Ray Allen is easily one of the greatest shooters, maybe THE greatest shooter in NBA history. And then there’s that kid with the Golden State Warriors; maybe you’ve heard of him, whose been making a name for himself pretty early in his career. But Allen isn’t jealous of Steph Curry. He isn’t worried about his dwindling NBA made three-pointers record. In fact, he’s cheering for Steph, and he feels that the reigning MVP will go down as the best shooter of all-time.
“Based on what he’s done, I think he has to be,” Allen told SLAM Magazine when asked about Steph’s place in history. “He’s on his way to being the best ever. It’s always arguable, based on who’s telling the story. One thing I always tell people is, it’s hard to compare generations. Everybody has something or somebody that makes him feel special about the game, or the way they saw and the way they appreciate the game. I’ve sat back and watched a lot and listened to a lot of people talk. He’s creating a lane all of his own. People comparing him to me, to Reggie [Miller]. But I think Steph is in a category of his own. Just being able to have great handles the way he has with the ball, to be able to score at will by getting to the basket.”
Steph has been a polarizing figure for NBA legends. Some of them think he’s great, but others insist that he couldn’t have survived in their era and continue to complain that the game is too soft today. Ray Allen, however, says it’s not even fair to compare anyone to Steph.
Quite the compliment. I guess he’s already accepted the fate of his made threes record. It took Allen 18 seasons to accumulate 2,973 buckets—Steph is sitting on 1,593 after seven seasons. And after shattering the record for made threes in a season by over 100, Curry could reasonably break Allen’s record in five or six fewer seasons.
Gotta love the respect from shooter to shooter.