Jay Greeson: 5-at-10: Steph's greatness, Mocs monster opportunity vs. Belmont, signing day sighs

Dec. 15—Kudos Steph

We discussed Steph Curry earlier this month, and it's now official.

Curry has made more 3s than any professional basketball player to ever lace them up in the U.S. He made five 3s Tuesday night on his way to 22 points as the Warriors beat the Knicks.

He now has 2,977 3s, four more than previous record-holder Ray Allen.

Let's crunch numbers for a second. Curry will be 34 in March. His game is perimeter-based, so if he stays healthy, it's reasonable to expect at least three more quality seasons and maybe as many as five. He's on pace for 440 3s this season, which topple his previous career-best of 402 in 2016, which is the NBA single-season record too.

It's certainly conceivable for Curry to add at least another 1,000 3s, no? That would be 300 more this year — he has 145 through 27 games which establishes the previously mentioned pace — and another 700 or so over the next few years.

Would 4,000 3s be the same as 511 wins? I don't think so because of the changing nature of both sports. Starting pitchers now go on four- or even five-day rotations and even when they are pitching well can be removed before finishing five innings because of pitch counts and protective measures.

The NBA is only going to jack more 3s.

I don't think anyone will get to 4,000 3s any time soon, but no one will ever get to 511 wins. Heck, no one will ever get to 411 wins.

But this is not to diminish Curry's accomplishment, and his volume does not impact or cloud his accuracy. He's a career 43.1% shooter from distance, which is seventh all-time. (And second among the Currys, since brother Seth is third all-time at 44%.)

And because I love the draft — you know this — when players seal their spots among the best ever, I am always intrigued to review the draft in which said player was plucked.

And to be fair, the jury was out on Curry since a) he was slight and this was before the league completely switched to a "3 or no to 3, that is the question" mode, never mind the full-blown Patrick Henry hoops strategy of "Give me 3s or give me death, and b) his injury history. Plus, the Warriors almost dealt Curry early in his career because of those chronic ankle issues.

Still, looking back on the 2009 draft when Curry went 7th, well, the hindsight clearly would make him the No. 1 overall pick. Yes Blake Griffith, who went 1, has had a fine NBA career, but he's clearly no Steph.

James Harden, who went 3 overall, is the other MVP in that draft. As for the rest of the names that went before Steph, well, cover your eyes.

Memphis took Hasheem Thabeet at 2 and Sacramento took Tyreke Evans at 4. Which brings us to Minnesota, which had picks 4 and 5 and took two points and neither was named Steph Curry. In a move not unlike all of the teams tha took a QB in round one of the 1983 NFL draft, the T-Wolves took Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn, leaving the Warriors running to the podium to pick Steph.

And like the record-setting 2,977 3s he's made, that pick was an all-timer.

Mocs moment

Getting our hoops fix this morning, and we'll go from an all-timer who played in the Roundhouse to the crew that currently calls that joint home.

UTC heads to Belmont tonight in the rarest of commodities in the modern age of college basketball, especially mid-major college basketball.

The Mocs have been one of the most accomplished road teams in the country, with five true road wins. But this one would be mammoth.

Belmont is 8-3 with an RPI of 18 — one spot behind UCLA and one ahead of Duke as of this morning. Chattanooga is 54th in RPI, two spots in front of UConn.

This is the type of win that adds great flavor to a resumé that already has some spice. A UTC win in this one continues to shape what could be a historic narrative of two possible SoCon teams getting to the NCAA tournament.

As Mean Gene Henley, the TFP UTC beat ace, notes here, the Mocs have a full slate of big opportunities on the horizon before the conference season starts. And that's exactly what it is — an opportunity.

But Murray State and MTSU and the rest only become bigger if the Mocs handle their business tonight. It's a staggered collection of lily pads, in truth, each becoming bigger if the previous step is managed successfully.

Fairly or not, the Mocs almost have to sweep these challenges — tonight at Belmont, Saturday at Murray State and a week from tonight vs. MTSU in McKenzie — to truly stoke cultivate the "at-large bid" debate.

Is that fair? Maybe not. But that's the reality, no matter how many Power Five programs lose to UMKC or Western Kentucky.

And UTC success in this monster week of opportunity would be doubly beneficial because for the SoCon to be viewed as more than a tournament-winner-gets-the-bid league, the conference RPI will need to remain around that 10ish number. (Currently the SoCon is ninth among leagues, a spot ahead of the A-10, which sent at least three teams to the tournament from 2008-18 and two each of the last two years.)

