Curry in a Hurry
We saw you, Stephen Curry. Now the view is even better.
This In Your Face ran in SLAM last year after Stephen Curry had a coming-out party of sorts in the NCAA Tournament. Little did we know that would be but a prelude to what he’d do this year. See you later, Wisconsin…
By Michael Bradley
It finally happened in early March. Stephen Curry defeated his old man. Kicked his butt, really. Dell Curry came to Davidson and consented to a shootout. It wasn’t close. But it wasn’t official.
“He said it has to be in the driveway to be the house championship,” Stephen says with a sigh.
When your father is a former sharpshooter who spent 16 years drilling NBA three-pointers, you probably have some pretty good basketball DNA hard-wired inside. You also get the inevitable comparisons and the accompanying substantial shadow from which it’s never easy to escape. So, when you get a chance to knock Dad down, you start swinging.
“It was a little hard for me in high school, because when I would do something on the court, [people] would bring [Dell] into it,” Stephen says. “It’s a good honor to have Dell Curry as my dad and to have his name, but I’m trying to make a name for myself.”
Consider the first steps toward that goal accomplished. Curry had a tremendous freshman season for the Wildcats, averaging 21.5 ppg and playing a huge role in helping a team that was replacing four starters and seven seniors return to the NCAA Tournament. Curry made an astounding 40.8 percent of his three-point attempts, showing that his father’s sweet stroke did make it to the next generation.
Maryland found that out in the first round of the Tournament when Curry erupted for 30 points in an 82-70 loss. The Wildcats were in control early on but wilted late when Maryland discovered that Curry and his mates were pretty accurate from long range.
“They were pressing us, and we were getting open shots because we could break it and weren’t shy about shooting early in the shot clock,” Curry says. “In the second half, they realized [the press] didn’t work.”
The 6-1 Curry heads into his sophomore year hoping to improve his ballhandling, but no matter how tall he is, he can still shoot. Just ask his dad about that.
27 Responses to “Curry in a Hurry”
Mar.28 at 10:03 pm
ken says:
that guy curry is ……….BEAST there just nothing else to describe 100 someodd points in three games
Mar.28 at 10:58 pm
Rich says:
Again, proof that SLAM had it down first…Love it!
Mar.28 at 11:23 pm
matt says:
Stephen Curry is too cold. He could start on any team in the nation. Don’t know how Virginia Tech didn’t recruit him. I think he’ll be a star in the NBA too. A Monta Ellis type of player with a 3 point shot.
Mar.29 at 12:03 am
Captain America says:
Remember Dell knocking down shots in the day and young Stephen is a star in the making.
Mar.29 at 2:42 am
Alpha-bet says:
Just got back from the Davidson vs Wisconsin game at the Big Dance here in Detroit..great upset and Curry is playing stupidly ginormous..
Mar.29 at 3:05 am
ronniefields says:
Didn’t Slam also mention way back in the day how they were “amazed” by Dell Curry’s 9 year old son and his pregame shootaround….. check it, Back in Noyz…
Mar.29 at 3:43 am
Pat Is Five says:
so, is he going to be better than Dell? or is he already?
Mar.29 at 4:15 am
Holly MacKenzie says:
Ronnie: http://slamonline.com/online/2008/03/hot-curry/
You’re right, our boy Russ had the scoop years ago!
Alpha: Wish I had been at that game. What a crazy tourney for this kid so far. He’s fantastic. Cool seeing Bron there showing his support, too. I liked that. The Wildcat Witness shirts were cool too. Bet Steph is on top of the world right now. Shoot. Final four? Come on Davidsonnnn!!
http://blog.cleveland.com/sports/2008/03/_dlthe_davidson_witnesses_prep.html
Mar.29 at 5:30 am
hursty says:
holly almost posts exclusively on post up. just shows how significant this kid is! go the underdogs.
Mar.29 at 11:27 am
Blake13 says:
He is already better than his dad ever was.
