Kevin Durant vs Stephen Curry: better career so far?

[No-more-rings]

a top 10 kind of year should definitely matter

look at kareem after like 1982, he won 3 rings and was a key contributor as a "mere" top 10 or below kind of player

Where did I say it shouldn't matter? I'm saying we can't be looking at this like a season or 2 like that should swing the comparison. Unless you think they're about equal for peak and prime, in which case goes against pretty much all impact data.

People like KD more because he's a 6'10 scoring machine, and can play good defense when he chooses to. Realistically Curry's a better offensive player, and while it's not a big gap it's pretty clear.

It's big gap, to me. Even could say huge, cause there are two tiers between the two offensive impact. Durant was/is on the OPOY level, offensively. But comparing that level to top 5 GOAT offensive impact level is one-sided. Durant has no case for being even close to Curry, offensively.

So you think KD's defense is that impactful where it swings things?

[feyki]

Where did I say it shouldn't matter? I'm saying we can't be looking at this like a season or 2 like that should swing the comparison. Unless you think they're about equal for peak and prime, in which case goes against pretty much all impact data.

People like KD more because he's a 6'10 scoring machine, and can play good defense when he chooses to. Realistically Curry's a better offensive player, and while it's not a big gap it's pretty clear.

It's big gap, to me. Even could say huge, cause there are two tiers between the two offensive impact. Durant was/is on the OPOY level, offensively. But comparing that level to top 5 GOAT offensive impact level is one-sided. Durant has no case for being even close to Curry, offensively.

So you think KD's defense is that impactful where it swings things?

When he tried to protect the rim.

[JN61]

Durant quite easily:

Durant vs Curry:

MVP: 1 vs 2
FMVP: 2 vs 0
Championships: 2 vs 3

All-NBA First team: 6 vs 4
All-NBA 2nd team: 3 vs 2
All-NBA 3rd team: - vs 1
Total: 9 vs 7
Weighted (3,2,1): 24 vs 17

All-stars: 11 vs 7

Points: 23.9k vs 18.4k
Rebounds: 6.3k vs 3.5k
Assists: 3.7k vs 5k
Steals: 973 vs 1282
Blocks: 986 vs 164


Honestly Curry is closer to Westbrook in terms of career achievements than to Durant. Curry has serious lack of longeativity on his career. Curry is between 25 to 28 and Durant is somewhere around 18.

[JN61]

I do think Curry's the more impactful player and I think Durant often gets overrated due to being an all-time great one-on-one scorer which people tend to place more emphasis on.

I just hate the argument that I hear so often about how Curry won without KD. It's an irrelevant point to me because Curry was not particularly impressive in the 2015 playoffs IMO and beat an injured Cavs team. I was more impressed by Durant in 2012.

Curry's playoff resume really just isn't all that impressive to me - the 2015 Finals shouldn't even have gone to six games, the 2016 Finals were a choke from Curry, stacked supporting casts in 2017 & 2018 (outperformed by KD in the Finals imo), was underwhelming at times in the 2019 playoffs (including against Houston)... while KD has also obviously benefited from playing with a couple of the most stacked teams ever, I'd take his playoff resume over Curry's personally

Well, guess who are top 3 on almost everyones all time list? Maybe the 3 of the top 5 best 1v1 scorers of all time.
(downplaying Lebron's 1v1 scoring ability has always been ridiculous)

[JN61]

Durant has like one more healthy prime season than Curry, he does not have at all a big longevity edge.

He has 5,000 point lead on Curry and several all-star and all-nba selections... He basically has 25% lead on Curry as mentioned on the post above yours and mine detailing this gap.

[JN61]

I think Steph Curry's impact (on how basketball is played) is overrated honestly. The 3PT revolution was happening regardless

Not true. There is an entire generation of basketball players pulling up from the logo because of Stephen Curry.

(a) I do not think there is an entire generation of basketball players pulling up from the logo.

(b) Shots from the logo are not that common. Dame probably does it the most and it still doesn't take a huge part of his shot selection IMO. Even if Steph motivated these players (definitely not Dame but whatever) to do that, I do not think the impact is large even in that case.

The team that's chucked the most threes over Steph's prime is not even the Warriors - it's the Rockets. Yeah kids on the playground are emulating Curry but I don't really care about that. IMO guys like Morey & the analytics movement in general had the biggest impact on how NBA basketball has been played.

Indeed. These are ridiculous takes... How many logo shots there was last year? 30? 20? Most of these NOT BY CURRY but mostly by Lillard and Trae. Lillard who definitely didn't fantasize Curry by any way like these posters put it... So we have like 50 attempts in 75,000+ 3 point shots last year? To call shooting from logo as impact on the game is laughable (0.07% of total shots)... These aren't even good shots and I wouldn't be surprised if league wide logo % is bellow 32%. Looks fancy but is no way any kind of impact shot in the grant scheme of things or even morale shifting one when most of them miss so badly...

[feyki]

Durant quite easily:

Durant vs Curry:

MVP: 1 vs 2
FMVP: 2 vs 0
Championships: 2 vs 3

All-NBA First team: 6 vs 4
All-NBA 2nd team: 3 vs 2
All-NBA 3rd team: - vs 1
Total: 9 vs 7
Weighted (3,2,1): 24 vs 17

All-stars: 11 vs 7

Points: 23.9k vs 18.4k
Rebounds: 6.3k vs 3.5k
Assists: 3.7k vs 5k
Steals: 973 vs 1282
Blocks: 986 vs 164


Honestly Curry is closer to Westbrook in terms of career achievements than to Durant. Curry has serious lack of longeativity on his career. Curry is between 25 to 28 and Durant is somewhere around 18.

