Contents
NBA shooting duo
2009
2011
Dec 21, 2012
2014–15
2015
2015–16
Oct 29, 2018
Dec 14, 2021
2022
July 6, 2024
The Splash Brothers is the nickname for Golden State Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, who played together from 2011 to 2024.1 They hold or have held nearly every major NBA three-point shooting record between them and won four championships as teammates.13
On December 21, 2012, during a Warriors game against the Charlotte Bobcats, Brian Witt — then a digital-marketing coordinator for Golden State — posted the hashtag #SplashBrothers on the team's Twitter account.27 The name combined "splash," a pick-up basketball term for a made perimeter shot, with a nod to the "Bash Brothers," the nickname for Oakland Athletics sluggers Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire in the late 1980s.46 The hashtag caught on immediately with fans and media. Thompson later said of the nickname: "I love it, because it is synonymous with being an absolute dead eye from three."4
Both players are sons of former NBA players. Curry's father, Dell Curry, played 16 seasons in the league; Thompson's father, Mychal Thompson, was the first overall pick in the 1978 draft.1 Their mothers — Sonya Curry and Julie Thompson — were college volleyball players. Neither Stephen nor Klay was heavily recruited out of high school.1
Curry attended Davidson College, a small private school in North Carolina, after Virginia Tech (his parents' alma mater) offered him only a walk-on spot.1 As a sophomore in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, he led the Wildcats within one game of the Final Four. He averaged 28.6 points per game as a junior and led the nation in scoring.1
Thompson played at Washington State, where he was lightly recruited by other Pac-10 schools.1 He became a two-time first-team All-Pac-10 selection and left as the school's career three-point leader with 242 made threes.1
The Warriors drafted Curry seventh overall in 2009 and Thompson eleventh in 2011.1 Their first full season together as a backcourt began in 2012–13, after Golden State traded fan-favorite Monta Ellis to open the shooting guard position for Thompson.1
In 2013–14, Curry and Thompson set the NBA record for combined three-pointers made by teammates in a single season.1 They are the only duo in league history to make at least 600 combined three-pointers in a season.1
The pair led the Warriors to the 2015 NBA Finals, where they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers for the franchise's first championship in 40 years.1 That season they became the first teammates to start the All-Star Game as guards since 1975, and the first guard duo named to the All-NBA Team in the same season since 1979–80.1
In 2015–16, Curry made 402 three-pointers, setting the single-season record, and the Warriors finished 73-9 — the best regular-season record in NBA history — though they lost the Finals to Cleveland in seven games.1 Championships followed in 2017 and 2018 (with Kevin Durant), and again in 2022, when Curry won his first Finals MVP.1
Curry and Thompson also won a gold medal together on the United States national team at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.1
As of 2025, the Splash Brothers hold or have held the following NBA records:3
Both players have also won the NBA Three-Point Contest, combining for three titles over ten appearances at All-Star Weekend.5
After 13 seasons together, Thompson left Golden State on July 6, 2024, joining the Dallas Mavericks in a six-team sign-and-trade deal worth three years and $50 million.18 Curry remained with the Warriors. The two played against each other for the first time in November 2024, with the Warriors winning 120-117.8
The Splash Brothers is the nickname for Golden State Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, who played together from 2011 to 2024.1 They hold or have held nearly every major NBA three-point shooting record between them and won four championships as teammates.13
2009
2011
Dec 21, 2012
2014–15
2015
2015–16
Oct 29, 2018
Dec 14, 2021
2022
July 6, 2024
On December 21, 2012, during a Warriors game against the Charlotte Bobcats, Brian Witt — then a digital-marketing coordinator for Golden State — posted the hashtag #SplashBrothers on the team's Twitter account.27 The name combined "splash," a pick-up basketball term for a made perimeter shot, with a nod to the "Bash Brothers," the nickname for Oakland Athletics sluggers Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire in the late 1980s.46 The hashtag caught on immediately with fans and media. Thompson later said of the nickname: "I love it, because it is synonymous with being an absolute dead eye from three."4
Both players are sons of former NBA players. Curry's father, Dell Curry, played 16 seasons in the league; Thompson's father, Mychal Thompson, was the first overall pick in the 1978 draft.1 Their mothers — Sonya Curry and Julie Thompson — were college volleyball players. Neither Stephen nor Klay was heavily recruited out of high school.1
Curry attended Davidson College, a small private school in North Carolina, after Virginia Tech (his parents' alma mater) offered him only a walk-on spot.1 As a sophomore in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, he led the Wildcats within one game of the Final Four. He averaged 28.6 points per game as a junior and led the nation in scoring.1
Thompson played at Washington State, where he was lightly recruited by other Pac-10 schools.1 He became a two-time first-team All-Pac-10 selection and left as the school's career three-point leader with 242 made threes.1
The Warriors drafted Curry seventh overall in 2009 and Thompson eleventh in 2011.1 Their first full season together as a backcourt began in 2012–13, after Golden State traded fan-favorite Monta Ellis to open the shooting guard position for Thompson.1
In 2013–14, Curry and Thompson set the NBA record for combined three-pointers made by teammates in a single season.1 They are the only duo in league history to make at least 600 combined three-pointers in a season.1
The pair led the Warriors to the 2015 NBA Finals, where they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers for the franchise's first championship in 40 years.1 That season they became the first teammates to start the All-Star Game as guards since 1975, and the first guard duo named to the All-NBA Team in the same season since 1979–80.1
In 2015–16, Curry made 402 three-pointers, setting the single-season record, and the Warriors finished 73-9 — the best regular-season record in NBA history — though they lost the Finals to Cleveland in seven games.1 Championships followed in 2017 and 2018 (with Kevin Durant), and again in 2022, when Curry won his first Finals MVP.1
Curry and Thompson also won a gold medal together on the United States national team at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.1
As of 2025, the Splash Brothers hold or have held the following NBA records:3
Both players have also won the NBA Three-Point Contest, combining for three titles over ten appearances at All-Star Weekend.5
After 13 seasons together, Thompson left Golden State on July 6, 2024, joining the Dallas Mavericks in a six-team sign-and-trade deal worth three years and $50 million.18 Curry remained with the Warriors. The two played against each other for the first time in November 2024, with the Warriors winning 120-117.8
