Stephen Curry ‘Loves’ Kenny Smith, but not His Comment Calling Damian Lillard a Better Shooter
Damian Lillard has been on a tear since the NBA returned from a hiatus. He’s carried that into the playoffs after dropping 34 points in a Game 1 win over the LA Lakers. NBA commentator Kenny Smith has been impressed with Lillard’s performance, and he also made a bold statement saying Lillard has more range then Stephen Curry.
Curry did not agree with Smith and made him aware of it.
Damian Lillard amazing performance in the NBA bubble
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There’s no question that Lillard has been the best player in the NBA bubble. He has put together some great performances and not to mention he helped lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a spot in the playoffs. During the last four games of the NBA restart, Lillard scored a combined 185 points. He dropped 51 points and 61 points in back-to-back outings. Lillard has been on a mission since arriving in Orlando.
Watching him on the court, you can see how fearless he is. When he crosses half court with the ball in his hands, he does not think twice about shooting it from deep, no matter where he is on the court. Lillard has been able to score in many ways, whether shooting from long or mid-range or driving to the hole. One thing that has stood out about Lillard is his ability to trust his teammates in clutch situations. He’s not afraid to give up the ball if he finds a wide-open teammate.
Lillard has displayed leadership at the point guard position, and he has put his team in great positions to win games. With Lillard playing the way he is, Portland is a team that can give the Lakers a run for their money in the first round.
Kenny Smith said he doesn’t think Curry can shoot as deep as Lillard
After Lillard’s impressive Game 1 performance in the win over the Lakers, Smith was in awe of Lillard’s range on ‘Inside the NBA.’ “I don’t think you can shoot as deep as him Steph,” Smith said. “I got to see it when you come back.” Lillard has hit a good amount of shots from long-range, especially in the bubble, but Smith took a shot at one of the best shooters of all time, and Curry had something to say about that.
Curry went on Twitter and responded to what Smith said. On his page, Curry said, “love you @TheJetOnTNT…..but you tripping right now.” Curry was the one who started the movement of long-range shooting. No players in the NBA were pulling up from 30-35 feet before Curry started doing it. He had to put Smith in his place jokingly, but he was serious at the same time.
Here’s why Stephen Curry’s the better long-range shooter over Damian Lillard
No disrespect to Lillard, but in previous years Curry has shown why he’s the better shooter from deep. Going back to the 2019 NBA Playoffs, Curry made the most shots from 25 to 29 feet. According to stats.nba.com, Curry led all players in the playoffs making 67 shots, and Lillard made 35. Curry also made more shots than Lillard from 20 to 24 feet and remember that’s only in the playoffs.
During the 2018-19 regular season, Curry made 234 shots from 25 to 29 feet, while Lillard made 175. Now this season was different because Curry dealt with an injury for a good portion of the season. But the numbers don’t lie, and if the two had a shootout from long-range, Curry would come out on top.
