Arenas makes the case that Booker and Young were initially seen as pure scorers, while Steph Curry was not given the same label.
Steph Curry is the greatest shooter in NBA history.
But Gilbert Arenas doesn't view the Warriors superstar as a true scorer, as opposed to other star guards currently in the league.
"It's an overall thing," Arenas said on his "Gil's Arena" podcast. "Devin Booker would be considered more of a scorer than Steph -- natural scorer."
Former NBA point guard Brandon Jennings, completely taken aback, questioned Arenas' logic.
"Really?" Jennings replied. "But Steph's whole game has been scoring."
Arenas argued that how a player scores separates them from identifying as a scorer versus a shooter, using the midrange shot as an example.
While Jennings tried to convince Arenas that Curry has midrange and can score in other ways than just beyond the arc, Arenas wasn't sold.
"Trae Young is considered more of a natural scorer than Curry," Arenas said.
"Do you see how we're having trouble identifying [a scorer versus a shooter]?" Arenas said. "And we played! My brain is going to, 'How many dribbles is he taking to score?' If we take away your handle, and say, 'One, two, pull up.' How does he survive?"
“Devin Booker is more of a scorer than Steph Curry.”
Gil’s Arena breaks down the difference between shooters and scorers. pic.twitter.com/WvnZgIwubt
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) August 23, 2024
Through 15 NBA seasons, Curry averages 26.4 points on 45-percent shooting from the field and 40.8 percent from 3-point range, with 4.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
He's a two-time scoring champion on 30 points-per-game seasons, in addition to being a four-time NBA champion, 10-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA MVP.
Regardless of that, Arenas believes much of Curry's greatness stems solely from his lights-out shooting ability.
"That's not his game. How he plays the game, our brain doesn't identify him as just a natural scorer," Arenas said. "If we said who would win a 1-on-1, him or [Damian Lillard]? Basketball players would say Dame. Who would win 1-on-1, him or Kyrie [Irving]? Everybody will say Kyrie, right? Because of their natural ability just to get a bucket."
After nearly 25 minutes of debating the differences between a scorer and shooter, Arenas admitted that they're still "trying to figure this out."
In the end, the crew acknowledged that Curry might be one of those players such as LeBron James, who are in a category of their own somewhere in the middle of scorer and shooter.
Regardless, greatness is greatness. And no matter how you label him, it's safe to say Curry is one of the greats.
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