Has Westbrook a career close to top 30?

[Stalwart]

Not true. There is an entire generation of basketball players pulling up from the logo because of Stephen Curry.

(a) I do not think there is an entire generation of basketball players pulling up from the logo.

(b) Shots from the logo are not that common. Dame probably does it the most and it still doesn't take a huge part of his shot selection IMO. Even if Steph motivated these players (definitely not Dame but whatever) to do that, I do not think the impact is large even in that case.

The team that's chucked the most threes over Steph's prime is not even the Warriors - it's the Rockets. Yeah kids on the playground are emulating Curry but I don't really care about that. IMO guys like Morey & the analytics movement in general had the biggest impact on how NBA basketball has been played.

Indeed. These are ridiculous takes... How many logo shots there was last year? 30? 20? Most of these NOT BY CURRY but mostly by Lillard and Trae. Lillard who definitely didn't fantasize Curry by any way like these posters put it... So we have like 50 attempts in 75,000+ 3 point shots last year? To call shooting from logo as impact on the game is laughable (0.07% of total shots)... These aren't even good shots and I wouldn't be surprised if league wide logo % is bellow 32%. Looks fancy but is no way any kind of impact shot in the grant scheme of things or even morale shifting one when most of them miss so badly...

You guys work so hard trying to craft arguments to avoid obvious things

[JN61]

(a) I do not think there is an entire generation of basketball players pulling up from the logo.

(b) Shots from the logo are not that common. Dame probably does it the most and it still doesn't take a huge part of his shot selection IMO. Even if Steph motivated these players (definitely not Dame but whatever) to do that, I do not think the impact is large even in that case.

The team that's chucked the most threes over Steph's prime is not even the Warriors - it's the Rockets. Yeah kids on the playground are emulating Curry but I don't really care about that. IMO guys like Morey & the analytics movement in general had the biggest impact on how NBA basketball has been played.

Indeed. These are ridiculous takes... How many logo shots there was last year? 30? 20? Most of these NOT BY CURRY but mostly by Lillard and Trae. Lillard who definitely didn't fantasize Curry by any way like these posters put it... So we have like 50 attempts in 75,000+ 3 point shots last year? To call shooting from logo as impact on the game is laughable (0.07% of total shots)... These aren't even good shots and I wouldn't be surprised if league wide logo % is bellow 32%. Looks fancy but is no way any kind of impact shot in the grant scheme of things or even morale shifting one when most of them miss so badly...

You guys work so hard trying to craft arguments to avoid obvious things

We didn't write the post. We are just reacting to a bad take. If you want to make an argument people are shooting normal 3 pointers because of Curry, make it. Even then it's refutable as written by the another poster. This is evolution of the game that has started with Nash' teams with fast offenses and analytical driven approach to the game and even before that.

[falcolombardi]

I do think Curry's the more impactful player and I think Durant often gets overrated due to being an all-time great one-on-one scorer which people tend to place more emphasis on.

I just hate the argument that I hear so often about how Curry won without KD. It's an irrelevant point to me because Curry was not particularly impressive in the 2015 playoffs IMO and beat an injured Cavs team. I was more impressed by Durant in 2012.

Curry's playoff resume really just isn't all that impressive to me - the 2015 Finals shouldn't even have gone to six games, the 2016 Finals were a choke from Curry, stacked supporting casts in 2017 & 2018 (outperformed by KD in the Finals imo), was underwhelming at times in the 2019 playoffs (including against Houston)... while KD has also obviously benefited from playing with a couple of the most stacked teams ever, I'd take his playoff resume over Curry's personally

Well, guess who are top 3 on almost everyones all time list? Maybe the 3 of the top 5 best 1v1 scorers of all time.
(downplaying Lebron's 1v1 scoring ability has always been ridiculous)

sure but all those 3 (i am assuming you mean jordan,lebron and kareem right?) were all better defenders and playmakers

durant is not quite as complete of a offensive player as jordan ans lebron (doesnt have their playmaking or passing) nor as good defensively as kareem (may be not as good a pasear either) which is why he is not considered at those levels

[jalengreen]

I do think Curry's the more impactful player and I think Durant often gets overrated due to being an all-time great one-on-one scorer which people tend to place more emphasis on.

I just hate the argument that I hear so often about how Curry won without KD. It's an irrelevant point to me because Curry was not particularly impressive in the 2015 playoffs IMO and beat an injured Cavs team. I was more impressed by Durant in 2012.

Curry's playoff resume really just isn't all that impressive to me - the 2015 Finals shouldn't even have gone to six games, the 2016 Finals were a choke from Curry, stacked supporting casts in 2017 & 2018 (outperformed by KD in the Finals imo), was underwhelming at times in the 2019 playoffs (including against Houston)... while KD has also obviously benefited from playing with a couple of the most stacked teams ever, I'd take his playoff resume over Curry's personally

Well, guess who are top 3 on almost everyones all time list? Maybe the 3 of the top 5 best 1v1 scorers of all time.
(downplaying Lebron's 1v1 scoring ability has always been ridiculous)

KD is more comparable to Dirk than those guys