Why Steph Curry Is A Much Better Defender Than You Think
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- Опубликовано: 20 окт 2024
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Coach Nick broke down the footage to explain why Steph Curry is one of the best defenders at the point guard position in the NBA. There are lots of subtle things he does very well that don't get measured by traditional or advanced stats, and if you felt he wasn't a good defender before, this will change your mind.
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ABOUT BBALLBREAKDOWN
BBallBreakdown is devoted to deep-dive analysis of NBA basketball gameplay. Giving fans a taste of a pro coach's film session, host Coach Nick breaks down fundamentals, play calling, offense, defense, shooting form, officiating, and everything else basketball. In addition, see exclusive interviews with NBA players and coaches, from active super stars to retired legends.
people seem to forget basketball is a team sport! you attack and defend as a unit!
Unit*
thanks lol
tf
Curry is a liability
+James 'Defence' Harden you can talk when you spell defense right
I'm confident that 90% of the hate didn't even watch the video. Just clicked, paused and immediately started typing
So true lmao
+hops13point2 and they think that they know more about basketball than coach nick lol.
Curry isn't a elite defender good but he ain't elite he can guard bad PGS but He can't guard guys like Russ Paul and Lillard u can try to use all the BS stats you want but they throw Klay on most of the elite PGS not because of Currys fundamental D but his physical disadvantage smh quit dick riding people Elite defenders are Kwahi Butler Demarre Carroll Chris Paul to some degree
👍🏻W
Curry absolutely locked Paul down 6 days ago and swept OKC and the Clips.
and on top of that this video showing Curry guarding washed up Paul Pierce and 37 year old Kobe Bryant this is the best evidence you could pull up and Smh fuckin Shelvin Mack was giving him Buckets in this video bruhhhhh talking about its the process not the result if I'm a coach and a role player giving you buckets and you trying to play fundamental defense something ain't working mothafucka you ain't a elite defender imma need someone fiestier taller and more athletic to guard that player guys like Iggy Klay Livingston Draymond Kwahi Butler PG Carroll Tony Allen (even though I know coach Nick swears he is bad) those are elite defenders Curry just doesn't have the physical tools to be in a elite class again i agree his fundamentals are nice but nah man their is a reason Klay Thompson guards Westbrook Chris Paul Lillard and Kyrie for Curry open your eyes and get the dudes ball sacks off your eyes
+ngipe2011 That wasn't really a lockdown tho...CP3 was missing everything, wide open and contested....and in every other matchup the W's have to put Klay on CP3 because Curry keeps getting burned
Dude nobody has a field day when curry guards, they only go off when he doesn't or do you not watch basketball dumbfuck. you can't call any point guard a better defender than curry if curry has put up 40 on them. and that's everyone you can think of. except mike conely. so your logic makes no sense
I'm glad this is being pointed out. People are so focused on his offense, they miss out on how great of a defender he can be.
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+Ivan Ruiz L
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How stfu man steph is a average defensive player watch a warriors game and focus only on defense then come tell me how good he is on defense Man U taking these Ls
Next video: Why Deandre Jordan is a great shooter
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tru he been bandwagoning
+Antoine Dodson He is better defender than Reggie Jackson, Rose, westbrook, rondo, dragic, isiah, dangelo/ clarkson, teague, deron, ish smith, mudiay, payton, parker, MCW/ mayo, neto/ mack, sloan/ jack/ larkin, irving, jrue, knight, kemba, calderon, lillard. He is better than 22/30 starting PGs on defense that would make him a elite defender for PG position. Lowry, Hill, Rubio, Wall, CP, Conley, Beverley only PGs who are potentially better on defense than him.
+The Infamous damn
Calling him elite is pure clickbait, but I do think he's underrated on that end of the court
agree totally. i love how he fronts bigs on switches on the block. he never makes it easy for them. and when the other tries to match them 5 out, its a switchfest and they really just out quick everyone and play D, when they concentrate, like one organism.
Yeah he gives effort and he has nice reflexes but he is more of an off ball defender. He scans the field and very well and snatches bad passes or steals the ball from bigs but he is not an on ball defender. He isn't a defensive player that can give your superstar nightmares so I wouldn't call him elite.
True
He ain't elite, but he's also not bad enough for people to use defense to argue bout him not being the GOAT. That's the problem.
+KayJayA7X But he isn't the Goat. Because it's to early to say that he have to prove his level of play longer than one or two seasons.
+KayJayA7X Curry the GOAt hahahahahahahahahahahahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahahahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
True! However i feel like this is more for the imbeciles that say he cant play D AT ALL. Those people are just lunatics!
Why Steph Curry's defensive stats are inflated due to his extremely good defensive teammates, allowing him to gamble on defence because he knows he will always have someone to bail him out*
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+JWY12345 Then the warriors should be better on defense when livingston is playing and curry on the bench.
+JWY12345 did you watch the video? he doesn't just look at stats
+Jack Lenny yes but he ain't elite fam
+JWY12345 So you didn't even watch it. {sigh}
"It's not about the results, it's about the process" well said Coach!
definitely
Tell James Harden every time he turns the ball over from trying to make a pass.
+Andy Huang it's about the results as well but if the process leading to good results is good it's even more enjoyable to do and it's more impressive
+Diogo Costa Agree!
Andy Huang glad to hear it ;)
Look at all of these coaches that know more about basketball than Nick.
