Advertisement

Tony Allen on Stephen Curry: 'Ain't nothing I ain't never seen before'

Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry, right, drives the ball past Memphis Grizzlies' Tony Allen during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, March 7, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry, right, drives the ball past Memphis Grizzlies' Tony Allen during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, March 7, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

Tony Allen may recognize Stephen Curry's MVP status, but that doesn't mean the self-proclaimed "Grindfather" will concede defeat in a Western Conference semifinal showdown between the NBA's most dynamic point guard offensively and arguably the game's best backcourt defender.

In an interview with CSNBayArea.com's Nate Stuhlbarg, Allen seemed less than impressed with the Golden State Warriors star, even after Curry torched his Memphis Grizzlies for 22 points in a Game 1 win.

"I don't get a vote, but I acknowledge his MVP status," Tony Allen said after practice on Monday. "It's well deserved, I wasn't surprised."

[...]

"He can shoot the ball pretty good and he got a nice handle," Allen said when asked what makes Curry special. "But it ain't nothing I ain't never seen before."

So many questions stemming from this statement, starting with: Was Allen's quadruple negative intentional? Allen's Twitter feed has long been almost indecipherable, and this sentence was TA speak at its peak.

In all likelihood, the two-time First Team All-Defensive selection didn't mean, "It's nothing I've seen before," and technically Allen is right. Curry dribbles and shoots the ball just like everyone else, except for the small fact he cemented himself as the most prolific 3-point shooter in basketball history this season.

Curry converted an NBA record 286 3-point field goals, breaking his own mark of 272, and he now owns three of the best five long-distance shooting years in league history. And he did so by converting a remarkable 44.3 percent of his 646 attempts, making a case for the title of Greatest Shooter to Ever Live.

Some might consider that a differentiator, regardless of Curry's league-leading 91.4 free throw percentage and 163 steals, but Allen is on the record saying Houston Rockets guard James Harden is the only player he hasn't quite figured out. Harden, of course, finished second behind Curry in Monday's NBA balloting.

While it is true Allen does not possess an official MVP vote, he does have a voice in the inaugural NBPA Basketball Players Awards this July, when the union will announce its selections for Most Valuable Player and Hardest to Guard, among other honors. It would be interesting to discover how the Grizzlies guard voted on his ballot, and in turn whether Curry gave Allen a nod in the Best Defender category.

After all, Curry shot just 18.2 percent (2-11 3P) in 39 minutes when they shared the floor and 58.8 percent (10-17 3P) in 64 minutes when Allen wasn't on the court for the Grizzlies during the regular season. The two have several more chances to settle the score in the playoffs, starting with Game 2 on Tuesday.

- - - - - - -

Ben Rohrbach

is a contributor for Ball Don't Lie and Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!