On “The Wake Up,” Alex Squadron, a former writer for SLAM Magazine, and Irv Roland, a basketball skills trainer with over 15 years of NBA experience, highlight the hoopers and stories you’re sleeping on. Follow us on Twitter.
Alex:
The role Seth Curry has carved out in the NBA, though absolutely crucial, can tend to go overlooked, save for the nights when he erupts for 20+ points, which he’s done seven times this season. For the past few years, Seth has played alongside a number of All-Stars—in Portland, then Dallas, and now Philadelphia—and been tasked with helping to space the floor. As we’ll get into later, he’s way more than just a spot-up shooter, and characterizing him as merely such would be misguided. But we should start with this: Yes, there are other elements to Seth’s game, but purely as a shooter, he’s one of the best we’ve ever seen.
Alright, let’s unpack that. Over a winding seven-year journey in the NBA, one thing has stayed very consistent with Seth: his ability to knock down threes. He’s shot a staggering 44% from deep throughout his career. That kind of efficiency (on more than 1,200 attempts) is truly remarkable. “You can find shooters, but doing it in the NBA on a huge volume of threes is a massive risk reduction,” Sixers president Daryl Morey told Ben Cohen of the Wall Street Journal. “Now we have this huge sample that he’s very likely going to do that going forward. Now he’s, like, mega-valuable.”
Translation: You can’t leave Seth open. Not if you’re playing the odds. Sag off of him, fall asleep for a second or slide to help and you’re probably in trouble. Among players who attempt at least 3 three-pointers per game, Seth’s effective field goal percentage in catch-and-shoot situations (70%) ranks fifth in the entire league. So when center Joel Embiid has the ball on the block, or point forward Ben Simmons is barreling toward the rim, defenders are forced to confront an impossible decision. Leave Seth, who’s somewhere behind the arc with his hands ready, to clog the paint, or cling to him and prevent a kick out. When they’ve chosen the former—often compelled to considering the brilliance of Philly’s stars—Curry has made them pay. Over and over and over again.
And here’s the thing about great shooters—they don’t have to score to leave an imprint. They don’t have to do anything, really. Just by standing in the corner, Seth can impact what’s happening on the floor. He possesses that kind of power, and commands that type of respect, at this stage. As defenders grapple with the decision outlined above, hesitating to let Seth out of arms length, guys like Embiid go to work. No team runs more posts-up than the Sixers, per NBA tracking data, and for good reason. Curry has learned how to mesh with his big man, whether it’s orchestrating pick-and-rolls, receiving dribble handoffs, or just positioning himself on the perimeter for those kick outs. The two-man combination of Embiid and Curry has been +15.6 points per 100 possessions this season—the most dominant pairing on the team. Part of the reason Joel is in the MVP conversation, despite missing significant time due to injury, is the room Seth affords him when they’re on the court together; and the highest number of Joel’s assists have, expectedly, gone to Seth.
In retrospect, it’s surprising—given Seth’s prolific shooting, dating all the way back to his college days at Duke—how long it took for NBA franchises to give him a serious opportunity. He went undrafted in 2013 and spent a majority of the ensuing years in the G-League. As Ben Cohen details in his piece, Seth was so uncertain about his future that, amid the summer of 2015, he contemplated walking away from the NBA altogether to pursue a career overseas.
During our interview below, Curry talks about the improvements in his game that eventually led him to stick on a roster, so I won’t dive too deep into it. But I will note what’s been obvious if you’ve watched any Sixers basketball in 2020-21: Curry has a far more versatile skill set than he typically gets credit for, attempting more twos than threes and hitting 48% of them. Pull-ups off the bounce, floaters on the move, finishes at the rim, and, of course, those threes—it’s all in his arsenal. Philly’s offensive rating with Seth on the floor has been 116.6. When he’s on the bench, however, that mark has dropped to 110.1. We can see why.
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Q+A with Curry
The Wake Up: How has your role in Philly been different compared to what it was with the Mavericks last year?
Seth Curry: It’s similar because obviously I’m here to space the floor and knock down shots, similar to Dallas. Create space for the main guys like Joel, Ben, Tobias. But in Philly, I’ve kind of expanded on my role a little bit. I’m able to run more pick-and-rolls, more handoff stuff and make some plays with the ball in my hands down the stretch at times, too. Just being able to expand my role, do a little bit more stuff when I’ve been out there.
The Wake Up: What adjustments have you had to make because of the style and composition of this team?
Seth Curry: Playing with a post player—well, a couple post players—that’s been the biggest adjustment. Because last year we didn’t really have anybody who posted up. Getting used to spacing the floor for Jo, getting him involved in the post, and then also with Ben, too. The dribble handoff game is a little bit more prevalent in our offense. Last year we played a five-out offense; so going from that to a three-out, two-in type of offense this year took a little bit of time to adjust to.
The Wake Up: You’ve always been able to shoot the ball, but what was it that you had to improve in order to cement your place in the league?
Seth Curry: I’d say there’s a couple of things—first off, I had to show that I could defend my position and gain the trust of the coaches on the defensive end, because for any young player, that’s the biggest question mark you’re going to have coming in: do they trust you on the defensive end? I think that’s how I was able to get on the floor at first. Obviously they knew I could shoot, but on the offensive end, I had to find ways to create my shot. Everybody knows I can shoot the ball so they’re not just going to leave me open to catch and shoot. You got to be able to find ways to get your shot off and I really worked on my ball handling and being able to put the ball on the floor and finish with floaters or pull-ups when people run me off the three-point line.
