4x NBA Champion Stephen Curry might have had a totally different NBA career if Dell Curry didn’t make this one call
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The summer of 2009 was one of the biggest summers for Stephen Curry. He had just come off a strong campaign as a junior in Davidson. He had led the NCAA in scoring and gathered the attention of a lot of scouts. After the strong season, Steph decided not to wait anymore, and registered his name in the NBA draft.
Steph spent the summer going from one pre-draft workout to another. On draft night, several teams wanted a guard. It was anticipated that Steph would be a lottery pick. As 3rd and 4th picks, the Thunder and the Kings selected shooting guards. The Timberwolves had the 5th and 6th pick, and they chose Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn, two point guards.
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The Warriors scooped up Stephen Curry as the 7th pick, and the rest is history. Minnesota and their GM are often mocked for passing up on Steph, and there are various versions of what happened. However, in 2017, Ex-Timberwolves GM David Kahn explained what actually happened.
Dell Curry made sure Minnesota didn’t draft Stephen Curry
Often mocked for his ‘blunder’ in the 2009 draft, David Kahn decided to share the truth about the same in 2017. After Stephen Curry won his 2nd championship, Kahn wrote and explained what happened. He wrote,
“The agent for Steph Curry told me that Steph’s father, Dell, did not want his son to be drafted by Minnesota—’No offense,’ as I recall Jeff Austin, his agent saying to me at the Chicago draft combine. Austin, who I’d known casually, had represented Dell Curry when he was a player. He had been handed Steph due to his connection to Dell and told me this was a family request. ‘I really need your help on this,’ Jeff said, explaining why there would be no visit and perhaps even hell-to-pay.”
If Dell Curry hadn’t intervened, maybe the Wolves would have drafted Steph. Who knows how the career would have turned out for the 4x Champ, 2x MVP, and Finals MVP?
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Would he still have signed two 200+ million deals? Would he still have managed to amass $160 million? I’m glad we don’t have to ponder over these questions, and the Chef is in San Francisco, where he belongs.
