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Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry experienced a rare terrible shooting night on Friday when he missed all 10 of his three-pointers against the Los Angeles Lakers, ended an NBA record streak of 157 straight games with at least one three. Faced with an opportunity to bounce back at home Monday against the New Orleans Pelicans, Curry did not just take advantage of his fresh start. He literally made more three-pointers than an NBA player ever had in a single game.
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Curry shot 13-of-17 from beyond the arc to set a new NBA record for three-pointers in a game, claiming sole possession of a record he had previously shared with Kobe Bryant and Donyell Marshall. Curry tied that mark with 12 three-pointers — the last on a 35-foot buzzer-beater — in a dramatic overtime win against the Oklahoma City Thunder in February. Monday night’s record-breaker did not come under quite such incredible circumstances, but watching Curry remains one of the most thrilling experiences in sports.
[ STACK: Watch the Cavaliers’ beautifully elaborate pre-game handshake ritual ]
Curry’s final three-pointer put the Warriors up by the comfortable score of 109-97 with 2:23 remaining in regulation, but this was a game in which Golden State needed every one of his shots to come away with the 116-106 win. Curry made 6-of-8 long-range shots in the first half to help Golden State to a 63-49 halftime advantage, but New Orleans managed to take their own lead after fewer than eight minutes of the third quarter. Curry responded with three three-pointers (and a galvanizing technical foul after a non-call) in the final four minutes of the period to put the Warriors back up 84-78.
The Pelicans attempted to double-team Curry at times in the fourth quarter, but he added another trio of three-pointers to set both the record and the course of crunch time. His 46 points were as important as they appeared.
Stephen Curry followed up one of his worst-ever games with a record performance. (Associated Press) A pessimistic view of Curry’s night would put more emphasis on the fact that his showing was necessary for the win. The Pelicans entered the contest with no wins in six tries and managed to score consistently against a Warriors defense that has looked iffy to start the season. Anthony Davis continued his strong start to 2016-17 with 33 points and 13 rebounds as the Pelicans shot 48.8 percent from the field. The Golden State defense remains a work in progress, and it could take months for head coach Steve Kerr to find ideal lineups and his best interior defensive combinations. Monday’s game, against one of the league’s worst teams so far, seemed to confirm that the current defensive setup is going to experience peaks and valleys for a while.
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The good news is that the offense looks just fine, if also well below its astronomical ceiling. Curry’s obviously not going to break a three-point record every game, but the Warriors have three players capable of putting up 40 points (perhaps concurrently) on any given night. Kevin Durant (22 points on 8-of-17 FG) and Klay Thompson (24 points on 11-of-20 FG) were solid on Monday, too, with the latter putting together his second solid game in his last three outings as he tries to end an early-season slump. Warriors other than Curry and Durant are still struggling to make open jumpers for no apparent reason, but there are no process-driven red flags at the offensive end. Defenses are going to struggle with this group all season.
Plus, Monday continued to prove that fears over the Warriors juggernaut sapping the league of any fun are overblown. The normal rules of NBA team-building still apply to a group of four All-NBA players, but each star is still individually fascinating enough to do something no one has ever seen before. Root against the Warriors if you want, but remain willing to enjoy what only they can do.
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Curry shot 13-of-17 from beyond the arc to set a new NBA record for three-pointers in a game, claiming sole possession of a record he had previously shared with Kobe Bryant and Donyell Marshall. Curry tied that mark with 12 three-pointers — the last on a 35-foot buzzer-beater — in a dramatic overtime win against the Oklahoma City Thunder in February. Monday night’s record-breaker did not come under quite such incredible circumstances, but watching Curry remains one of the most thrilling experiences in sports.
[ STACK: Watch the Cavaliers’ beautifully elaborate pre-game handshake ritual ]
Curry’s final three-pointer put the Warriors up by the comfortable score of 109-97 with 2:23 remaining in regulation, but this was a game in which Golden State needed every one of his shots to come away with the 116-106 win. Curry made 6-of-8 long-range shots in the first half to help Golden State to a 63-49 halftime advantage, but New Orleans managed to take their own lead after fewer than eight minutes of the third quarter. Curry responded with three three-pointers (and a galvanizing technical foul after a non-call) in the final four minutes of the period to put the Warriors back up 84-78.
The Pelicans attempted to double-team Curry at times in the fourth quarter, but he added another trio of three-pointers to set both the record and the course of crunch time. His 46 points were as important as they appeared.
[Follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr: The best slams from all of basketball]
The good news is that the offense looks just fine, if also well below its astronomical ceiling. Curry’s obviously not going to break a three-point record every game, but the Warriors have three players capable of putting up 40 points (perhaps concurrently) on any given night. Kevin Durant (22 points on 8-of-17 FG) and Klay Thompson (24 points on 11-of-20 FG) were solid on Monday, too, with the latter putting together his second solid game in his last three outings as he tries to end an early-season slump. Warriors other than Curry and Durant are still struggling to make open jumpers for no apparent reason, but there are no process-driven red flags at the offensive end. Defenses are going to struggle with this group all season.
Plus, Monday continued to prove that fears over the Warriors juggernaut sapping the league of any fun are overblown. The normal rules of NBA team-building still apply to a group of four All-NBA players, but each star is still individually fascinating enough to do something no one has ever seen before. Root against the Warriors if you want, but remain willing to enjoy what only they can do.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!Follow @FreemanEric