Curry, Ionescu were the only bright spots
The NBA All-Star Game has taken a beating over the past week. Last Sunday’s game was terrible. There was no competition, no defense, and no desire to entertain the fans besides 50-footers and alley-oops.
The NBA will have to meet again with the Players Association and devise a way to encourage All-Stars to actually try, because fans can plainly see they’re not. The bright spot of All-Star Weekend was the 3-point competition between Stephen Curry and the WNBA’s Sabrina Ionescu.
Curry edged Ionescu, 29-26. Ionescu’s performance opened the eyes of some fans who still don’t believe women players are elite. The NBA should incorporate the WNBA more into All-Star Weekend because, quite honestly, it would serve as a bigger showcase for the WNBA players than its own All-Star Game.
Curry and Ionescu understood the impact their competition could have on women’s basketball and also the NBA/ WNBA partnership.
“Just basketball as a whole, I think,” said Ionescu. “Being able to have this crossover and understanding the respect I’ve been able to receive from a lot of the NBA guys, just knowing that Steph wanted to do this as well, in terms of just respecting another shooter. I think it’s going to show a lot of young kids out there, a lot of people who might have not believed or even watched women’s sports that we’re able to go out there and put on a show. So, it was really exciting to finally be able to do this.”
What is heartening is the mutual admiration between the leagues and how NBA players follow the WNBA. Iowa star guard Caitlin Clark has drawn the attention of the nation and the WNBA has to capitalize on that popularity.
“When I first met [Ionescu] back in the Bay . . . you see a different demeanor and a different kind of killer instinct and a focus that, I mean, the skill is one thing, but the mentality is a totally different thing that you kind of can’t teach,” Curry said. “She’s demonstrated that every step of the way. So I knew, no matter how the buildup was, there would be no stage that would be too bright for her. The way that the competition went, the way she started was like there’s no fear, and there’s no kind of hesitation at all. She knows who she is.”
Ionescu’s performance showed that women can have as much flair and style in their games as men. The NBA should consider having a WNBA player, or players, participate in every All-Star 3-point shootout.
“I think the media has changed the conversation for little boys and girls watching us play. It doesn’t matter what gym you show up to, don’t discount who’s to your left and to your right,” Curry said. “If they can shoot, they can shoot. We can compete and have fun. Hopefully we can be models of what that looks like on the biggest stage.
“I know she’s in basketball, for women’s basketball, she’s just getting started on her career, so I’ll let her speak to that. But we’ll continue to find awesome ways to further the conversation on how amazing the women’s game is, getting the eyeballs on it and continue to create energy around it. This was a small step in that direction.”
Fans were able to see how much Curry and Ionescu had in common rather than what separates them.
“I think that’s kind of been what both of us have done our entire careers is just created our own space and done it our way and stayed true to ourselves,” Ionescu said. “This was so authentic to the both of us to be able to be here, finally not in a closed gym, shooting in front of everyone watching and understanding what it means for ourselves and also the bigger picture, knowing that this is where I wanted to be to be able to do this. We’re very excited to see kind of what the future has to hold with more people having the opportunity to do stuff like this.”