face. At the end of the day, contested, uncontested, I saw the same amount of opportunities and the same amount of contested shots, he just made them before last night. Last night was a struggle, let’s see what happens in Game 6. I'm willing to bet my check, you won’t see another oh-fer from Steph Curry from 3-point range again. I want to bet my check on that. I don't see that happening.”
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