And the way to keep the SoCon RPI high is the same as keeping the UTC RPI high.

Win.

Signing Day

So the early signing period starts today.

Yippee.

Seriously, and I'm pretty sure I've written this exact sentence before: NASCAR and recruiting are the two sports areas that I went from full-speed to whatever over the last handful of years.

Sure, if Auburn was hauling in prospects like Texas A&M, maybe my interest would change. Or, if it was not the drum beat of Alabama 1, Georgia 2, or vice versa every year, maybe that would be more intriguing.

I have become fascinated with the change in our collective fandom to being as attracted to the transaction as the action in sports.

Be it the draft — I love the draft, you know this — or free agency or the trade deadlines or now with the transfer portal, those moves and machinations have become almost as big as the games, and in some cases bigger. (Seriously, bigger. How much did you worry about the Braves in a three-game series with the Blue Jays in August? Now, how much are you worried about resigning Freddie? See what I mean.)

And a big reason for that attraction to those player acquisition or picks is because they are centered in hope.

A hope for better. A hope for tougher. A hope for a winner.

The games have a finality, and because of our nature, the losses stink more than the wins are rosy. The setbacks sting way more than victory validates. Heck, in a lot of instances, winning is more than anything the relief of not losing, especially in college football.

And maybe that's affected my interest in the college football recruiting realm, too.

Unlike your favorite NFL team picking a QB of the future or your favorite baseball team signing an ace pitcher — or resigning the first baseman who is the face of the franchise — signing day for the big boys has become like Saturdays.

Georgia and Alabama are going to have their way, and the rest of us are forced to deal with what's left.

Is 9:30 too early to start drinking?

(Side question: "Mr. Mom" is wickedly underrated. And when Martin Mull comes to pick up Michael Keaton's wife — played by Teri Garr, who also was underrated back in the day — and Keaton welcomes him at the door with "Wanna beer?" Mull replies, "It's 8 o'clock in the morning." And without missing a beat, Keaton's "Scotch?" is perfect timing.)

This and that

— Speaking of signing day, here's Paschall being pitch-perfect Paschall on recruiting.

— And speaking of pitch-perfect, when Weeds weaves words on college basketball, it makes my mornings better. Good times, and I'm not sure a single sports section in the country can offer three experts in topics of the utmost importance to its readers like Paschall on SEC football, Weeds on SEC hoops and Hargis on high school happenings do for the TFP. (Side question: Utmost, friend or foe? I am saying friend. Big friend.)

— OK, just seeing this, and who knows what happened behind the scenes, but the timing of this is going to be debated heavily. Michele Tafoya has been a long-time NFL sideline reporter and broadcaster for NBC. She is very good at what she does. Earlier this fall, Tafoya sat in with the women on "The View" and even was given what is known in some circles as the 'conservative' chair. The topic turned to Kaepernick and Tafoya weighed in with her beliefs and thoughts and was not surprisingly, very articulate and it made Whoopi's hair straighten. She has not been on the NBC broadcast for the last three weeks — dubbed "bye weeks" by the Peacock people. By all reports — including this one from the NY Post — this was Tafoya's decision, and there will be a bidding war for NFL talent when Amazon puts together broadcast crews. Still, let the conspiracies begin.

— We have had a slew of folks already enter the Bowling for Bowls of Bowl Game Success, Bowler Optional contest. Here is a link to the games, rules and lines. And remember, we're paying last place too. Everyone gets a trophy apparently.

Today's questions

Which way Wednesday starts this way.

Which sport area were you gonzo over 10 years ago but are a whole bunch of 'meh' today?

Which way you leaning, Mocs plus-5.5 or Belmont minus-5.5 tonight? (So you know I'm already on the Mocs. And sizably. Daddy's got some Christmas shopping to do.)

Which NBA player would you pick if you needed a bucket with your dog's life hanging in the balance? It's not Steph for me. It's KD, and it's not close.

Which NFL sideline reporter is the best?

As for today, we need some nominations for the numbers in our 12 days of a sports fan Christmas. We're on No. 3. My nominations is 3 Dale.

"Gone With the Wind" premiered on this day in 1939.

"Folsom Prison Blues" was released on this day in 1955. Amazingly it was Billboard Song of the Year in 1968. So there's that.

Walt Disney died on this day in 1966. Sitting Bull died on this day in 1890.

Rushmore of Walt seems hard. Rushmore of Bull, and keep it clean(iish) you bleeps.