After two consecutive seasons of not being able to make the playoffs, the expectations of the outside world for the Warriors have fallen to the bottom - I thought that even if Thompson returned, the upper limit of the Warriors in the new season was the fifth and sixth place in the West; after all, with their strength and lineup, they were simply not enough to enter the top four in the West.
But I didn't expect that in the new season, under the power of Wiggins, Poole, Payton Jr. and others, coupled with the strong performance of maintaining superstar performance, enough to compete with Durant in the scoring list of Curry, the Warriors not only played a dazzling performance, and even could maintain the team's record in the league for a long time...
Breaking the all-time three-point record is imminent, and Curry's personal performance fluctuates
Curry's personal performance in the first two months of the new season is indeed good enough, averaging 28.6 points, 5.7 boards and 6.8 assists per game, 45.6% shooting rate + 41.2% three-point shooting rate of the super star performance; otherwise, even if Wiggins, Poole and others play well, the Warriors' ceiling is only on the edge of the playoffs, and it will not get the league's top record.
But as December's all-time three-point record loomed, Curry's personal performance began to fluctuate. This month, although Curry can still maintain a personal performance of 26 points per game, his three shooting rates have dropped to 38.1%, 35.3% (three points) and 69.8% (free throws), respectively; personal performance has shown a fairly significant decline compared to the first two months of the season.
The Warriors also lost to the Suns, Spurs, Philadelphia, Nuggets, and alternately sat on the league's first record with the Suns due to Curry's personal performance struggles...
Fortunately, Curry finally managed to break the all-time three-point record, surpassing Ray Allen to become the player with the most three-point hits in NBA history. It was thought that after Curry broke the three-point record and Thompson returned, he would be able to return to normalcy and re-play an efficient personal performance to help the Warriors stabilize the league's first record. But I didn't expect Curry's personal performance, but there was a continuous downturn.
Breaking the three-point record + Thompson's return, Curry's personal performance continues to decline
Although Curry's shooting efficiency was sluggish in December last year, the skinny camel was bigger than the horse, and his scoring still had a certain amount of production, which could still help the Warriors beat most teams. However, since entering 2022, Curry's actual performance has shown a continuous downward trend.
Throughout January, Curry was only able to contribute 20.8 points, 5.3 boards and 7.1 assists, 36.7% shooting and 29.9 points from three-point shooting; compared with the first two months of the new season, Curry's current performance and influence have not reached the superstar level.
Even Curry also had an embarrassing scene of 5 of 20 shooting, 1 of 13 three-pointers, and only 13 points, 4 boards and 6 assists in a single game in the recent Warriors vs. Jazz game. If it weren't for Mitchell's absence and return to regular form, with Curry's sluggish performance, the Warriors might not even win this game.
So, after breaking the three-point record + Thompson's comeback, why can't Curry play superstar performance?
In December last year, curry's performance did fluctuate a bit as the all-time three-point record was imminent. But the outside world is willing to believe that after breaking the three-point record and Thompson returning, Curry, who has no record pressure + more helpers, can play a superstar performance again.
And while playing a superstar performance, he led the Warriors to suppress the league's 29 teams to stabilize the league's first record. But in fact, Curry did not meet the expectations of the outside world, and his personal performance showed a continuous downward trend. The reason why Curry continues to decline is mainly due to the following reasons.
1. Cole's excessive use of Curry caused his body to enter a period of fatigue in advance. Last season, without Durant, without Thompson, Wiggins and Poole, Curry became the Warriors' only stable scoring point. In order to win playoff tickets, Curry not only averaged 32.0 points per game, but also played 34.2 minutes...
Last season's long, high-intensity use of Curry during the regular season eventually led to Curry losing the playoff spot when he faced the Grizzlies in the playoffs due to physical weakness.
Although Curry's average score per game has declined in the new season, it is actually compared to last season's 21.7 shots + 34.2 minutes of playing time, this season's 20.2 shots + 34.8 minutes of playing time, which still means that the Warriors are still using Curry in high intensity.
Judging from the current game, Curry's overall state is very similar to the state at the end of last season, and many shots have not reached the level of efficiency at the beginning of the season. It is also because Cole has overused Curry for two consecutive seasons in order to maintain the team's record, which has caused his body to enter a period of fatigue in advance, thus losing his head in the last two months of competition...
2, Thompson's comeback + Green's absence, the impact on Curry. During the Warriors' "five years and three crowns" period, Thompson, who has top three-point ability + defensive ability and does not occupy the ball, has become the best helper around Curry. But after tearing the ligament in his left knee and rupturing his Achilles tendon in his right leg, Thompson was no longer the same Thompson he had been.
His recent comeback has not helped the Warriors improve much. On the contrary, in the case of Thompson's poor offensive state and lack of defensive ability, the Warriors have reduced curry, Wiggins and Poole's ball rights to varying degrees in order to help him find his form early.
And in order for Thompson to be able to adapt more quickly, they have made no small sacrifice. Although Thompson's comeback, the impact on Curry is not the biggest. But whether it is the defensive end or the offensive end, today's Thompson can not effectively share the pressure on Curry, and even increase the pressure on Curry.
In the 19-20 season, due to Green's "three single performances", it was agreed that his strength and role in the Warriors were infinitely magnified, and without the blessing of Curry, Thompson and others, Green was nothing.
Although this statement is too extreme, it seems to be true: Green does not have too strong offensive ability, and his value can only be fully exerted by the top shooters such as Curry and Thompson.
Especially after Green's recent absence, without Green's strategy and cards, Curry not only has a hard time getting an easy shot on the offensive end, but even he has to balance organization and scoring at the same time. In this context, Curry, who is already in a period of physical fatigue, is really difficult to have an efficient performance.
However, Curry's state will certainly not continue to be so depressed, perhaps until Thompson integrates into the "new team", perhaps until Green returns, or after the rotation; I believe we can still see Curry re-play a superstar performance, with a strong performance to once again lead the Warriors to the top, once again breaking the outside world's doubts about him...