+Torukine lol i laughed way to hard at this comment. W
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+Torukine What coaches?
Jay Diaz Thats the point
+Jay Diaz those coaches in the comment section that says coach nick is wrong about this video. lol
Next video: Why DAngelo russell is not a snitch.
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then don't watch
+SKRM/lunah W
People saw the title and came to dislike.
idk. don't think he's elite. he's good. bit not Kawhi good
You don't seem to grasp the definition of elite. It certainly isn't "Best of any player at any position."
????
+Rico Suave Did u watch til the very end? Even if you want to be guys like Rubio, Conley, Wall, CP3 ahead of him, he's still going to be in top 10
Rico Suave hes saying elite doesn't mean top 3 or even 10 defender it means simlpy better than most
Kawhi is great. However, Steph has 33 more steals than him this year. Coach was simply attempting to disprove an overblown, misguided perception of Steph's defense. Steph is a very good defender at his position. And, of course, Kawhi is a good defender at the forward position.
Why steph curry is carried defensively.
Guess you didn't watch the video
+Jeeper D ?????
😂😂
😂😂 lmao take the W
+Brandon Standifer I did but it was BS famlay.
It's amazing how many people have completely bought the myth that Curry's a bad defender. Obviously he's not an elite defender, but he's good and if people actually watch him play without preconceived notions they'd see that.
But it's not April 1st?🤔
Lol
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+LJT2424 It is now.
ha ha i like it
Huey Freeman But your not black.
"defense isn't about results" - BBALLBREAKDOWN - 2016
LMAO
Google: process over product
Good offense will beat good defense. You can do everything right and a guy will still hit some shots. Like recently, a team (I forget which) played great D for 20+ seconds on the Warriors and bogut had the ball at the top of the key with 2 secs on the shot clock. Bogut drains the three. It was a great defensive possession, but the results were negative. For the sake of coaching, you'd want that exact defense 99% of the time because he's not gonna hit that shot often.
+orangeflip Were you born a fool or you just picked that up recently?
Defense is always about process because you cannot guarantee stops no matter how good you play defensively. Defense is about doing the right things consistently and always making the effort.
When you have a terrible mismatch, you will most likely get beat and they will score on you. But good defense means you do as much as you can to make it as difficult as you possibly can, it has little to do with whether you actually force a miss of make a steal - that's obviously the objective but not what should be the focus.
Coach, I respect how you said defense is unrelated to the result. As an early childhood educator, we try to stress process over result to parents in spite of parents always wanting to see their children be the best in class and having all A's. For example, instead of memorizing the multiplication table such as 9x5=45, it is more important for the child to know how we got to that number. Or something more complex, instead of knowing that the sun is a sphere, to understand gravity and why that relates to the sun and other stars being round.
Put my knowledge of process over result and I can see why Steph's defense is good.
Not an elite defender , but not a bad defender , he is a solid defender
+MrAnchorman123 this is glimpses of only the good plays
+Mike B He is a slightly above average defender. Like 55-60, 100 being the max and 50 being the average.
+MrAnchorman123 these are some plays not all , & I will not consider him an elite defender until he guards elite point guards , Cp3 , Westbrook , & John wall do it ... Why can't curry do it ?
+Mike B he guarded wall good last night but he not an elite defender
Hey bballbreakdown, you still think Steph is an elite defender? Lmaooooooooo
+kobe bean Yeah. Do you think the bum ass Lakers have a shot at the playoffs for the next 10 years?
+GoSpursGo ur not beating golden state😂 our second best player is better than ur best player, ur aging "we have no inside defense" well u have LMA and Pau, two of the worst defenders in the league, who's gonna stop Steph? Kawhi? Steph will still score 25+, then who would guard KD? And green? And Klay?
yes
+Perry Leontsinidis dude bandwagon is gonna crash with these bandwagoners
every team in the playoffs has a chance to contend for the title
This coach is the biggest dick rider I have ever seen
Ikr
+Jack Lockhart Wtf? Nigga I ain't even a Lebron fan you dumbass. I ain't even a Cavs fan for that matter.
+Justin Mock hows he dickrider sir?
Itz kiio He has every little excuse for the Warriors.
Justin Mock all hes doing is putting across his argument in video form why steph is a elite defender thats not dick riding.
I think Curry is a fine defender. Not as bad as some make out to be and certainly not as good as others say. He is a good off ball defender. He plays smart team defense. He can play in the passing lanes and get steals. But he's not the guy I'd assign to shut down the opposing team's best scorer. That makes him good, but not elite. For his position, he's probably in the top 6-7 defensively which isn't bad at all.
Perfect analysis
***** W
+Stanley Ongjoco well of course you wouldn't put steph on your opponents beat scorer because most scorers are much bigger than steph.
rashizzles Well you do need some size to be a good defender. Kawhi, for example, has a 7'3 wingspan. That's as tall as Boban Marjanovic.
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It's too bad that social media/bandwagon fans have made people hate steph. He's never been a bad defender, the effort and intelligence was always there.
+MrBallaBoy21 absolutely. now that's he upped his strength and continued to hone his good instincts on defense, he's more than serviceable on that end--he's quite good.
Ikr I used to kinda like steph but here come the bandwagons
Well, that's why those haters are on "Social Media", and no where else
+MrBallaBoy21 hes not bad but hes not elite. he is an avg defender
reign W0V3! I'd say he's above average. Not many players are a ball hawk like him and his strategy on defense is very good.
