CHICAGO - Just three days after Steph Curry, Golden State's lone wolf Warrior, fired a career-high 62 points, Washington Wizard Bradley Beal exploded for 60 early today.
Although the performances were impressive, it didn't exactly make me slide off the couch in unbridled hysteria.
It's not that I'm hard to please. It's just that I've seen better.
Much, much.
Unlike the casual fan, I don't just stare at the points total and fall in love with it. Every time a player puts up big numbers, the analyst in me gleams at certain factors before my excitement meter begins to move.
Among the things that I look for include the number of field goals taken, its efficiency rate, the playing time it required to carve the masterpiece, and the final result.
Curry's 62 led to his team's 137-122 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at home at the Chase Center. And a W is always a good place to start.
On that night, Steph swished 18 of 31 from the field including 8-of-16 from 3. He also drilled 18 of 19 freebies. His percentages were 58, 50 and 94.7 percent, respectively.
But here are the wrinkles.
Curry's 31 field goal attempts constituted 35 percent of his team's 88 total field goals. Which rendered their offense predictable while reducing most of his teammates into innocent bystanders during most of his 36-minute outing.
Beal's 60 came in a 141-136 road loss to the Sixers at the Wells Fargo Center. In other words, the only meaningful thing he can show for this effort is a sore arm.
"I'm pissed off. I'm mad. I don't count (them)" the All-Star guard told ESPN.
Let's analyze it anyway.
Beal made 20 of 35 shots, 7-of-10 threes and 13 of 15 free throws. That's 57 ,70 and 86 percent, respectively.
Great, but here's the thing.
Beal's 38-minute labor saw him unload 37 percent of Washington's 88 total field goals. Somehow, Beal shot almost twice as many as serial ballhog Russell Westbrook, who settled with 18.
AS A RESULT, THE WIZARDS OFFENSE LOOKED LIKE A PAIR OF SNEAKERS. NO BALANCE.
So when one of my easily excitable writers texted me over Curry and Beal's scoring rampage, fire emojis raging on my iPhone, I only had a short reply.
Eh.
To me, the single most impressive shooting display occurred last January 23, 2015 at the Oracle Arena where the Warriors hosted the Sacramento Kings.
On that memorable night, Klay Thompson entered the building for 32 minutes and exited with 52 points while leaving the Kings mortally wounded, 126-101.
Thompson hit 16 of 25 shots, 11 of 15 triples and 9 of 10 free throws. That's an amazing 64, 73 and 90 percent fare.
He scored 37 in the third quarter alone, went 13-of 13 from the field and 9-of-9 from deep. And his total shots taken was merely 26 percent of the Warriors' 94 field goals.
One Splash Brother is more glamorous, draped in celebrity.
But I like the other one better. Precise, a quiet assassin.
So when I see point explosions these days, it only makes me miss Klay more.
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