Ric Bucher: “Steph Curry is such a beloved player for every good reason imaginable, and people forget that he’s 33-years-old and he’s 6’3”, 185-pounds. What he is doing scoring the way he is and from the distances that he is, is absolutely remarkable, but if we dig down beyond the scoring his game has NOT been outstanding in every facet. In fact, defensively, and when it comes to assists/turnovers he’s had career-WORSTS up to this point. I don’t want to emphasize the negative because I enjoy watching him play, but I think we need to just keep those things in context. Over the last two weeks all I see is Steph Curry not just being an ‘MVP candidate’, but people rising him in the ranks of all-time great players because of his scoring, and I’m like ‘there’s a little bit more to it than that.' We’re talking about some really rare air, and those guys that live in that rare air are not JUST phenomenal scorers. They were phenomenal defenders and they were phenomenal playmakers.”
Jason Smith: “Ric, you and I are going to go on our ‘Steph Curry Might Be a Bit Overrated’ tour, so get ready, I’m going to book a lot of cities!”
Bucher: “We better have a cage around us because I’m telling you, it’s not a popular place to be… I’m not going to distort my view of what he is and he isn’t doing just because I think he’s a great guy… Part of the reason Steph shoots from 35-40 feet, and why Damian Lillard and Trae Young have developed those shots is because they have to, because they can’t rise up consistently at the three-point line or score in a variety of ways. It’s harder for him to score inside the paint than it is for a Jayson Tatum. Do we give him extra credit because of the degree of difficulty that he faces? I get why fans love that and love him for it, but as somebody who votes for MVP, I don’t know if that’s fair to other candidates. ‘Hey, you’re winning and you’re successful but you’re not as DRAMATIC in how you’re doing it because you’re a little bit bigger and stronger, and we’re going to have to discount what you’re doing.’ That’s what I feel like some people are doing when it comes to Steph.” (Full Audio Above)
Listen to NBA insider Ric Bucher join The Jason Smith Show to explain why he thinks NBA fans and the sports media alike are overrating Steph Curry’s 2021 MVP campaign amid his scorching scoring barrage the past month.
Check out the audio above as Bucher details why Curry’s supposedly boisterous statistics are a bit misleading, and why Steph’s image as this ‘great guy' further adds to the hype and support he gets elevated by.
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Ric Bucher: Steph Curry's 'Historic' Season isn't as Amazing as You Think
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