San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Enduring greatness
STEPHEN CURRY AT 33 Warrior may change game again with age — by staying at top
As he sinks shots from adjacent counties and finishes with flair at the rim, dropping 62 points on Portland and 57 on Dallas and dazzling at the AllStar Game, one widescope question shadows Warriors guard Stephen Curry. How much longer can he play like this? Curry turns 33 on Sunday, an age at which most NBA players — especially guards — begin to slow down. And yet Curry is speeding up, carrying his team into playoff contention and threatening to stretch the prime of his career into new frontiers.
This sounded like fodder for a sports science expert, so The Chronicle contacted Dr. Marcus Elliott, the Harvardeducated founder and director of Peak Performance Project (known as P3) in Santa Barbara. Elliott studies elite ath
letes, including many NBA players, and advises them on strength and biomechanics.
He offered compelling data to convey pro basketball’s quickening pace: The average perimeter player, he said, creates 10% more lateral force than 10 years ago. Elliott also acknowledged aging: If a player doesn’t commit to extensive training, he said, it’s not unusual to see an 18% drop in power output (often measured with a vertical jump test to gauge power and explosiveness in an athlete’s legs) between ages 28 and 35.
Curry presents a fascinating case, given his distinctive skill set. He doesn’t race downcourt like John Wall, soar above the rim like Ja Morant or physically overwhelm opposing guards the way Russell Westbrook does.
But in Elliott’s trained eyes — he and his P3 staff routinely feed data on NBA players’ movements into an algorithm and cluster them based on their “systems” — Curry’s grace, body control and sound mechanics bode well for a long career. He doesn’t rely on a single superpower, as Elliott put it.
“The most interesting group is efficient movers: players who are not super powerful, don’t jump out of the gym and don’t outrun people,” Elliott said. “They almost always come into the league a bit underestimated. But they don’t have significant biomechanical issues, they have no lousy movements, every system works.
“They’re not flashy, but they have a tool for every job. I call them Swiss army knives. To me, Steph is one of these kinematic movers: He has a system that can always take advantage of what’s in front of him.”
What’s in front of Curry are treacherous years, typically, for an NBA player. Allen Iverson, an electric point guard in his prime, fell off sharply at age 33 and was out of the league before he turned 35. Gary Payton’s player efficiency rating (measuring perminute productivity) dropped steeply starting at 34. Mike Bibby, a reliable scorer with Sacramento in his 20s, bounced to four teams in his early 30s and was done by 33.
On the flip side, Chris Paul is going strong approaching 36, averaging 16 points and nearly nine assists for Phoenix. John Stockton’s PER was higher in his 30s than in his 20s, and he played until age 41 and started every game his last four seasons. Steve Nash led Phoenix to the Western Conference finals at 35 and made the AllStar team at 38.
Curry can find particular relevance in Nash’s longevity, given their similar styles: deft ballhandlers, extraordinary outside shooters. Nash also credited Rick Celebrini for guiding him through severe back issues and extending his career — and Celebrini is now the Warriors’ director of sports medicine and performance.
“There’s a blueprint now, growing science and technology that allows players to play longer and sustain a level longer,” said Nash, previously a Warriors consultant and now Brooklyn’s head coach. “I’m certain we’ll see guys like Steph extend their primes more readily, because we know more.”
Or, as Curry said of Celebrini, “Rick will be a big help in that mission to play at this level as long as I can.”
Curry wasted little time returning to his familiar level after a 201920 season lost to a broken hand and the pandemic. He played only five games, giving his body muchneeded rest after an exhausting, fiveyear stretch in which he played the equivalent of more than an extra full season in the playoffs (91 games).
Curry averages 29.3 points this season, exceeded only by his unanimous MVP season of 201516, when he averaged 30.1. His player efficiency rating of 24.95 would mark the fourthhighest figure of his career, and his true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3pointers) of 64.1% would match his third best.
Also do not dismiss the diligence with which Steve Kerr monitors Curry’s minutes. He hasn’t averaged more than 34.2 in a season since Kerr took over as Warriors head coach, after reaching 38.2 and 36.5 in Mark Jackson’s final two seasons. Curry is at 33.9 this year.
“I’ve had good juice coming into this season, and it’s obviously showing on the court,” he said. “My body feels great. The offseason work has kind of manifested and given me more confidence this is going to be the norm for the foreseeable future.”
Celebrini’s impact is difficult to measure but lauded by Warriors assistant coach Bruce Fraser, who has worked with Curry the past seven seasons (Celebrini is not available for interviews, per team policy). Fraser pointed to Celebrini’s ability to connect strength, body movement and basketballspecific functions.
One example: Curry stands at the free throw line during his pregame warmup routine, on one leg, and goes down into almost a lunge, keeping his core tight as he uncoils into a shot. That drill works on his balance, strength and rhythm, as Fraser put it.
This will matter more as Curry navigates his mid30s — a time when players’ bodies invariably break down. Just ask Kerr.
He played until 37 but started to feel “much more sore” at about 33. Kerr had ACL reconstruction in college, and Curry hasn’t had knee issues, though he fought ankle problems early in his career.
“My secondtolast year (200102) in Portland, I’d go a week on antiinflammatories and a week off,” Kerr said. “I felt great some days and other days I felt like I was run00ning in sand.”
Kerr and other standout 3point shooters, such as Ray Allen — the only player to make more 3point shots than Curry — and Kyle Korver, still carved out long careers. Shooting often is an enduring skill, so Curry could remain a threat when his ability to create his own shot wanes.
Korver spent years working with Elliott, the Santa Barbara doctor, and ultimately spent 17 seasons in the NBA. Curry similarly focuses on improving strength and quickness in offseason workouts with longtime personal trainer Brandon Payne.
Payne contended Curry counts as a late bloomer physically — he’s still making incremental gains in jumping higher and moving heavier loads at faster velocities, Payne said. That’s why he expects Curry to expand the usual NBA player’s prime of age 27 to 32, and potentially play at a high level for six or seven more years.
It can be done, as Stockton showed and as 36yearold LeBron James is still showing.
“I’d say Steph’s got four more really good years in him, and then it’s just a matter of what he wants,” Fraser said. “Science matters, but if there’s one guy who can do crazy stuff at 40, it’s Steph.”