Stephen Curry, the man who changed the game of basketball forever, isn’t someone who just shoots and scores out of pure dumb luck. To become the three-point god he is today, he had to put in years of hard work and put up hundreds of thousands of shots inside an empty gym. Anthony Morrow, a former NBA player, revealed just how special Curry’s work ethic has always been.
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In 2009, when the Golden State Warriors selected Curry seventh overall in the Draft, he was viewed as a risky pick. Scouts felt he shot the ball without much thought and lacked the physical prowess to thrive in the NBA. The league’s landscape, admittedly, was very different then. Big men were seen as the driving force behind championship teams, and franchises were doing all they could to land one.
Yet Morrow could see the writing on the wall with Curry. Why? Because he had a preview of what was to come. The nine-year NBA veteran and sharpshooter had actually grown up playing with Steph in Charlotte.
“I grew up with him, you know, he’s from Charlotte as well. Our high schools were rivals. Then, we actually played together. We used to work out all summer,” Morrow said on Stories Untold with Natalie Bode. Not only that, but the former Warrior also used to play in a Pro-Am league with Curry. He shared that one time during a game, Steph had 60 points in just the 2nd half of a game.
Anthony Morrow gives a Steph Curry story: “We had our Pro-Am… … In the 1st half, you know, guys, you know they tried to beat up on him, and pick him a full court, and make him turn the ball over, and he kinda played conservative. And I don’t know what happened in the 2nd half, but he had like 60”
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That’s when Morrow realized what he was watching was different from everyone else at the time. But he kept hearing people try to tear Curry down because of his size and defense. “I saw what he was doing. It was different than what any other guard was doing. They were trying to say it’s not going to work in the NBA,” Morrow shared.
It was natural for NBA scouts to be skeptical of Steph at the time. After all, he was doing things that had never been done. Defense and physicality in the paint were the bigger focal points, and the league had yet to see a truly lethal sniper from deep. However, Curry didn’t let his size stop him. Instead, he outworked the competition.
“His work ethic, I don’t think people understand. His routine, his regimen, how he approached the game was crazy,” Morrow stated. That’s when the rookie on the Warriors at the time went to the front office and told them that they needed to draft Curry. But what they told him in response was shocking.
“I was like, ‘We need to draft Steph.’ And a lot of people, I ain’t going to say no names, they know who they are, they were like, ‘Steph Curry is ending up overseas.’ I was like, nah.”
In the end, the Dubs ended up listening to Morrow’s advice rather than the other voices in the room. Which was a decision that ended up being right on the money in the long run.
It didn’t work out right away, as Curry struggled to stay healthy for his first three seasons. But everyone saw the potential. Ultimately, it was met, and then some. With 4 NBA championships, 2 MVPs, and the same amount of scoring titles, it’s safe to say the Warriors drafted the right guy. Who knows if Morrow’s words really affected any true outcome? But it’s an interesting story nevertheless.