People underestimate his defense only because they are curry haters. They completely ignore the fact that he is top 5 (i think) in steals and other PG's shoot a lower % when guarded by curry. But they're blinded by hate and assume that since he seems "weak" he can't play defense.
lmao these fools commenting before watching the video
I don't think a lot of these downvotes even watch the video. They look at the title and post dumb comments.
+kuya chris You're asking for their attention span to last >60 seconds... Unreasonable request.
+Ihasangerissues they don't even look at stats like Steph's steals. He's been leading this season with CP3 in steals.
he is a average defender with really good steals.
Curry's defense is extremely underrated. People pick on him for it because it's the ONLY part of his game he's not completely perfect at. But he's still a very good and decent defender, so people just end up sounding stupid. He isn't James Harden level where he just stands there.
+Ezria It's the only part of his game that's not completely perfect? You gotta be kidding bro.....he rarely ever guards his own position...that's not decent D, that's called hiding. Showing him guarding the senior citizen versions of Kobe/Pierce is not good enough. In their prime, they would laugh if they saw Curry on them
+RondoStyle9 That's because every one else in the starting 5 are better defenders, that doesn't mean curry is bad, it just means Thompson is better
Jim Bobbbs
You know what. That's a really fair argument. Probably the first really fair argument I've heard from a Curry fan. I think you really could be right on with that. I guess there's no way of knowing for sure though unless god forbid someone gets injured and we see things in a different set of circumstances.
LMAO the only part of his game that's not perfect? hit me up when you see Curry's atleticism on pair with Westbrook's
+RondoStyle9 He does guard his own position do you watch games? Or do you just hear people claim that KLAY ALWAYS guards the opposite PG? Which one is it honestly?
Coach could you please make a video about how misleading westbrooks stats are
needed
+Mos Doom THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
+Mos Doom I think LeBron's are worse. Westbrook is an incredible point guard just for what he does on the offensive glass
I don't feel like they are extremely misleading. I can tell that he is consistent in getting assists and rebounds, which he is. It's pretty apparent from his stats that he is not a good 3pt shooter.
+Mos Doom Finally someone said it!!! Westbrick is the biggest statpadder! +1
very nice breakdown. i've seen him turn it up on defense but i didn't realize that he did so much on defense
all the haters are just kids who don't think curry is good at anything else but shooting and is lucky averaging 30 a game
It's amazing how stupid NBA fans are. All of the stats show Curry is a good defender, and Coach Nick laid a few out there. He holds the guys he defends to 39.4% shooting. That's 4th best in the league and the 7th best differential among guards. His Defensive Real Plus/Minus is +1.30. With Curry on the bench the Warriors have a Defensive Rating of 107.7. With him on the court, it's 97.9. He's clearly having a significant positive impact. On top of all that, he leads the league in steals per game!
So what's the argument against Curry being a good defender? "Naw man, Curry sucks at defense. He trash. You just dick riding and being Warriors bandwagoner!" Yeah, great argument guys. I'll just take your word for it that Curry sucks at defense and just ignore ALL of the stats and video analysis from Coach Nick.
Well said! Coach Nick PROVED his points throughout the video with STATS, FACTS, AND EVIDENCE to support his CLAIM. You learn this in like Elementary/Middle School. Do they honestly think that because they disagree with him because they hate Curry or whatever, that they can just say he's a D rider/bandwagon? Like you pointed out, GREAT ARGUMENT. What's next? "I don't think Kawhi is a good defender because it's my opinion and you D ride him to much?" Really?
+SwaggyBlingAJ *too
W. People don't understand this yet i do and i am 10!
I would have given the guy a pass if he said Curry was a solid or good defender but to use the word elite is laughable. Using numbers help but you can't base defense on looking at numbers only. The problem with using the numbers argument against say a PG like Chris Paul or John Wall is they guard better players than Curry does. Curry could post a defensive PER of 14.0 and Paul and Wall 15.0 but they guard Curry,Westbrook,Kyrie, Conley, Lillard etc. while Curry might guard Shumpert, Roberson, Tony Allen, Beverly etc. Then you'll say Curry is a better defender than Paul and Wall look at the stats but the stats can't show all the factors involved when it comes to defense you have to watch the game and know something about basketball.
Curry does not exclusively guard the lesser players. If Klay Thompson is on the court, then he will initially pick up the tougher option. But if Thompson is not on the court or if someone is forced to switch, then Curry will have to guard guys like Chris Paul and Russel Westbrook. This happens a lot throughout the game. As a percentage of their shots, a player will only be guarded by the guy assigned to him about 50% of the time. About 20-30% of the time he will be guarded by the next guy assigned to him, and the rest by various players. Curry will be on guys like Chris Paul and Westbrook for less time (which helps), but still a significant amount of time.
Coach Nick also used far more than numbers. In fact, he only used the numbers in passing. His main arguments are made through video examples
Calling Curry "elite" may not be the right word - though that definition is subjective. But Curry is easily an above average defender, which is impressive for his height and size. Small point guards are usually a big defensive liability.
The last two years, Curry has had a Defensive Rating of 101 and 103, a Defensive BPM of +0.3 and +0.1, and 4.1 Defensive Win Shares both years. Real Plus/Minus takes into account who is on the court with him. In that metric he's +1.05. Only guarding the toughest assignment does help boost these stats, but not by that much.
