Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry takes a three point shot that would break the NBA record held by Ray Allen in the first half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York on Tue Dec 14, 2021 (AP News photo)
By Jessica Kwong
NEW YORK, NY—Golden State Warriors (23-5) guard Stephen Curry walked into Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night ready to make history against the New York Knicks (12-16) in a 105-96 win. After warming up with a range of shots – including three pointers – Curry walked up to a smiling Ray Allen, the record holder for most three-point field goals in NBA history – but not for long.
Early in the first quarter, Curry sank a three-pointer, tying the record with Allen. Then with 7:33 remaining in the quarter, off a pass from Andrew Wiggins, Curry made the splash from the right wing setting a new record: 2,974 three-pointers.
Golden State then committed a foul and called a timeout that the league let last three-and-a-half minutes to celebrate the greatest shooter of all time. Curry took in his accomplishment at backcourt, then hugged teammates, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and finally, Allen.
“I talked to Ray last week and he mentioned just make it your own, like, there’s no right way, wrong way to celebrate it. It’s just the way you feel that moment and that’s exactly what happened,” Curry said postgame. “I’m sure as the days go on, I’ll go back to that moment and relive the emotions of it because it was like that, it was really, really awesome.”
Golden State led 12-10 after Curry’s historic shot and the score was tied at 24 at the end of the quarter. The Knicks led 48-47 at the half, but the Warriors took command in the third quarter, finishing 71-64. New York was unable to catch up in the fourth quarter and the Curry and the Warriors won 105-96.
The night ended with more glory for Curry, interviews at center court and MVP chants.
Kerr said the team fouled after Curry’s special shot to give him the moment.
“You know you have to do something you can’t just keep playing,” Kerr said, adding he noticed it was an extra long timeout that was obviously organized beforehand. “It just felt like the right thing to do to make sure we celebrate.”
Wiggins said “Steph is a humble superstar” and that “in his speech, he was just thanking other people.”
Draymond Green admitted that Curry hitting the mark was a huge relief for him and the entire team, and that they can now focus on other goals.
“Steph is the best to ever shoot a basketball,” Green said. “Tonight was a huge step in the right direction for us.”
Regarding being called the greatest shooter of all time, Curry is finally comfortable owning the title.
“I got that baby,” Curry said, raising both arms in the air.
He looks to hit many more three-pointers, but won’t say what his exact goal is.
“Now that I got past that hump I can just let it fly and see how far I can push it,” Curry said. “Whenever I’m done playing, hopefully it’s not anytime soon.”
The Warriors (23-5) lead the western conference and continue their road trip on Friday against the Boston Celtics. Tipoff is at 4:30 p.m.
