Stephen Curry wowed fans around the world with his performances in the semifinal and gold medal games at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. He combined for 60 points on 17-for-26 from three during the two games, helping lift Team USA to a gold medal. Los Angeles Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell, meanwhile, found himself as a part of some online discourse related to Curry.
Russell is coming off of perhaps his best season as a professional basketball player with the Lakers in 2023-24. He shot above 40% from three for the first time in his career (41.5%) on 7.2 attempts per game. He had the second-best true shooting percentage of his career (58.8%) and graded out comparatively well in his advanced metrics.
Fans on social media responded to Curry’s dominant outburst in the Olympics to the way in which Russell can get hot from three and become unguardable, and the Lakers veteran agreed before deleting the post:
DLo 👀 pic.twitter.com/fs0UxJdJTo
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 12, 2024
Russell didn’t stop there, though, as the next day he kept the comparisons going and threw in a pair of elite scorers as well:
Great conversation if you ask me, who’s effective from off the dribble and C&S. Chef, myself, CJ , Dame. (Insert slander here)👇🏾.
— D'Angelo Russell (@Dloading) August 13, 2024
It’s difficult to draw exact comparisons between Curry and Russell. The latter is, by every metric, a quality NBA player. He has had some difficulties in the playoffs and has been inefficient at times throughout his career, but there is no denying that he can impact regular season winning in a positive way.
Curry, though, is one of a kind. He is undeniably the greatest shooter of all time, in the discussion for greatest point guard ever and may have cemented himself as one of the 10 best players in NBA history with his performance at the Olympics.
NBA players are nothing without their self-confidence, so this type of thing is unsurprising to see. But Curry and Russell are very different players, even if both have the ability to get hot and take over a game with their shooting.
Stephen Curry and LeBron James make Olympics All-Star Five
Stephen Curry and LeBron James were the two stars for Team USA during the Olympics in Paris. James was a leader and the best player all the way through, earning him MVP honors. But Curry’s final two performances were legendary. Both were rewarded by being named to FIBA’s All-Star five for the Olympics alongside three other NBA players in Dennis Schroder, Victor Wembanyama and Nikola Jokic.
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