Brad Stevens wants every player on his roster to be able to shoot from beyond the arc, but he wants his best 3-point shooters to continue expanding their shot range.
The Boston Celtics head coach thinks the range of which 3-point shots are made only will grow as the years go on, and that means defenses will play a bigger role in defending the shooter. Stevens noted some of the game’s best shooters will deepen their range, and that defenders probably should figure out how to stop them now because it won’t get any easier.
“For sure. No question, that’s the Steph Curry effect, right?” Stevens told the Boston Herald’s Mark Murphy. “When you pick up Kyrie Irving, Steph Curry, Kemba Walker, at 22 feet you’re dead. You’d better pick them up higher than that, because they’re so good scoring off the dribble into their shot from 25, 26 feet and in, I just think that’s the game right now.
“And that’s something that is stretching defenses out, and the best offenses get to the rim because of that,” he said. “That’s what we’re trying to get better at.”
Heading into Saturday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, Boston was second in the league with attempted 3-pointers, and tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 3-point percentage.