Other players that have bad defensive reputations like James Harden and Kyrie Irving fully deserve it. Harden has a Defensive Real Plus/Minus of -0.78 while Irving has a ridiculously bad -3.20. Their other stats are equally terrible.
All of the stats generally have him as one of the top 5 defensive Point Guards. By Defensive Win Shares he's actually the #1 Point Guard, and #10 in the entire league. That's elite by any reasonable definition. Real Plus/Minus has him as the 5th best point guard.
Funny how you just explained it based on facts and proof in the Video, yet people are still hating...
+derrickrose96 Because it is Curry and GSW. People always hate, no matter what.
+epicDuftbaum i think everyone else's problem is that he said "elite" and I guess they believe it's just good
+derrickrose96 I can skew numbers too. Like for example saying that the US is the richest country on Earth with 17 Trillion Dollars per year, that's because it has 300+ million people. The country who actually has the highest standard of living it's Switzerland. Coincidentally the US GDP/capita is 54.600 dollars/year and Switzerland's is 85.600 dollars per/year.
Next video "Why Dwight Howard is an ELITE free throw shooter"
+U Kneecorn Did u even watch the damn video. Sheesh i did think this was dumb until i realized he was actually giving facts
I'll admit, I don't watch a ton of Curry, but this defense looks awfully similar to Rondo back in the big 3 Celtics days. He takes a lot of gambles, and because he has a good supporting team defense, it works. Biggest different between them defensively seems like Rondo was overrated (and it showed on certain rosters) and Curry is underrated.
+TechRambles How's this working out for you? This "I don't watch him play but I'll talk out of my ass anyway" thing?
+tupark82 I said I don't watch him a ton... because I'm simply not a Warriors fan. I've probably seen 20 (or so) of their games this season. I'm not saying he's a bad defender, in fact I think he's pretty good - he just gambles a lot. Those gambles fit well with this team - just like it did with Rondo with the big 3.
+TechRambles He's one of the best in the league at his position of not gambling, which is why I responded harshly to your comment because it is the polar opposite of what he does. Can you name me one example of how Curry is a gambler? I'd be interested to know since I haven't missed a game he's played in since 2009 and haven't the slightest clue of what you're referring to. A defender who constantly gambles should never be considered a "good defender". He leads the league in steals but none of it comes from gambling. He does not try to leak out to get steals and put the entire defense at jeopardy. Like Nick said, he understands positioning, angles, schemes, etc and is always in position to set up the defense to be successful. What part of that is gambling to you?
+tupark82 I'm not going to change your mind, because I'm assuming you're a Warriors fan - considering you said you've seen every game since '09. He does understand positioning, etc. I agree on all that, and think he's a good defender. I just think he gambles, which again, works well with this roster/team. Maybe if he had a different roster around him he would adapt - but that didn't happen with Rondo. If you think he hasn't gambled on a single defensive play since he's been in the league, I don't know what to tell you. I'm also not saying he "constantly gambles", just more than I'd personally like. I think the same of Marcus Smart who is terriffic on defense, but I feel he gambles too much. The problem being the Celtics defense is very backcourt oriented, so once they get by him it's over.
TechRambles and I am asking you to provide a single example of when you've seen Curry gamble, which you still haven't done in that paragraph you wrote. Let me give you an example. Westbrook gambles. He literally darts full speed in one direction thinking he'll get a steal, but he doesn't and is out of the picture entirely on defense, leaving his team to play 4 on 5. Now what example can you provide me in terms of what you've seen Curry gamble with? I know what a defensive gamble is and Curry doesn't do it.
When you are talking to street ballers the only defense that matters is block they dont know shit about the other aspects of defense.
EXACTLY!!
street ballers know lockdown defense and guarding your position no switching
Thank you
The title actually reminds me of the time when Coach Nick said Stephen Curry was the best shooter EVER in the NBA two years ago. Everyone was so pissed at this opinion but is eventually convinced now.
I also agree that Steph isnt the best defender at PG position right now, but I think "elite" here doesnt necessarily mean those legendary types of defenders like Pippen (or maybe Kawhi?). It only refers to how Steph is willing to hustle in every play with decent fundamentals and understanding of a good defense system, which is more of a team thing than an individual thing imo. And you will love to see your star player, who simply never misses (shut up Spurs lol), willing to pick up their dirty works on defense. No naming here but you often see star players who play really laid back defense and cost their game, and at least from this video, Steph isnt one of them.
It's sad how someone so good gets so much hate #jealousy
+dcbadooky128 Because people say he is the best and he isn't. LeBron is.
+Real As It Gets Steph isn't the best, MJ's the best. He is definitely the best shooter of all time
dcbadooky128 I'm talking about the best in the NBA right now, LeBron is the best not Curry.
+Real As It Gets nah LeBron isn't the best anymore. This is curry's season and he's proven it
dcbadooky128 Curry has had the better season but LeBron is the better player and it's obvious. Curry is just a shooter and that's it.
I've gotten into plenty of arguments about this and these are the same points I've used. Started saying his defense jumped way up beginning of last year. I distinctly remember hearing an analyst say that he told Kerr he wanted the challenge of guarding PGs early rather than relying on Klay like Mark Jackson had done.
I mentioned that when I checked his stats in February, his def rtg was the same as Westbrook (who is admittedly not always the smartest defender but his quickness and athleticism make up for it) and the rebuttal was "Steph guards trash players" but the defense is switch-heavy AND teams attack him on perceived mismatches. That argument doesn't hold up.
