There are occasional questions about Stephen Curry’s true position. The greatest shooter of all time can’t possibly be a point guard given that the Golden State Warriors star is very often doing the scoring rather than helping others score.
However you feel about Steph Curry’s position, you can’t deny he’s still one heck of a playmaker. On Sunday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he moved up the ranks in NBA history as one of its all-time assist leaders. Stephen Curry moved up two places in one night, passing both Larry Bird (5,695) and Dwyane Wade (5,701) to move up to 46th on the all-time assist leaderboard.
Steph Curry entered the night tied with Larry Bird and needing just seven assists to surpass Dwyane Wade. The Warriors guard managed to do it in the first half alone, finishing with a game-high nine assists in their 99-96 loss to the Timberwolves.
Stephen Curry the playmaker doesn’t nearly get enough love. It’s not hard to see why given how exciting his offensive outbursts are when he has the touch from beyond the arc. Still, his passing creativity and vision are amongst the best in the league.
Some would argue that he gets a leg up from other guards given that defenders crowd him so as not to get an open shot, leaving his Warriors teammates open for easy baskets. However, other guards of similar stature like Ray Allen and Reggie Miller weren’t nearly as dynamic as playmakers. Whereas a deadeye shooter like Steve Nash arguably did the same thing as Stephen Curry a decade early, combining lethal shooting with precise passing.
With several years left in the tank, there’s no doubt Stephen Curry still has several notches to climb amongst the best assist men in NBA history.