Mar.29 at 11:37 am
k.o. says:
was at that detroit bracket last night - curry was unbelievable! so calm under full man pressure and he seems to get all his points within the flow of the game. lookin forward to sunday…
Mar.29 at 1:09 pm
jeremy says:
I hate to say it,but I think this is as far as they are gonna go…I just dount think they can beat Kansas…they are so talented…Stephen would have to have the game of his life for them to win…I will root for them…by the way,whats the deal with the new Jordan commercial saying that there are no cinderrellas?Thats not true.If there are no such thing as cinderrellas,how did George Mason get to the Final Four?Who saw that coming?If you can honestly say you did,you are a basketball genious…anyway,Stephen is going to make a good NBA player,because of the fact that he is willing to work for the ball,and he can get his shot off as good as any small guy Ive ever seen…this guy is no joke,he will make a great asset to an NBA team someday…
Mar.29 at 4:24 pm
sjeezy says:
the knock on people today is oh no one curry until now, well no duh, who would know a 6′2 guard that is this good until something spectacular, who knew jordan would be as good as he was, hell no no one did, but still, i love stephen curry, he is unbelievable, the shooting, the incredible shots, i love his catch and pumpfake then let it fly man he is a dream player, so unbelievably raw, i hope he can be this good in the nba, but til then, go davidson, curry i want him in the final four, and national championship, yes i’ll admit for the first time im on the bandwagon, but this time, its for a great great great player, hey even lbj is on it now. lol
Mar.29 at 6:54 pm
what says:
Stephen Curry is insane at the college level, but is a skinny 6′1″ shooting guard reeeeally gonna be a star in the NBA? I’m not tryna hate, the dude is ballin out of his mind right now and I hope he becomes a star in the NBA, but he looks a lot like Salim Stoudamire to me.
Mar.29 at 7:14 pm
Benny The Jet Rodriguez says:
Dude was like 5′11 coming out of HS.
Mar.29 at 7:19 pm
Benny The Jet Rodriguez says:
He’s so much better than Salim, plus he’s actually grown to 6′3.
Mar.30 at 1:33 am
noone says:
i played against him when we were 14 this is nothing new he was hitting shots like this back then nba 3’s killing kids…his lil brother is off the wall too…im glad to see the kid doing well
Mar.30 at 10:27 pm
Ben Osborne says:
I don’t care what happened today, Bill Self is still a joke.
Mar.31 at 1:35 am
dma says:
Stephen Curry will be lucky if he’s the next JJ Redick.
Mar.31 at 1:38 am
dma says:
charles “salim” stoudamire is being held back by his attitude. and the stoudamire name.
Mar.31 at 7:32 am
matt the jazz fan says:
he’s:
- monta ellis minus the huge hands and huger hops,
- plus the slick one on one moves of brandon roy
- plus the smooth shooting stroke of ray allen
- though, at times, minus any sensible shot selection.
Mar.31 at 7:41 am
Simon Fuller says:
Would Stephen Curry have gotten that In Your Face if he wasn’t Dell’s son? I doubt it.
Mar.31 at 8:22 am
TADOne says:
Man, how I wish Stephen would have been able to keep his dribble and get that last shot off against Kansas instead of being forced to give the ball up. Good defense by Kansas on that last possession. And co sign Ben: Bill Self is an overrated coach. UNC will advance to the championship.
Apr.1 at 11:25 am
jimmy cross says:
man that dude is somethin serious watch out next year if he comes back
Apr.1 at 11:26 am
jimmy cross says:
this guy is somethin special.if he decides to come back next year;watch out collage friends.
Apr.1 at 11:27 am
jimmy cross says:
this guy is somethin special.if he decides to come back next year;watch out collage fans.
Apr.18 at 6:04 pm
peter cordova says:
the next generation of tri fecta…..
I got a nickname for him too “The Young Fella”