The NBA announced that Golden State Warriors point guard Steph Curry will compete against WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu in a three point competition during NBA All-Star Weekend and Steph may have a dilemma.
A champion of progressive causes, Curry is in a pickle. Does he embrace his competitive spirit and ball out? Or does he concede the win for the betterment of female empowerment?
The competition will be sandwiched by the NBA’s dunk contest and the actual, all-male, three point contest and will see Curry shoot from the regular NBA three point line while Ionescu will shoot from the shortened WNBA line.
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— NBA (@NBA) January 30, 2024
Right off the bat, why are we playing with different rules? If you’re going to compete, compete at the same level.
To be fair, I’m partially trolling here. Steph is legitimately one of my favorite players in the league and, as a dude who runs charity basketball camps for girls, at least he puts his money where his mouth is. (RELATED: Notorious Nut-Kicker Draymond Green Says He Cried To Head Coach Steve Kerr)
Plus, while I don’t go out of my way to watch the WNBA, I admire Ionescu’s swagger and she definitely displayed a baller mentality in college.
All that being said, it’s ridiculous that they’re shooting from a different line. Shooting is arguably the one facet of basketball that a woman could theoretically get better than a man at.
I mean, let’s face it. The best WNBA player is never going to out jump, out run or out muscle even a mid-level NBA bench player. But shooting, while it involves a physical component, is all about form and technique. Curry himself is a testament to that fact.
Widely regarded as the best three point shooter, and probably the best shooter period, in the history of the game, Curry was not highly recruited out of high school.
According to Rivals, Curry was merely a three-star recruit and only received seven scholarship offers, mostly to small schools. But he worked and worked at his craft, and the rest is history.
So what could be more empowering than having a woman beat the best man at the same standard? Why are we lowering the bar here? And at least if she loses with the NBA line she can do it with dignity.
Either way, I wouldn’t be surprised if the NBA had Steph toss the game for the sake of the narrative. Total girl boss moment incoming.