Stephen Curry's big secret to breaking out of his shooting slump: Contacts
For a few games following the All-Star break, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry looked mortal. The 31-year-old Curry shot just 36.6 percent from three-point land. For some players, that’s acceptable. For Curry, it’s a major slump.
Those struggles didn’t last too long. On March 16, Curry drained five of his 12 shots from three-point range. Over the next eight games, he has hit at least five three-pointers per game.
How did he turn things around? It wasn’t a mechanic change or a fatigue issue. Curry simply got contacts, according to Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic.
“I started wearing contacts,” Curry said late Tuesday, pulling his white “Ten in the Town” hat down on his head, creating an awning for his beaming eyes. “No, I’m serious.”
Yes, the best shooter in the NBA has been playing with less than stellar eyesight. Curry — who has an eye condition called Keratoconus — said he’s been dealing with the poor eyesight for a long time, but didn’t realize it had gotten so bad.
Now that he can see, Curry told Thompson, “It’s like the whole world has opened up.”
That should be a terrifying statement for anyone tasked with guarding Curry moving forward. Over his career, Curry has been one of the most efficient three-point shooters in the game. He’s ranked outside the top-10 in three-point percentage just once in his 10-year career.
Over his last nine games, Curry has hit 48.7 percent of his three-point attempts, according to Thompson. If he can keep that up, Curry’s coach — Steve Kerr — might have to start sweating about Curry passing Kerr’s 45.4 percent career three-point percentage.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
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