“What me & Klay needed” – Steph Curry reveals crucial turning point for ‘Splash Brothers’ under the coaching of Steve Kerr

For more than a decade, fans watched Steph Curry and Klay Thompson take and make shots that most players would never be allowed to try. What many considered “bad” shots became an integral part of the Golden State Warriors’ offense, thanks to coach Steve Kerr giving the Splash Brothers the freedom to attempt them.

According to Curry, the turning point came during the 2014-2015 season in a game against the LA Clippers, something he shares in his new book “Shot Ready.”

Curry recalls that Kerr, then in his first season as head coach, was stunned by the shot at first. But instead of being strict, Kerr took the opposite approach and gave the Splash Brothers the green light to take such shots.

“As the ball floated through the net, Coach Kerr threw his hands on his head, shocked that I took the shot. And maybe even more shocked that I made it,” Curry wrote.

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“That’s as close as I got to getting my license taken away by Coach. But it ended up having the opposite effect. For the first time, he acknowledged that he wouldn’t tell us what a bad shot is.

“This was what me and Klay needed—trust. Once we had that, we could stretch our shot-taking creativity and imaginations. We could redefine what a good shot was. Now that kind of offensive creativity became part of the team’s DNA.”

The play Steph Curry was talking about occurred on March 8, 2015, at Oracle Arena against the Clippers. Early in the third quarter, he found himself facing four defenders, dribbling past Chris Paul, Matt Barnes, DeAndre Jordan and Spencer Hawes before knocking down a tough turnaround 3-pointer.

Steve Kerr never questioned Steph Curry’s shot selection

Steve Kerr recognized Steph Curry’s brilliance early in his first season as a head coach. He had to unlearn what he’d been taught his whole life about what a good shot looks like.

“I'm thinking every coach that I ever had in my life, their voice was in my head saying, 'That's a terrible shot,’” Kerr recollected. “I eventually figured out that it's a great shot because it's Steph Curry. … I finally realized Steph gets to shoot whenever he wants.”

Once Kerr gave Curry the freedom to take those shots, Steph went on to hit an incredible 402 3-pointers in the 2015-2016 season, setting the record for the most threes in a single season.

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About the author

Advait Jajodia

Advait Jajodia is an NBA, WNBA, and tennis journalist at Sportskeeda with over four years of experience in the field with The SportsRush.

Advait has a love of basketball that stems from playing the game, and has represented Mumbai North at the Inter-District State Championship and Maharashtra at the ASISC National Games.

His favorite team is the New Orleans Pelicans, although Advait also has an affinity for the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs. His favorite player of all time was Kobe Bryant, as the Lakers legend's undeniable talent and mentality were just unignorable. As for players in the current game, Stephen Curry, Zion Williamson, Victor Wembanyama, and Kyrie Irving are top of Advait's list.

When not watching or writing about sports, Advait is a fan of true crime shows, board games and console gaming.

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