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‘I’m terrible at Fortnite’: Curry on video games, eSports – NBCSports.com


Editor’s note: Grant Liffmann (@grantliffmann) is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders, which airs on NBC Sports Bay Area 90 minutes before each home game and 60 minutes after every game. Each week, Grant will drop his Outsider Observation on the state of the Dubs.

The regular season has ended and now the Warriors can finally focus on their mission of winning a third straight title.

It was a long, sometimes tenuous regular season for the Dubs, filled with bouts of drama, persistent rumors and the intriguing integration of DeMarcus Cousins into the starting lineup.

As the team prepares to play the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the playoffs, let’s take a look at the players that have hit their shooting stride post-All-Star break, and which players’ shooting touch has tailed off:

Draymond Green

Pre: 42% FG, 23% 3pt
Post: 48% FG, 37% 3pt

Draymond’s season truly has been a tale of two halves.

Before the All-Star break, Draymond dealt with some injuries, drama and inconsistent play, leading some to assume that he was past his prime and had started on a downhill slope of regression. However, Green put those doubts to rest in the second half, shooting at an efficient level that resembles his career-best season back in 2015-16.

Over the last 14 games, Draymond has been red-hot from deep, connecting on 41 percent of his 3-point attempts, which should give him some extra confidence heading into the playoffs.

Kevin Durant

Pre: 52% FG, 37% 3pt
Post: 54% FG, 31% 3pt

Durant’s mid-range game has been impressively efficient throughout the season, but it has soared to new heights in the last few weeks.

He has been shooting the ball infrequently of late — finding specific times to attack and take over the offense — instead choosing to focus more on distributing the rock to keep the offense flowing.

While his overall efficiency has risen, Durant’s 3-point shot has faltered down the stretch, lowering his overall 3-point percentage on the season to 35 percent, his lowest average since the 2010-11 season. Durant has proven to be a playoff hero over the last couple seasons with the Warriors, so it would not be surprising to see a resurgence from deep in the coming weeks.

Steph Curry

Pre: 49% FG, 44% 3pt
Post: 44% FG, 42% 3pt

Curry’s regular season strayed from his historical norms.

Throughout his career, Steph has seen his percentages rise considerably post-All-Star break. This season, however, it was the opposite.

The good news is that Steph improved his numbers greatly after a “mini-slump” coming out of the break.

Starting in late February, Curry went through a 10-game stretch in which he shot 39 percent overall from the field and only 33 percent from deep. But over the last 11 games heading into the playoffs, Steph has shot 48 percent from the field and a scorching 50 percent from 3-point range. If his ankle truly is fine after a small tweak against the New Orleans Pelicans, then Curry should enter the playoffs as confident as ever.

Klay Thompson

Pre: 47% FG, 40% 3pt
Post: 46% FG, 42% 3pt

If there is anyone on the Warriors that can’t be defined by Pre- and Post-All-Star break splits, it is Klay Thompson.

Instead, to really break down Klay’s season, you can practically cut the season in half.

Over the first 36 games this season, Klay shot 44 percent overall from the field and 33 percent from deep, well below his career average. Over the last 42 games, Thompson has shot the ball as well as he has in his entire career, hitting 50 percent of his shots from the field, and an incredible 46 percent from deep.

Klay has saved the Warriors in the playoffs with some monumental shooting displays, and you can bet the Warriors will feed him early on to try to get him going.

Andre Iguodala

Pre: 50% FG, 37% 3pt
Post: 50% FG, 22% 3pt

Iguodala started the season shooting the ball as well as he has in his entire Warriors career.

However, due to injuries, and most likely some fatigue, Iguodala’s 3-point shot has faded down the stretch. The good news is that Andre should be well rested for the playoffs, as he has only played in two games in April.

While it is always a welcome sight to see Iguodala hitting his shots from deep, and he has shown the ability to hit them with consistency as “Playoff Iguodala,” the Warriors will instead be counting on his defense and playmaking ability to keep them at their best.

Shaun Livingston

Pre: 50% FG
Post: 62% FG

It has been a rough year health-wise for Livingston, as he dealt with a balky knee that has forced him to contemplate retirement after the season. But Shaun’s numbers have improved throughout the season, including an 11-game stretch to close the campaign in which he shot a torrid 80 percent from the field.

When the Warriors are fully healthy, Livingston’s role can simply be to facilitate on offense and play sound defense. However, he has been known to hit one of his patented turnaround jumpers when the Warriors are in need of a bucket, and his shooting stroke looked as good at it has all season down the stretch.

[RELATED: Can anyone dethrone the Warriors?]

Quinn Cook

Pre: 45% FG, 37% 3pt
Post: 50% FG, 47% 3pt

Quinn Cook’s shooting has been so impressive of late, that he has forced his name into the playoff rotation equation. Despite some defensive deficiencies mostly due to his size, Cook can be a useful piece for the Warriors’ second unit when he is knocking down his catch-and-shoot opportunities.

He has found a nice rapport with Cousins on the court, spacing the floor and keeping his hands ready for when Boogie passes the ball from the block. Over the last nine games, Cook is shooting an incredible 59 percent from deep, raising his stock just in time for the postseason, and most likely inserting himself into a shortened rotation.



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