Steph is great on that end. The guard spot is just deep as hell. He's elite in terms of defensive awareness and IQ
The word elite is obviously a click bait... He's just saying Steph is not bad as those tweets are saying -_-
Bingo.
Curry is elite
+Lance Evans he's barely above average.
+Steven Leow He's 1st in steals, 3rd in defensive RPM among all PG's, 4th among all PG's in opponents FG% difference when he's guarding them, 5th in rebounding rate among PG's. He's basically top 5 defensively in a lot of statistics among qualifying PG's.
Then you have a video breakdown, which you can argue is cherry picking, of defensive plays where you can use the eye test to back up why he ranks so high in these statistics.
But you want to get hung up on what 'elite' means... In context of PG's, Curry is most definitely Elite.
+Puck lets see first of all 1st in steals because yes he is good off ball. but he gets beat a lot off the dribble. 4th in FG% difference because he is one of the best offensive players and since his team plays team defense, so many times when he gets beat his defender makes a pass for an assist. therefore he is not a bad defender, but he is definitely not elite. i really hope this makes sense to you man, if it doesn't then nothing will.
He's very good at working within the Warriors' defensive system, but not elite in 1-on-1 basketball which is why when teams rotate the ball to run isolation on him he can come up short. Plus, even at his best he is a monumentally better offensive player than defensive, which is why they run Thompson on the opposing starting PG so that Steph can lurk off-ball and function as part of the team defense where he is best and conserve his energy. When teams focus heavily on attacking Steph on defense, it disrupts the Warriors' schemes and also forces Steph to exert more of his energy on defense, which can hurt his offensive production.
Yea he's so elite guarding role players. fuck out of here.
Chris Paul's a role player, Oladipo, JCrossover are role players?
+SKRM/lunah lol I mean Chris Paul the only good guard mentioned but they are close size wise so try again
+SKRM/lunah lol I mean Chris Paul the only good guard mentioned but they are close size wise so try again
People think you are supposed to lock someone down as the only means to defense. Wrong. Its a team game. Doesn't matter if you have the best defensive player if the rest of the team don't play team defense. Everyone contributes
+jcw034 I think 90% of the fans have no idea what is going on the court most of the time. And I agree they measure locking someone down, blocks and steals as defense only
I bet he wouldn't be able to guard himself
Lmfao
Even the league's best defender can't guard him. You need 2x or 3x teams on him, with snappy switching
+kuya chris yea he can potato
Well Cav and OKC just defending him into his worst stats.
Lol really were you saying that when they came back from 1-3 lol.
This reminds me of people saying Richard Sherman was only good because he had a good pass rush and safety help. Curry is a top 10 defender at the PG position
This video was on my YT suggested videos, when i read the tittle i couldn't stop laughing.
GJ on combining humor and Basketball, Good Job.
Coach, don't let people on youtube discourage you. You're the professional analyst.
he is always in position, never gambles, but when he does he get steals like it's nothing. pretty good defender id say
I've never seen an elite defender who can't defend his own position
+Charles WoodsonGOAT you can't defend the point guard position for a reason (no handchecking).....
+Stephen Curry Is The Greatest Basketball Player Of All Time was he guarding him?!?!! You're such a bandwagon it's hilarious
OliverG Yes............ Did you watch the game?
+Charles WoodsonGOAT Or....maybe Thompson's length> PGs, Curry's Strength & Quickness>SGs????Just maybe that could be true with LOGIC.
Steph is not elite but he's solid.
+MrAnchorman123 You can't just look at a few clips and stats to call someone an elite defender. Steph is the way he is in part of the defense around him. He can play aggressive because he knows that if he gets beat, he has great rim protectors like Bogut and Draymond to help out. To be an elite defender, you have to be able to play excellent iso defense and Curry will never be able to do that on the level of prime Kobe and Kawhi Leonard have been doing it.
+Steven H Wang I guess Jordan was a bad defender because of the defense around him. You see how stupid that sounds.
+Jay Josiah How does not being an elite defender equate to being a bad defender. You see how stupid that sounds?
+Jay Josiah Besides, Jordan has far more athleticism and speed than curry ever did.
+Steven H Wang you're basically saying steph isn't a great defender because of his defense around him.
I think this video would have been even better if there were a couple clips of some of the other elite PG's (Paul, Westbrook, etc.) and comparing their defense to Curry's defense. Otherwise, great breakdown!
This is something I allways said, and will keep on saying:
Just becouse he isnt cp3, Wall, or lowry etc.. That doesnt Make him Q bad defender, he is a good defender, he isnt elite, but he is quite good...
Great video, coach. Sad how many casual fans don't already see this.
I watch every warrioir game
Let me guess...you live in the Bay... Lol
+Michael Jackson Living in the Bay is great. 720 CSNBAYAREA, don't need NBATV and leaguepass for Warrior games. :D
+The “Prztak” Kid True!! Thoughts on the new arena??
+The “Prztak” Kid I visited. The Bay is amazing. Can't wait until the come back when they get the new arena
Thank you so much for making this video!
Curry was an awful defender his first few years in the league (nothing like Lillard...but that's another story). Now, he's one of the best at the PG position. I've seen him stuck on a defensive mismatch against a big multiple times, and NOT give up ground. It's amazing. His defense has been well above average for the past two years now. People that don't realize it, need to actually watch the games. His defensive play and the stats back it up.
