Brooklyn Nets rising star Cam Thomas weighed in on Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry and LA Clippers star James Harden's influence on today's NBA. Thomas broke down how his generation drew more inspiration from Harden's playstyle during his prime with the Houston Rockets despite Curry's league-wide impact.
Curry and Harden are broadly credited with helping bring about the NBA's 3-point revolution. The acclaimed guards rank first (3,807) and second (2,988) in all-time triples, with Curry maintaining a sizeable cushion in the top spot.
Nevertheless, according to Thomas, more of today's hoopers modeled their games after prime Harden due to his superior shot-creating abilities.
"I think we really gravitated toward James 'cause James was doing the isos, like breaking people down one-on-one, scoring the 40s and 50s," Thomas said on Wednesday's episode of "The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis."
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However, the fourth-year shooting guard noted that Curry shifted teams' offensive strategies, sparking higher volume 3-point shooting and increased ball movement.
"I think Steph really changed the way teams wanted to play the game of basketball, shooting the 3, moving around without the ball," Thomas said. "I think Steph really changed the way teams around the league tried to play. James really changed the individual play. The isos, the handles, step-backs, the foul drawing, all that stuff."
Thomas is not the first NBA personality to proclaim Harden more impactful on the modern generation than Curry. Earlier this month, Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce did so on his podcast "The Truth Lounge." He pointed to the NBA's influx of "step-back 3s" and players "going into their bags" to create long-distance shots because of Harden.
Nonetheless, Thomas and Pierce's viewpoint still appears to represent the minority opinion across the NBA world.
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Cam Thomas lauds James Harden and Steph Curry as No. 1 and 2 most influential modern players
Later in his podcast appearance, Cam Thomas added that despite leaning toward James Harden over Steph Curry, he and his generation immensely respect both players.
"James and Steph are the two for our generation," Thomas said. "For the young guys, they're the No. 1 and No. 2."
However, the rising star quipped that Curry and Harden's time running the NBA is over, alluding to the league's youth movement.
"Shoutout to those guys for changing the game, but it's our time now for sure," Thomas said.
Thomas got off to a career-best start this season before suffering a left hamstring strain during Monday's 128-120 road win over Curry's Warriors. Through 17 outings, he is averaging career highs of 24.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.9 3-pointers per game, shooting 46.1% and 38.9% from deep.
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