Steph Curry’s 10th All-Star weekend will look a little different than his first nine appearances

SAN FRANCISCO — Steph Curry’s experience in the NBA’s All-Star festivities this weekend will be different than any of his previous nine appearances.

For Sunday’s exhibition classic in Indianapolis, Curry, 35, will be playing off the bench as a reserve for the first time as part of a deep Western Conference squad. Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will start as the backcourt duo this year.

“Two guys that are playing amazing this year with Luka and Shai,” Curry said after the teams were announced. “So, been doing this for a very long time, (and) the fact that it’s a talking point that I’m not (a starter) after nine healthy years — those two guys are playing amazing, they deserve it. Hopefully I’m there in Indiana in whatever capacity, but to still be doing it at this stage is always a challenge. You don’t ever take for granted how hard it is to be recognized in that way every year.”

Another tweak for Curry: He won’t participate in the traditional 3-point contest — a competition he won in 2021 and 2015 — but instead go head-to-head with WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu in a 3-point duel that is the first of its kind.

Ionescu, a Walnut Creek native out of Miramonte High School, set a 3-point contest record at last summer’s WNBA All-Star contest by scoring 37 of a possible 40 points to break Curry’s previous record of 31 set in 2021. Ionescu at one point hit 20 shots in a row.

“You’re just shooting without even thinking. Kind of unconscious to be honest,” Ionescu said on a videoconference call on Tuesday. “Hopefully I can make that many in a row at least one more time — coming up this weekend.”

Ionescu, 26, confirmed that she will shoot from the NBA line and reflected on how this inaugural competition was dreamt up in the first place. After Ionescu set the record, one of her first calls was to Curry — one of only a small group of people who can relate to her accomplishment. The idea of a head-to-head competition was formulated from there. Curry challenged Ionescu on social media and, last month, Curry brought it up as a possibility in a mic’d up segment during a game.

“Fast-forward seven months later and we’re having this moment and reshaping how people think about competition in general,” Curry said on the call. “You’ve got kids that are in gyms — boys and girls playing, shooting, playing pickup, whatever the case is — reimagining what competition really looks like at the same time. This can kind of be a moment for that.”

Ionescu remembers watching Curry as a 10-year-old Warriors fan, watching the early days of Curry’s rise at Oracle Arena from the seats. Curry remembers meeting Ionescu’s father, who sang his daughter’s praises as a Miramonte High School phenom who later broke out as a star at the University of Oregon. The New York Liberty selected Ionescu first overall in the 2020 WNBA draft.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better idol and mentor and someone that I can look up to and want to emulate my game after,” Ionescu said. “And who I am as a person and just staying true to myself.”

Curry will jump into that unique 3-point contest on a heater, shooting 50.7% from 3 over his last five games entering the All-Star break.