Seth Curry Is Being Overlooked In Dallas
A look at why I feel Seth Curry's return to Dallas is being wrongly ignored, and how he will make a positive impact on this team.
Seth Curry’s return to the Dallas Mavericks has gone under the radar. He is by no means a high-profile player but in a defined role he is quite impactful on the offensive end of the floor. He has posted some impressive stats in regular season and playoff settings including his second stint with Dallas in 2019-2020, where he and Luka were responsible for the league leading offensive rating of 117. For this season I believe he can thrive once again as a spot up threat, a bench scoring punch, or a second unit ball handler. These are all capabilities he has shown in the past at efficient levels and his potential impact on this team is being wildly overlooked.
In the 2019-2020 season Seth Curry ranked in the 97th percentile of spot-up shooters, shooting an impressive 52% on spot up attempts. The spot up three in the corner off the dish from Luka came seamlessly on their last go round, and I think they have great odds to mimic that this year. The gravity of defensive attention that not only Luka draws but also Kyrie Irving, is going to leave opportunities open for guys like Curry to capitalize on. Which he has proven is squarely in his wheelhouse. His shooting percentages are consistently impressive particularly in the post season where he has shot 52% from the field, and 46% from three all time. More impressively Seth Curry ranks in the top 10 list of the NBA’s All Time Three Point Shooting Percentages, at number 6. A feat not even his brother Steph, or Klay Thompson have been able to accomplish. He’s capable of grabbing 12-15 points a game which allows him to be an obvious option as a bench scoring option.
Curry’s shooting abilities have been undoubtedly proven, and I’m excited to see the lineup versatility they create with him. Including minutes on the floor with both stars in a three-guard rotation, or as a running mate for either Luka or Kyrie depending on who's resting. One of Curry’s most overlooked capabilities is ball handling. He proved to be versatile enough to run pick and roll during his time with Philadelphia, where he paired nicely with Embiid for two playoff appearances including semi-finals run. Curry was decisive and creative in that he could find his own shot off the screen, hit Joel on the roll or in a pop situation, or penetrate the paint and dish out to open shooters. The last of which being a set that Mavericks run quite frequently. Curry is nowhere near Jalen Brunson as a player and specifically as a point guard. However, in the same way that Brunson was able to run a lot of the same plays that Luka did while Doncic was on the bench, I believe Seth Curry will be able to do something similar. It won’t be at the same level as Brunson but if Curry can emulate those possessions to some degree, then it will be tremendously beneficial for this team.
Again, I’m not here to guarantee the audience that Seth Curry is going to be the swing piece that helps this team win a playoff series. What I am here to do however is establish the fact that his potential impact is being heavily underrated. He has played for this organization before and has shown himself to be a great complimentary role player alongside Luka. Beyond that he has stepped up for other teams across the league in various post season situations and proven his value. The fit offensively is neat seamless and I’m excited to see what sort of influence on winning basketball he can provide.