The regular season records of various teams can often cover up a lot of things and blind the eyes of popular fans. The Lakers' record this season is in a mess, once lost, Westbrook will inevitably become the target of everyone, no matter how he plays on the field, he will always be the Lakers' back cooker. On the contrary, the Warriors, who are now ranked first in the league, look smooth sailing, and it is easy to ignore the performance of the star Curry, even if Curry is in a sluggish state, the Warriors can win, and Curry's problems will be hidden.
The far-ahead record masks Curry's erratic play this season. In today's Warriors' fiasco against the Lone Rangers, Curry played 36 minutes, shooting 5-of-24, including 1-of-9 from three-point range, and only had 14 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists. There is no doubt that Curry's performance directly affected the overall strength of the Warriors, Curry continued the slump of the previous game, and this is not Curry's accidental playing aberration. Since December, this performance has been strange to Curry. Curry averaged 25.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game in December, shooting 37.9 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from three-point range. In 13 games in December, Curry only had two games with a shooting percentage of more than 50 percent, which is too abnormal for Curry, who has been at the top of the true shooting percentage list for many years.
In an interview after the game, Cole said: "Curry suffered a quadriceps contusion and will miss back-to-back games tomorrow night, the exact time of the absence has not yet been determined. Sure enough, Curry's rare downturn can indeed only be explained by injuries, and on January 10, the Warriors are about to usher in Thompson's comeback debut, when the Splash Brothers can't fit together, then the Warriors fans are a little disappointed.
Injuries can explain Curry's sluggish play in the last two games, but many people have overlooked that Curry has indeed seen a visible decline this season. So far this season, Curry has averaged 26.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game, shooting 42 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from three-point range. The basic data doesn't show much ups and downs, but the 42% shooting percentage is Curry's career low, and the three-point shooting rate is also a career low. In other words, Curry's previous efficiency in the league has gradually returned to the ordinary, and Curry's scores have also been piled up by a higher number of shots. If you think about it, Curry has only played a personally good performance in November this season, and it is most appropriate to describe Curry's performance this season as a high and low walk.
Curry is 33 years old, and the peak length of the defender is not comparable to that of the forward players, and Curry has indeed reached the watershed of his career. Curry is a player who highly relies on shooting feel, the offseason muscle gain affects Curry's certain shooting feel, the decline in physical function leads to curry's difficulty in getting rid of defense, and Curry is the largest player in the league, which has a huge impact on Curry. Curry's physical fitness can only be ranked at the lower level in the league, and he does not have the innate advantage of James and Durant, even if the hand is not good, he can tear the defense line with physical talent. Therefore, once Curry falls into a situation of poor hand feeling, he can only adjust on his own, not to mention that Curry's defensive treatment is increasing every game encountered, and Curry's body cannot be eaten after accumulating over time.
So the rotation of Curry is the best choice for the Current Warriors, and it is the Warriors' urgent need to restore Curry to normal levels. Today's Warriors, facing the fish belly team, even without Curry, they are still the big side, which is where the Strength of the Warriors rotation lies. Fortunately, Thompson is about to return, which is of great significance for Curry's pressure reduction, if Thompson can return to the peak level of 80%, then Curry's defensive pressure will be visibly reduced. There are qualitative changes in the regular season and playoffs, the increase in defensive intensity, how much impact on Curry, the Warriors do not know, but they know, now they can only rely on Curry, Curry's performance in the playoffs will be the Warriors' biggest variable.