Steph Leads the League in Plus/Minus by a Lot
An interesting stat appeared last night after the Warriors’ victory against the Kings. Warriors’ superstar Steph Curry is leading the league in the plus/minus category by a wide margin with +331.
The closest player behind Curry is Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell with +246.
Curry finished the game versus the Kings with an impressive stat line of 30 points while shooting an efficient 13/27 from the field. He ended the game with a +16, tying Andre Iguodala in that category.
According to Basketball Reference, the plus/minus evaluates the player’s efficiency when they’re on the court. The plus/minus also looks at the team’s point differential when the player is on the floor to gauge how the team is performing.
Normally, this honor would be given to Iguodala, who doesn’t normally fill the box sheet with eye-dropping numbers like he used to, but always consistently has a positive plus/minus.
Iguodala is known to have those intangibles – always being in the right place at the right time. Andre’s impact is felt throughout the game as he continues to use his heightened basketball IQ to set screens and make plays happen.
As for Curry, he struggled in the first half against the Kings, but he picked up some steam in the second half by attacking the rim and really picking his spots to be more efficient.
The two-time MVP finished the fourth quarter with half of his 30 points while going 6-for-9 from the field and shooting 3-for-4 from three.
A major difference from Curry’s performance last night came from his shot selection, which would affect his efficiency.
While the first half saw a lot of missed opportunities coming in the form of isolation plays and stagnant ball movement, the second half featured the normal levels of efficiency that we are used to seeing.
The play of the game came from the basket that gave Curry his 30 points. After coming off the low-post split action, Curry got the ball on the right wing, and while he couldn’t find enough space to launch a heavily contested three, he gave it back to Iguodala and never stopped moving. Curry naturally made a backdoor cut and Iguodala found him in stride and Curry found a more efficient shot at the rim.
Those subtle read-and-reactions from Number 30 increased his efficiency. While Curry is known to make tough, contested threes under duress, a more efficient look was at the rim and Curry made it happen.
Something that the Warriors have struggled with last year was keeping the game close during the non-Curry minutes. The non-Curry minutes would usually spell doom for the Warriors, as the offense came to a complete halt without having a consistent second option.
This year, with Poole stepping up as the second option until Klay Thompson comes back and Wiggins providing a solid 18 points a night, the Warriors have a little more consistency with their offense.
And with Curry leading the league in the plus/minus category by a far margin, showing his value and efficiency, it adds another layer to the MVP conversation moving forward.
(Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)