Know your New Orleans Pelicans opponent: Stephen Curry
Dec 4, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) defends the shot by New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) during the first quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Weaknesses:
Entering this season Curry had a reputation as a terrible defender thanks to his slight frame and lack of lateral quickness but honestly things have changed. While Curry isn’t a lockdown defender in any sense of the word he is an effective one. But since we need a slide on his weaknesses, and it could be a problem for Curry at some points in this series, this lands here.
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The biggest problem Curry could have in this series defensively is his size. Both Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans are bigger and stronger than Curry and if the Pelicans play both together for any extended minutes that would force Curry to defend one. In that case the Pelicans could use plenty of pick-and-rolls to get those two guys a head of steam to the rim and hope that they are able to bully Curry with the head start.
Yet honestly defense isn’t really a weakness for Curry. The Warriors are better defensively with Curry on the court as they post a 97.2 defensive rating when he plays and a 100.4 rating when he sits per NBA.com’s media stats. As we have already seen there isn’t much to nitpick on his offensive game either. He is just a great player.
Next: The MVP