He's no Kawhi or Draymond Green. But he's definitely one of the best defensive PGs in the league.
+Joshua Bahr I have league pass and watch almost all Warriors' games. It's uncanny how many times his team is playing great D then it gets to the final seconds of the 24 and someone backcuts behind Curry and gets the easy layup. Not elite defender, he is above average though.
In his system he is a good defender. 1 on 1? Not that good
did u watch the video lmfao
+hi regardless of whether I did or not, my statement is true..
+Ihasangerissues yes I know it is. And if his team didn't have Draymond, Klay, Bogut etc he wouldn't get as many steals, nor would he be able to be as risky on defence. I'm not saying he's a poor defender by any means it just obviously helps having that team, as said in the video.
For gosh sake people please watch the video before you comment!!! I can see in some comments that clearly did not watch the video. Just let coach explain Curry's defense first before bashing.
+EZ30Cuber the hate is real, my friend.
+EZ30Cuber the hate is real, my friend.
people disliking this video just by reading the title is the reason capital punishment shouldn't be banned.
+TheJayDot they should get ALL CAPS punishment
If Curry's such an elite defender, why does Klay Thompson defend elite point guards when the Warriors play teams with the best point guards? Example: John Wall, Chris Paul, Westbrook....ect
+Daniel Clark i dont know...maybe because he's elite as well and has size?
+Daniel Clark Bad logic. It assumes that Curry is bad on defense therefore can't defend other PG's, ignoring the that reality putting Klay on PGs creates serious matchup problems for the opposing offense. it also ignores the fact that during switches Curry is often ends up defending the best PGs half the time anyway.
It's crazy to see that people prefer memes over factual evidence
Your are absolutely 100% correct. It just goes to show that 15 year old trolls who Ball is Life think they know basketball
That team has 4 other defenders better than him... he never has to guard a straight killer on offense
true
curry's energy is saved for offense
he is an above average defender not elite but definitely not garbage either
since he's not elite he wont guard an offensive threat but he can get a few stops
He guarded Russell most of their series
+greatest599 And Westbrook was killing him. Durant's major choke job is the reason they lost.
Not Westbrook's four turnovers in the final minute of a game? Westbrook choked pretty bad too just like Durant in that series
Coach Nick, I wonder what you have to say about all of the hate that is surrounding Steph Curry. He's a very likable fellow, is extremely humble, and yet almost all of his videos on the NBA RUclips channel get hundreds of dislikes, and even this breakdown on Steph Curry's defense has garnered 800+ dislikes--proportionally one of the most on the channel.
What are your thoughts--why all the hate? Does hatred and jealousy always follow greatness? Or is there a deeper issue here that so many people dislike this one basketball player who is seemingly so enjoyable to watch?
If you are destroying almost every single team in almost every single night you bound to be hated by the fans of other teams.
I highly doubt it's Steph that they hate. I think they just hate his fans which are turning out to be worse than Kobe fans and DAMN Kobe fans were horrible bruh. Steph's definitely a cool dude and a ridiculously good player but his fans overrate him and are the cockiest people on the planet lol he's making history whether they like it or not
Klay is an on-ball lockdown defender. Bogut is arguably the best rim protector. Green is the most versatile defender, can defend all positions well. Iggy is a one tough cookie defender, watch him defend Lebron in the finals. HB works so hard in defense as well. Livingston's length is just really intimidating to his guard counterpart. Curry has a lightning quick hands to deflect balls. We all admire them for their offense to the point their defense was being looked down.
Curry is one of the best perimeter defenders in the game. This video validates it. no matter who's in front of him, he can make your life difficult.
i wasnt able to watch this video with audio because im in class, but from what i saw in the clips, i can see why he would be considered "elite." however, i think "elite" is a bit ambitious. i agree that curry very well understands how to play defense, knows when to switch, etc. but golden state as a team also plays excellent defense, where curry can depend on his teammates making the switch or hedging over when a defensive switch is made on the mismatch due to his size. but that is why he is able to thrive defensively, because golden state as a team plays great defense, especially with great individual wing defenders and their length with klay, livingston, iggy, barnes and their bigs in draymond and bogut. that being said, curry is a good defender in that he understands how to play and stays focused on the defensive end on the floor (you can see with his positioning both on the court and having a defensive stance). but elite defender entails that you are also able to shut out your man on individual plays, which i give credit that he does well in his efforts, but is bailed out a lot with help defense when he is often beat. this is just my opinions and thoughts from watching the clips above without hearing the audio of the video.
Take that Steph haters!
hello, coach! thank you for this video. I was watching Jazz-Warriors yesterday, and I had to marvel again and again on how Curry actually moves really well in 1 on 1 defense. Especially on close-outs as he rarely gets run by easily. And he always works hard, trying to block shots and so on. So it was nice to see a video from you about his D, when I visited your channel :)
FINALLY, someone in the comment section with intelligence
My least favorite thing in the world is people that see a video, see the headline and disagree with it without watching. I'll admit I had my doubts about Curry's defense before this video, but I'm confident in saying he is in the upper echelon of defensive point guards now.
I don't think he's the best defender in terms of point guards, but probably top 10-15.
Meanwhile Westbrook and Irving, whose fans are always bashing currys defense, are much worse... But somehow people seem to ignore that. I guess Westbrooks occasional hustle play or spectacular steal/block makes people think he's a good defender, while Stephs physical apperance doesn't make people think he's a good defender.
