By Joe Vardon, Sabreena Merchant and James Boyd
INDIANAPOLIS – Stephen Curry, the greatest 3-point shooter in history, defeated WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu in a unique shootout on All-Star Saturday Night.
Curry, the Golden State Warriors superstar whose 3,642 regular-season 3-pointers are the most ever and who has two NBA 3-point championships to his name, easily scored one in the single-round contest Score of 29 to Ionescu's 26 eclipsed the league's regular 3-point contest.
This competition between two friends who both call the San Francisco area home didn't quite have the same weight as the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match between Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King in 1973. If anything, the Ionescu's ability to lure Curry onto the court and compete with him as she did exemplifies the tremendous respect the women's game has gained from fans and their male counterparts in the NBA.
“Just knowing that Steph wanted to do this too, just to respect another female shooter, I think will show a lot of little kids out there, a lot of people who maybe didn't believe in women's sports or didn't even see them, that we are.” We can go out there and put on a show,” Ionescu said. “It was really exciting to finally be able to do that.”
Ionescu, who shot a WNBA-sized ball from the NBA 3-point line, hit her first seven shots, drawing attention from the Indianapolis crowd at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Curry won a 3-point championship belt, which looks like a boxing or professional wrestling title belt and features goats on each side of the buckle. His 29 was better than any round made during the evening's regular NBA 3-point contest, won by Damian Lillard (who had two rounds of 26 each).
Last summer, Ionescu hit 25 of her last 26 shots in the WNBA 3-point contest to score 37 points, the highest score of any 3-point contest in the men's or women's game.
“I saw the first rack,” Curry said. “I had flashbacks when I saw Summer. She put on a really great act. …So it certainly created a lot of pressure. I just wanted to get off to a good start and settle in. Luckily I did enough to get past the finish line, but that was perfect. It was great entertainment, great filming on both sides.”
The NBA and WNBA donated $25,000 to charities of the two players' choice, and State Farm donated thousands of dollars to the NBA Foundation for every shot Curry and Ionescu hit.
The Curry-Ionescu competition took place on a brand new, forgiving LED glass court developed by German company ASB GlassFloor and installed at the soccer stadium for All-Star Weekend. The floor changed colors, graphics and messages throughout the night.
“So much credit goes to them,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “I wish it was the league that had come up with this idea.”
Ionescu, a native of the Bay Area in California, where Curry starred, challenged Curry to a duel and he accepted.
“Having her presence on this stage will do a lot to inspire the next generation of young boys and girls who want to compete and see themselves in one of us,” Curry said. “Wherever it goes, we know we’re planting our flag, so to speak, and doing something really special.”
Before the competition, Ionescu said: “I know if I win he will want a rematch. If he wins, I’ll want a rematch.”
Next year's All-Star Weekend will take place in San Francisco at the Curry Building. Does anyone think Ionescu will show up again?
Should Stephen vs. Sabrina become a recurring event?
Kenny Smith suggested that Curry and Ionescu return for an encore shootout next year, this time with Lillard and Caitlin Clark, who will presumably be a WNBA player by then. While the first shootout certainly lived up to the hype, having to continue carrying the torch for the WNBA on All-Star Saturday could be a disservice to Ionescu. Rotating the NBA and WNBA participants in a recurring battle of the sexes is an idea — maybe just Lillard vs. Clark in 2025 — but at some point you'd run out of generational talent, which is part of the draw.
My suggestion? Bring back the Shooting Stars Challenge. An NBA player, a retired player and a WNBA player shoot the same six shots against the clock. It's a seamless, low-risk way to integrate WNBA talent. And if we learned anything from the skills challenge tiebreaker (which, let's face it, may have gone over the top), the women are far better at shooting half-court shots – a skill they work on at every practice and at every shootaround – than their male colleagues. — Sabreena Merchant, women's basketball writer
Could Caitlin Clark be the next challenger (or partner)?
Saturday's showdown between Curry and Ionescu came two days after Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark became the NCAA women's all-time leading scorer. The 22-year-old drew record-breaking crowds in her senior season and regularly hit deep 3s to stand alone in history. Clark's seemingly limitless selection has made her one of the most compelling players in all of basketball and the presumptive No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft if she forgoes her extra year of eligibility.
With Clark about to move up to the professional ranks, Ionescu was asked if Clark would be included in the next round of their 3-point competition.
“Well, we've talked about finding different ways to change this next year,” Ionescu said. “I think he has a partner in mind that will join him and that's why I'm open to any partner that can help me win and take away the belt that he has front and center.” —James Boyd, Indianapolis Colts staff writer
Shooting on an LED field in a football stadium
The matchup between Curry and Ionescu wasn't the only unique part of All-Star Weekend. For the first time in league history, players competed on an LED court with graphics and animations flashing across the floor. The field was also built in a football stadium and extends over the spot where the 50-yard field would normally be located.
Instead of hosting the event at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Indiana Pacers' stadium, which holds 18,000 fans, the NBA chose Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, which held more than twice that capacity. As Curry and Ionescu squared off, the court lit up, as did the packed crowd.
“Obviously it was a long prep run for two 70-second rounds, but I've been to 10 All-Star Weekends and then some shooting in the 3-point competition, and that's with the new 'On the floor and 40,000 fans out here and people using the restrooms, there was all kinds of chaos here,” said Curry, who laughed when he heard someone flushing the toilet nearby in the middle of his press conference. “It was perfect for us to put on a show like this. (It was) as much excitement as you can build in the short amount of time between two great shooters.
“Very special, we will remember this for a long time.” – Boyd
Required reading
(Photo: Stacy Revere/Getty Images)