Warriors’ Steph Curry ranked No. 31 player in NBA five years from now

NBA team at NBC Sports has been counting down its list of who it projects to be the 50 best players in the NBA five years from now in the summer of 20244. Age, potential, injury history and other factors all were taken into account. Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry has been ranked No. 31, however, NBC Sports’ Tom Haberstroh certainly feels, that Curry’s ranking is too low. "Did I miss something?" Haberstroh questioned. "I feel like the best shooter ever deserves a higher spot on this list. If you don’t think his superhuman ability to score from far away places won’t age well, consider the careers of Reggie Miller and Ray Allen, the only two players who have made more 3-pointers than Curry has in this league. Miller was starting playoff games at age 39. Allen was starting Finals games at age 38. Oh, and Steve Nash was an All-Star two weeks after his 38th birthday." For reference, Curry will be 36 in the summer of 2024. "Curry’s ranking suggests he’s at the tail end of his career," Haberstroh continued, "but he just increased his scoring average for the second consecutive season, averaging 27.3 points per game with pristine efficiency. After raising his scoring average to 28.2 points per game this postseason, there are no signs of decline." Haberstroh explains what factor is holding Curry back from being ranked higher. "OK, the ankles," Haberstroh wrote. "Yes, the ankles. There’s a reason to worry that Curry’s wheels will deflate faster than the average NBA player, but even if Curry moves off the ball and becomes more of a spot-up shooter, I still think he’d stretch defences to near half-court. We’ve never seen a player like Curry who can launch from just about anywhere with the ball in his hands.  But even if he can’t terrorize defences with his lightning-quick handles and crab-like lateral movement, he’ll still impact the game at a high level simply by standing there beyond the arc. Just ask Miller, Allen and Nash about how that gravitational pull ages."

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