It is now almost exactly 9 years since Steph Curry hit Chris Paul with one of the most impressive moves of his career. As some NBA fans will know, Steph and CP3 are both playing on the same team this season after the Warriors made a surprising trade to acquire Paul at the start of the 2023-2024 NBA season.
For several years prior to this, Paul and Curry were considered rivals. This was due to the fact that both their teams often met in the Western Conference playoffs. Moreover, the two of them were also aiming to establish themselves as the best point guard of the modern generation. Now that the context has been provided, let us take a look back to the moment that occurred between the two NBA stars almost a decade ago.
Steph Curry dropped Chris Paul with a double behind-the-back crossover in 2015
While Steph Curry has remained loyal to the Warriors and spent his entire career so far with the same team, Chris Paul has played for several teams throughout his own NBA career. In 2015, Paul was playing for the Los Angeles Clippers alongside Blake Griffin. Towards the end of the 2014-2015 season, the Warriors and Clippers matched up for a regular season game.
In that game, there was a certain play made by Steph Curry which dazzled the Clippers’ audience. With less than 3 minutes left in the second quarter, Steph drove the ball to the rim while being guarded by Chris Paul. Curry hit Paul with a double behind-the-back crossover to drop CP3 to his knees. Steph then rose for the jumper and made the shot.
Executing a perfect double behind-the-back crossover is quite rare, even in the NBA. Moreover, dropping the opponent in the process made this move all the more impressive. This leads to a bigger question of just how good Curry’s handles are when compared to the rest of the NBA.
9 years ago today, Steph Curry did this to CP3! pic.twitter.com/q9Yz75SZgd
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) March 31, 2024
Does Curry have the best handles in the NBA?
Since Steph Curry has established his legacy with his incredible long-distance shooting abilities, his other skills such as his facilitating and dribbling can be considered underrated. However, there is no denying that Steph is more than competent in those domains.
As far as having the best handles in the NBA, fans and players alike widely agree that Kyrie Irving is the best ball handler in NBA history. That would put Steph in the second spot considering that his handles are just a tick below Irving’s. In any case, footage of Curry dropping CP3 9 years ago continues to generate attention even in present times.