I feel like the Warriors might have both the best offensive AND defensive rating this season
Totally agree on the hand checking rule change affecting guard defense. Not even your best defensive guards can be expected to completely shut down their match-up and this is especially true if they don't have any good defensive teammates.
I know this video is a little old and I believe I've already commented but I was just thinking about something, which is that people have recently talking about how jumping ability comes primarily from the glutes and that deadlifting is one of the best workouts to improve glute strength as well as jumping ability. However, when taking into consideration that Steph can deadlift 400 pounds, we notice that he isn't a great leaper. At 6 ft 3 he makes dunking look like a big deal, but for many 6'3 guards, dunking is a walk in the park. I say all of this as a big steph curry fan, but also as someone who has never been a great leaper. From years of evaluating myself and others, I've always felt that jumping ability comes primarily from below the knees, namely the achiles, ankles, and calves. I'm 33 now and I've always had dreams of being a big time leaper. I Improved my jumping ability most when doing heavy lifting on my calves as well as with squats. My biggest issue is that my achiles and ankles are small and weak (probably won't find many with smaller ankles) so lifting heavy really taxes them. I haven't learned to deadlift but even as a 6ft 180 pounder, I can squat a good amount and my glute strength has always been exceptional. Actually, I'm pretty confident that there are few basketball players i know of who can squat more, yet there are many hopers who can out-jump me. I would consider myself curry-ish with regard to jumping. Im not pathetic but I'm not turning heads either. Anyways, I'm not trying to stir a debate, I just thought about how curry is such a good deadlifter but not a leaper, yet experts say jumping ability comes from the glutes (and yes I realize that jumping supposedly comes from fast twitch fibers). maybe I'm just bitter that guys who haven't put in nearly as much work as me can jump way higher.. I don't know
bout time someone noticed his defense.. I been said he was dope as a defender... it gets loss in the sauce simply because of his size and his ability to score from anywhere... Dude has always been solid on defense.
and in game 3 in the last 3 mins against the cavs his defense was a-1.
Next video: How James Harden became an elite defender
+Sun Lee It'll come out when he becomes one.
+Sun Lee Harden doesn't play for wariorrs = coach won't ride his D.
James Harden is a great defender but he takes too many plays off, doesn't give the effort he should a lot of times
If you don't give effort, you don't qualify to be called a great defender even if you have talent.
These videos should really be on the NBA's RUclips channel. A lot better than the highlight videos they put out nightly.
Reminds me of how strong Allen Iverson used to be. He rarely got beat in the post. Lots of big PG/SG tried posting him up, it rarely worked. His core and base was so strong, and he had them quick hands as well. It's just a lot of heart, and a lot of muscle that does it here for them.
I can't believe I haven't watched this yet. I've told my friends that Curry is a great defender. I've had to settle convincing them that he is a smart defender. He kept telling me WB would smoke him 1 on 1 all day. Yeah who doesn't WB smoke but the thing is Curry knows where to send players. This isn't one on one pick up this is team basketball. Curry may be small so taller guards will obviously bully him but even then he can hold his own. Like you pointed out he always sends players towards help or towards an area that will be hard to make a shot or where help D is close. He has HIGH defense IQ and I rarely ever see him lose his man. Also he puts in a lot of freakin effort on D. I love WB but WB can learn something from Curry. Curry doesn't gamble too carelessly as WB and he never lets up on D while running around screens and getting open on offense. Dude is a machine.
Have you watch the NBA finals? If nothing, just watch game 7.
+Aaron Koh Watch every other game. You cherry pick 1 game
MD Twomp
Every other RS game? Like that really matter. Longevity doesn't equate to quality.
"It isn't about the results. It's about the process." Great words, Coach.
I'm going to see how well Curry plays defense tonight.
***** This guy might be right or wrong
***** ?
+Da Ga Mr. B is a very smart man, he doesen't belive in stupid shit he sees on the internet and neither should you!
Marko Grbeša I'm still gonna watch Curry
He held Wall to 8 points
Curry is not an elite defender, he's above average but you cannot deny that his defensive IQ is very high
also his all-time great ball handling, i believe, gives him the ability to predict offensive players dribbling counters and he gets to their own their own dribble before they do. His steals are truly amazing.
People in this comment section think they know shit about basketball when they never even really played. He said, "It's not about the result, it's about the process." If you set aside your (wrong) preconceived notions about Steph's defense, it's easy to understand what he means. Apply pressure and stay in front of your man. Tough shots will sometimes go in, and there's almost nothing you can do about that beside bother, contest, or alter the shot. There's a lower chance of the shot going in if it's contested than if it's a wide open shot. That's basic, fundamental basketball but some of yall really cant grasp that concept. He's not holding his opposition to 39% shooting for no reason with 2+ steals a night for no reason. It's the result of playing good defense.
Nailed it. These people are just stuck being bandwagon haters.
+swaggyb3000 as well as the fatigue setting in when the defense is consistently nagging
If not elite, VERY good at least... no one can guard russ, paul etc... but he does make people work hard and that is the point of being a good defender
+mushtikla1 nope, slightly above average at best.
