Portland Trail Blazers guard Seth Curry has done little to wow spectators this season. Rather than fret, he is staying patient, knowing his production will return.
Let’s face it: Seth Curry has been mostly “meh” this season. He is still hitting threes at a great rate, but he hasn’t found his place as a shot-creator in the Portland Trail Blazers offense.
This is the same Seth Curry that I even told some people might have Sixth Man of the Year potential. You can imagine how embarrassed I’ve been.
But then Mike Richman of NBC Sports Northwest spoke to Curry himself and they both reminded me that I need to be patient with him.
Instead of cringing at Curry’s 5.1 points per game 38.8 percent shooting from the field, I should be celebrating his 46.2 percent shooting from deep and flashes of potential when running the offense.
After all, it has been more than 18 months since Curry played a regular season game. As Richman says, “There was bound to be some rust.” But Blazers fans should rejoice knowing that he is still doing well the things you expect a player like him to do well. Re-gaining his explosion and decision-making ability could take a few more than 10 games.
Although Curry isn’t scoring like he did in Dallas two years ago, Richman notes that he is still quietly impacting the club. He holds a team-leading +18.2 net rating.
Richman illustrates Curry as feeling his performances haven’t been up to his own standards, but that he is maintaining faith in his regimen. He knows that if he keeps prepared, his shooting stroke will return and a big game is all but assured:
"“The more I just get my game back the more I’ll be able to create opportunities for myself and other people, get my off-the-bounce game going a bit better. I’ll figure it out as the season goes along.”"
Curry is not panicking over his first 10-games. Instead, he is holding pat to his routine, having confidence that he knows what will get him back to his lines in Dallas.
But even just as a three-point threat, Curry is still a valuable contributor on the team. Funnily enough though, Curry’s first mention of what kept him on the floor was defense:
"“Like I said, the key for me right now is I keep defending and giving coach a reason to have me out there.”"
Jake Layman said something similar about how his defense gave him opportunities on the floor in October. Layman, of course, is less established than Curry, but Stotts appears to hold both players accountable to their effort on the less glamorous end.
Terry Stotts rule #209: A Trail Blazer can be patient with his shot, sure. But he cannot slouch on defense while he waits.
The type of patience Curry is exhibiting, then, is the kind that could breed a “bought-in” atmosphere, especially if the Blazers’ record stays this good.