The upcoming NBA season will bring two new rules designed to protect shooters – and few will benefit as much as Stephen Curry. Starting from the 2025-26 season, the “high-five rule” will take effect, which prohibits defenders from hitting the shooter’s hand during the motion, and the “delayed contact rule”, which counts as a foul even contact that occurs immediately after the ball is released.

Two technical details that, in practice, change a lot. They mean more space, more balance, and more safety for those who live by their shot, like the Warriors’ No. 30.

Golden State coach Steve Kerr welcomed the news:

The high-five rule is the most important, and it was developed thanks to the work of the coaches’ association together with the league. In recent years, defenders were allowed to hit shooters’ hands. We call everything under the basket, but on jumpers we had been too permissive. Now it won’t be like that anymore: the shooter can complete the full motion. Before, they would hit the hand like in a high-five, and now that will be a foul

Steve Kerr

Kerr also added:

Even those contacts that happen a second after the release – when the defender hits your wrist – will be penalized. It was a risky situation that could cause injuries. Protecting shooters is the central point of these rules

Steve Kerr

For Stephen Curry, who has been challenging the impossible with one shot after another for fifteen years, this news is like an assist. Fewer hands on him, fewer risks, more freedom to execute. And if Steph even gains just half a second more to raise his arc, it’s bad news for everyone else.

The Warriors know they can no longer rely solely on their past. But in an increasingly crowded Western Conference, every advantage counts. And if these new rules allow Curry to stay in rhythm and shoot with confidence, Golden State will have found the best way to remain dangerous: let the greatest shooter of all time do what he does best – score.