Every time Stephen Curry is on the sidelines this season, he automatically regains a place in the major five. The night spent against the Thunder, Brandin Pod Ziemia thus benefited from his 4th tenure of the year.
The kind of meeting to revive yourself after weeks of lacking skill and productivity coming off the bench. With an average of 7.5 points so far, and only 37% shooting success, including 20% from distance, he is having a second season in decline. Even though he imagined himself gaining momentum with the departure of Klay Thompson.
Clumsy but complete
« Slowly but surely. I know I will score and shoot better. I focus on being happy, competitive, interacting with my teammates, focusing on that rather than minutes, shots, that kind of thing. So I changed my mindset », Describes the 21-year-old player.
His match against Oklahoma City probably didn’t give him all the answers. In 30 minutes, he contributed 12 points at 4/10 on shots. But the guard recalled that he could do a lot of things on the floor (8 rebounds and 5 assists).
« My biggest difficulty is always wanting more and always doing more. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I’m only in my second year and a lot of people around me have been doing this for 10 or 15 years. I know I still have a lot of progress to make. But as a confident young man with a desire to succeed, you tend to want more than you are capable of », he explains.
Elected in the best five rookies last year, he has so far not really “taken advantage” of the long-term injury of De’Anthony Melton, one of the competitors for his position, to gain strength.
A psychologist to help him
« It’s difficult to have a good rookie season, then have a second one as good, or even better. », recently noted Draymond Green according to whom his teammate “ put so much pressure on himself to be the player he wants to be. And it’s not necessary. »
Unlike last season where this dimension had little impact, coming off the bench or being a starter seems to be a major factor in his performances this season: only 5.5 points as a substitute, compared to 14 points as a starter. In both cases, his address concerns persist.
« I let the mental side take over a bit. When I struggled in the first five or ten matches, I thought it was more physical. As if I wasn’t invested enough. But everyone here knows that I am one of the hardest workers, if not the hardest, and that I put a lot of effort into ».
Then he turned to something else: “ Doctor (Graig Chow, who intervenes on the mental aspect) helped a lot of people here. And it doesn’t hurt to try asking him. So he helped me by giving me a lot of advice that helped me be myself. » To find oneself better in the field?
| Brandin Pod Ziemia | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saison | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | To | Pd | Fte | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2023-24 | GOS | 74 | 27 | 45.4 | 38.5 | 63.3 | 1.6 | 4.2 | 5.8 | 3.7 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 9.2 |
| 2024-25 | GOS | 17 | 24 | 37.0 | 19.7 | 71.4 | 1.1 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 3.5 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 7.5 |
| Total | 91 | 26 | 43.9 | 34.6 | 65.0 | 1.5 | 4.0 | 5.5 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 8.9 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
