Team USA Coach Compares Stephen Curry To Unexpected NBA Legend

As expected, Stephen Curry and Team USA are rolling in Paris. Another gold medal is just a few wins away for the heavily favored and incredibly stacked American squad.

Although the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player is not scoring a lot -- putting up just 7.3 points per game --  he remains a key factor in USA’s attack. Together with LeBron James, Curry often runs a play called “too small,” where the Golden State Warriors guard screens the Los Angeles Lakers forward, leaving opposing defenders to pick their poison.

Team USA head coach Steve Kerr highlighted Curry’s effective role in running the said scheme with James, even comparing the sharpshooter to former Utah Jazz point guard John Stockton.

Via Joe Vardon of The Athletic :

“It’s something we thought of immediately when we put the team together because Steph is like the modern-day John Stockton,” Kerr said. “He’s the best screening point guard in the league in my mind. He’s so physical, he’s so strong. People don’t really think of him for that, but teams are terrified of leaving him. So if he can set a screen and hold it, it’s going to free somebody up. And then obviously LeBron is LeBron, so it’s a good action for him.”

Curry and Stockton share the same position but their styles of play significantly differ from each other. While Curry is a scorer, Stockton was the quintessential pass-first guard who’d rather set the table for his teammates than find his own buckets.

For what it’s worth, Curry finished second among guards in the NBA overall last season with 1.1 screen assists per game .

Team USA is scheduled to face Brazil in the quarterfinal this Tuesday.

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