Out of all the words to use why use ELITE. How about good, underrated, under appreciated? Come on man! he dosent even guard his superstar matchups
That's usually a coach's decision
chocolatemilk
cuz coach knows hes trash at defense
Obasanjo Um no. He knows somebody like Klay or Andre are far better defenders
Because his defense is average and subpar. if it was "elite" they wouldnt switch his position sorry. I dont think how strong of a word "elite" is. I hope you dont actually believe Curry has good defense.
Obasanjo I won't say he's elite because elite is Kawhi Leonard or Andre Iguodola or Avery Bradely. However, I will say his defense is pretty solid and slightly underrated.
The fact that Curry can fill a role on the team and always been like top 3 in steals makes him a good defender in my opinion. Turnovers is the greatest outcome every time any team goes on defense.
This is why i love BBALLBREAKDOWN. I've been saying this about Steph for a good minute. People compare him to Harden but Harden just doesn't give effort sometimes and just gives up. Steph shows effort almost all the time he can't help he's not a physical freak but you can control your effort. If a player gives me his effort i can't ask for much more.
It's funny how many Curry haters come to this video just to dislike it and post comments making fun of the title. I really don't understand why, Curry has such a bad rep on defense. If you pay attention, he's actually quite good on defense. You'd get much further making fun of, James Harden's defense. But I guess he's not the one that people mindlessly hate on because of how many bandwagon fans he has.........
+TheG.O.A.T I had no idea there was this much Curry hate out there. NO. IDEA.
+BBALLBREAKDOWN This is just the tip of the ice berg, Coach! Sadly...
You can tell from this comment section that people have no clue about defense. From what he showed in this video it completely changed my mind about Steph. His on ball, help, and off ball defense may not get shown on sports center highlights, but this video was very enlightening.
I completely agree with this, but I sometimes feel he gets backcut just a little too often. It's usually against lesser competition, so I guess that's more of a focus problem in those situations.
"It's not about the result, it's about the process" very well said coach.
So many haters bruh, why cant yall just accept the fact, sheesh
Max its time for you to exit
Steals don't make you an elite defender
+Max Mubagwa My thoughts exactly.
+OliverG making jumpshots doesnt make you a good shooter? GFTO
+OliverG Just fucking watch the videos. Steals show signs of good defense. The steals he get are stripped from players showing indication of good defense.
I wish people now days would just realize how nearly impossible it is to guard point guards in today's league. It's not that today's league lacks good defenders its that we have too much offensive talent, today's point guards are insanely gifted. I know Curry is good at defense, believe it or not most players in the NBA are pretty decent defenders. The reason he gets so much hate is because he gets so much love at the same time. I'm sure you could make this video about most point guards though and see how good they are on defense.
MARCELO HUERTAS
compared to an average "basketball player" he is DEFINITELY an "elite defender" but in the nba i think he is slightly above average starting nba pg which is good. but to say he is an elite nba defender is pushing it imo because that would mean he could shut down the other top pgs. i do love his team defence mindset. he defends with his teammates as a cohesive unit
Yes. Great video, thank you. Everyone needs to watch this. There is a reason stats like DRPM show Curry as an even clearer plus on defense than Paul, and right behind Lowry. None of them seems to have the defensive impact of a James or Leonard, but as you imply, that isn't their job.
C'mon coach. Elite???? Giving up your assignment to let others do your work for you is elite? I love Steph but you're out of line with this title
even jordan needed scotty to guard his man at times thats why curry is such a great leader trust in his teammates
+David Mac best defensive two guard in the league is Jimmy Butler.
+dfjr1990 I don't think coach think he's elite. Just rather better than people think. "Why Steph Curry is an Elite Defender" is a much more interesting title than "Why Steph Curry is an Above Average Defender"
***** Nope JB is better. Again, Klay benefits from the talent around him as well
+David Mac Klay is the better shooter of course. But there can be a argument who is the best two guard in the league. Jimmy has the best defense as a shooting gaurd, It all depends on what you want, defense or offense.
I appreciate this video. An argument based on actual footage and not on this idea of "he's not a good defender cause he's not big and I don't think he's tough".
+Ben Bauer Thanks! #ImIn
i agree, stef is an elite defender. His basketball mind operates at hyper speed, he anticipates the opposing offense and interrupts their plays. He also keeps his hands up all the time and has lightning quick reflexes. His offense is so great that basketball pundits call him a one way player, or say he's average or even weak on defense - insulting and wrong.
It's not surprising that Curry is a very good defender. He is a winner and does whatever needed to win. This is why he trains so vigorously on every aspect of his game, including defense.
I love Steph Curry and now I love this player more than before the video ! Thanks haha ! I enjoyed the sentence : "very few point guards (...) better than Steph Curry" ! It's so good to ear lol ! Go Warriors and your channel is very cool BBallBreakDown ! :)
this is so cool, I just found your videos man! Steph just knows the game inside and out it's insane! and I'm grateful for you for understanding the game as well and picking out these topics that not many people talk about and passing on your knowledge :)
People fail to realize every team needs someone to gamble on D and get steals. A team where everyone doing one thing wouldn't be as efficient
I hate when people say "then why does klay guard the point guards." He guards them because he's a bigger and longer guard and is better at defense than curry but that doesn't mean curry is a bad defender. He's just not as good as Thompson who is a very good defender
Curry is an NBA level defender. he is not "elite". he has good lateral quickness and hustles but you dont see him locking down players whatsoever. Curry isnt gonna fall asleep on defense but also no opponent ahead of game time is thinking " oh god Curry is gonna be guarding me, what am I to do?? "