The Wake Up: What is a typical shooting workout like for you? Do you have specific go-to drills?
Seth Curry: I’ve always started—from a young age—inside out. You want to get the form shooting down—start shooting inside the paint, floaters, the correct form, and then slowly work your way out to three. And then once you get out and warmed up, obviously get game-speed shots. You don’t want to just go through the motions and shoot 300 spot-up shots. You’d rather make 150-200 faster paced live game-speed shots than 300-400 shots walking around. Just trying to simulate game stuff. And if you can, if you got another body there, try to get a hand up contesting your shot while working out too.
The Wake Up: With the altered schedule, limited practice time and all of the COVID protocols, has it been harder to develop a rhythm as a shooter this season? [Seth has missed games this year due to COVID and an ankle injury]
Seth Curry: It’s been a different year—it’s been tough. Especially being in the league a few years, I kind of had a routine of game days, off days, practice days and what I wanted to do. But this year it’s been thrown out for everybody because you got testing schedules, you got more games and less practices, so my overall routine has been off. That’s been the hardest part, just trying to develop a new routine for the way the season is going and still find a way to get your practice reps in and your shots in so that you’re ready for the game. It has effected me at times and I’m sure other people.
The Wake Up: How have you stayed locked in?
Seth Curry: I’ve watched more film this year than ever before for sure. I just watch as many games as possible. This hasn’t been a year for me going in and getting extra shots late at night like I have in the past sometimes, because I’ve just tried to focus on keeping my body healthy. It’s just a grind, so I made a priority of trying to keep my body strong, healthy and in-shape, and just finding creative ways to get extra shots up, whether it’s after practice or after shoot-arounds, instead of what I used to do back in the day, going in and getting more workouts in. I think it’s trying to be efficient with less workouts.
The Wake Up: We’re all about getting hoop fans to “wake up”—obviously a lot of attention is given to your All-Star teammates, and rightfully so. But what do you want people to know about you and your game?
Seth Curry: Probably the main thing is that I’m more than just a shooter. I’m an overall basketball player, an overall scorer. I can play both ends of the floor. Otherwise, if I were just a shooter, I probably wouldn’t have stuck in the league to be honest. So I think that’s the main thing—to watch my game and evaluate me for who I am.
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Irv:
If you can shoot the ball, there’s usually a way in the door. After going undrafted, not many doubted that Seth Curry would get an opportunity somewhere in the Association. From the G-League to the show and back to the G-League, Seth had to find a way to stick.
At 6-2 and not a natural point guard, he had to figure out how to make it as a shooting guard in the NBA. One of the toughest things for players to do coming into the league is to transition into reliable defenders. Defense is so much more than staying in front of your man one-on-one, especially in a league with so many great isolation players. Seth had to not only improve his strength to guard his position, which is typically guys bigger than him, but also improve as an overall team defender.
On the offensive end is where he makes his living, though. There he had to get better off the bounce! Creating his own shot consistently had to be his calling card. In 2015, he got his shot with the Kings. Shooting the three at 45% was what people expected from someone with his last name. But now with the Sixers, he’s been able to solidify himself as a playmaker. He’s in more pick-and-roll situations, which he’s excelled in. But also he’s seen his number of dribble handoffs rise as well. Playing in handoff situations with Embiid has been highly successful for Seth. Because Joel demands so much attention and because of Curry’s ability to shoot the ball, defenders have to make a tough decision whether to go over or under screens. They go under and he’s shooting the three at a 41% clip; they go over and he’s able to get downhill and get to his midrange game or finish at the rim.
The 76ers have the best record in the Eastern Conference and Seth is now a full-time starter for the first time in his career. After bouncing around, he’s finally found his home. His work ethic and attention to his craft have gotten him to this point. His success is a great example for combo guards looking to make it in this league!
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Also, don’t sleep on…
-Stephen Curry. A quick word on what Seth’s brother is doing right now, because it’s legendary, record-breaking stuff. 11 straight games of 30+ points (including a 53-point night against Denver and a 49-point performance in a win over Seth and the Sixers on Monday). 72 three-pointers in his last 10 outings (the most in that span in NBA history). In the month of April, he’s averaging 40.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists, shooting 55% from the field, 50% from three and 91% from the line.
-The Knicks. It’s hard to believe that we’re approaching May and meaningful basketball is being played at MSG. An overlooked, hard-working, defensive-minded group that never gives up and competes every possession, this team—led by head coach Tom Thibodeau—has the hearts of New Yorkers. They’ve won seven games in a row and are currently the fifth seed in the East with a 32-27 record.
-Russell Westbrook. The Wizards are hanging around—competing with Indiana, Toronto and Chicago for one of the play-in seeds—and Russ is a major reason why. He’s averaging 21.6 points, 13.4 rebounds and 12.1 assists in April.
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Slept-on “On This Date”
April 21, 1988: Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon put up 38 points, 10 rebounds, 10 blocks and 5 steals in a 117-116 loss to the Spurs.
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Prior posts:
Follow Irv Roland and Alex Squadron on Twitter. Videos via Spectrum. Logo by Oliver Baltay.