Even when it's not LeBron James directly involved in the headlines, he's still somehow makes it in there. Appearing on 'The Dan Patrick Show' on Tuesday, Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry said he thinks he's better than the four-time MVP on offense.
The 25-year-old point guard has a case too. If we were to look at each player's first five seasons in the league, Curry has the advantage in field goal percentage (46.7% compared to James' 46.6%), three-point percentage (44% to 32%), and assists per game (6.69 to 6.58). James has the upper hand in total points (10,689 to Curry's 6,814) and points per game (27.3 to 20.3). However, Curry had a shortened season during his third year due to injury where he only played 26 games (he played 336 games in his first five seasons compared to James' 391).
"A better offensive player, me or LeBron? That's the first time I've ever been asked that question. Me," Curry said in an interview on 'The Dan Patrick Show' on Tuesday. "He obviously demands a lot of attention on the floor, but I like to say I can distribute, get my teammates involved and be a playmaker as well."
LeBron James also averaged 41.1 minutes per game in his first five seasons versus Curry's 35.5, which could make a decent case for Curry's efficiency on the floor. Additionally, the fact that Curry is primarily a shooting point guard rather than a driving ball handler makes his 46.7% field goal percentage even more impressive. However, if we were to compared James' last five years with Curry's first five years, the King takes nearly every category.
In LeBron's last five seasons (one with Cleveland, four with Miami) he compiled a field goal percentage of 53.5%, a three-point field goal percentage of 36.2%, averaged 7.1 assists per game, 27.4 points per game, scored a total of 10,177 points, while averaging 38.2 minutes per game. The only stat in Curry's advantage is three-point field goal percentage (44% to 36.2%). James also bests Curry in Player Efficiency Rating (PER), which is a formula used to determine all of a player's on-court contributions into one number. James averaged a 25.18 PER in his first five seasons while Curry sports only a 20.5 PER, which still isn't bad. But James' 30.8 PER in the last five years is the best in the NBA. Although PER incorporates a player's every contribution, it's very telling for offensive players.
Curry is certainly on his way to becoming one of the best and most prolific offensive NBA players of all-time, but it looks like James has him beat in that aspect of the game based on Curry's statistics through his first five years. He'll have some more work to do, and he'll have plenty of time to do it. You can read more about Curry's claim in this ESPN article.
