In the NBA, a shooter could by and large control the game. A guard with enough skills to make a pull-up shot or a deep three. However, that skill has been considered the privilege of the ‘gifted’ like Stephen Curry and Ray Allen, with the Golden Boy’s records in 3-points reigning the single-season leaderboard. This makes the question of hard work a problem and we have here a particular talk show host that considers the question. 

On the latest episode of The Mark Jackson Show, the 1989 NBA All-Star alongside his Jr. co-hosted the former NBA veteran Chris Mullin. The question popped up when Jackson came up with his debate with Ray Allen where they contested whether a true shooter is born or made. 

The ‘Jesus Shuttlesworth‘ as reported by Jackson stood by work habits made within the gym. Here Jackson rolls out his take, “I could shoot a million times in my life and I’ll never shoot as well as Chris Mullin, Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, Steph Curry. It’s not gonna happen. I can improve my shooting, but there’s no way in the world I can shoot at the level of you guys.” 

The former point guard then turns to Chris Mullin for the veteran’s take on the idea of sharpening his shooting skills to which he responded with a pep-talk reminiscent of their training days. 

The 5x NBA All-Star took it further to make a point after mentioning how Jackson Sr. did indeed become a good shooter from beyond the arc during his Indiana days. “It’s an innate skill that you’re somewhat born with, but if you don’t train it, it’s going away,” and went on to state that Ray Allen could have lost it if he hadn’t trained.

While giving credit to his own efforts along his career, the retired Warriors No.17 also took it to nudge the ex-Warriors coach, “Man we already touched on it, you know maybe if you hit the weight room. And you brought up your pregame meal. All of a sudden we might have Ray Allen as a point guard,” mentioning about some untapped potential within Jackson. While the conversation turns to laughter, Jackson doesn’t forget to mention his respect for ‘Chef Curry’ which is something that needs a closer look. 

Stephen Curry, with a 15-year-long career and 959 games to date, has averaged 24.7 points and 6.4 assists which is comparable to legendary 3-point shooters like Larry Bird. So there is reason for Jackson to admire him. However, mere career averages don’t justify it for the Golden State Warriors star.

The shooting journey of Stephen Curry

Ray Allen was once asked about Curry’s ranking in shooting history, to which he had to say, “Based on what he’s done, I think he has to be—he’s on his way to being the best ever.” This was at a point when he had already beaten Allen’s record for making the most 3-pts in a single season with 272 in 2012-13 only to break it with his own records sooner.

On the leaderboard, his name is recorded 4 times in the top 5. This journey later goes on to get him a 3P% of 0.425 in 16 years which is commendable. ‘The Human Torch‘ wasn’t done with the deep shots. He later went on to be the all-time leader in 3-pointers at 2,977  back in 2021.

His pull-up shots are also famous, starting with the 2017 NBA season’s first game of Golden State when his pull-up 3-point shot swished through the hoop closing the game with the Warriors winning. Unlike, catch and shoot, this shot demands a dynamic change of posture from dribbling to throwing. However, it is quite an opportunity to catch the defenders off-guard and score points, which was efficiently used by ‘The Golden Boy‘ on his way to 3-pointer records. 

Even though Curry didn’t have a good start with the NBA and the Golden State Warriors, troubled with injuries in the beginning, he pulled his way up here with consistent efforts such as the form shooting that he religiously follows. 

Thus, here we have a rationale for Mark Jackson’s admiration for Curry as a shooter as well as Mullin’s point focusing on the need for training to retain talent.